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Behavior Assessment

The document discusses the history and development of personality testing from the early 20th century to the present. Initial attempts to measure personality emerged around 1900 but lacked empirical validation. World War I led to the evolution of tests to predict soldier adjustment based on single personality dimensions. By the late 1930s, tests measured multiple personality dimensions. Modern approaches include objective paper-and-pencil tests, interviews, behavioral observations, and projective techniques using stimuli like inkblots or pictures to project unconscious material. All methods have strengths and limitations regarding validity, reliability, and susceptibility to response biases.

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veenuarora
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144 views

Behavior Assessment

The document discusses the history and development of personality testing from the early 20th century to the present. Initial attempts to measure personality emerged around 1900 but lacked empirical validation. World War I led to the evolution of tests to predict soldier adjustment based on single personality dimensions. By the late 1930s, tests measured multiple personality dimensions. Modern approaches include objective paper-and-pencil tests, interviews, behavioral observations, and projective techniques using stimuli like inkblots or pictures to project unconscious material. All methods have strengths and limitations regarding validity, reliability, and susceptibility to response biases.

Uploaded by

veenuarora
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Behavior

Assessment
Development of Personality Testing

• Initial attempts to measure personality


first emerged at the turn of the 20th
century.
- Theory-driven, not empirically derived,
pyschometric properties (e.g., reliability,
validity) were not established
• World War I ushered along the evolution of
personality tests
- importance of predicting adjustment of
new recruits to the military based on
single dimensions of personality and
behavior
• Within two decades following WWI, tests
evolved to measure multiple dimensions of
personality
Whether personality is
measured or assessed?
Personality Assessment
Defined

– The measurement of traits,


types, and states
– In order to assess values,
interests, attitudes, world
views, acculturation,
personal identity, cognitive
and/or behavioral styles.
Personality Assessment:
Some Basic Questions

n Who is being assessed?


n What is being assessed?
n Where is the assessment conducted?
n How is the assessment conducted?
Test Procedures

n Structured Interviews
n Case History Evaluations
n Paper and Pencil Questionnaires
n Computer-Administered Test Batteries
n Behavioral Observation
n Measuring Physiological Response
Subjective methods of
assessing personality

n Autobiography
Case history
Interview
Observation
Rating scale
Assessment Methods
n Objective Methods
– Highly structured
– Limited number of responses to test
items
– Prescribed scoring procedures
n Projective Methods
– Individual provides structure to
unstructured stimuli (i. e. ink blots,
pictures, words, etc.)
– Examiner makes an assessment
based on inferences taken from the
test taker’s subjective responses
Personality Assessment
n Projective measures give the subject an abstract or
unstructured stimulus
– Inkblot or incomplete sentence
– Requires subject to interpret the stimulus and respond
n Objective tests are standardized questionnaires
requiring written responses
– Usually self-report (16PF, MMPI-II)
– Task is to answer some specified number of questions about
yourself
Objective Personality
Measures

• Objective measures utilize highly


structured response formats
• Consist of unambiguous stimulus
items
- Forced choice (e.g., true/false)
- Likert scale ratings
• Result in a quantitative score that
can be compared with normative
score data
Sample Questionnaire
Projective technique
The Rorschach Inkblot Test

n The Rorschach Inkblot Test is the


most commonly used projective test
– In a 1971 survey of test usage, it was
used in 91% of 251 clinical settings
survey
– It is one of the most widely used tests
that exists
– It is widely cited in research
What is the Rorschach?
n The stimuli were generated by dropping ink onto a
card and folding it
– They are not, however, random: the ten cards in
the current test were hand-selected out of
thousands that Rorschach generated

n Ten blots – 5 black/white, 2 red/gray (II & III) and 3


color (VIII – X)

n Thought to tap into the deep layers of personality and


bring out what is not conscious to the test taker

n The following are the inkblots


Rorschach Ink Blots
Pictures as Projective Stimuli
n Story is attached to a specific Picture
n Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)
– Vague scenes (30 picture cards and one blank)
– Imagine and describe the events that lead up to a
scene, what is taking place and the outcome
– The stories, the clinician’s observations of the
examinee, and their extra-test behavior are
evaluated
– Interpretation based on Murray’s theory of
personality (need, press and thema)
– Questionable in terms of reliability
Words as Projective Stimuli
n Word association or sentence completion
– Examinee is asked to respond to a specific word or
phrase
– Time taken to respond, congruence between
responses, and information obtained in the inquiry
may be considered
– Statistics relating to popularity, reaction time,
content, and test taker’s response may be used
– Sentence completion has high face validity but
may be subject to faking
– Idiosyncratic responses may interfere with
reliability estimates
Sample Word

“Mother”
Production of Figure
Drawings
n Figure Drawing Test
– Examinee is asked to draw a person or a
scene
– The drawing is discussed to determine
the examinee’s interpretation and intent
– Position of drawing on the background,
size of figures, relationship between
figure(s), and style may be considered
– Questionable validity and reliability
Draw a person test
Picture Completion Sample
Projective Methods in
Perspective
n Assumptions
– Stimulus materials thought to elicit significant
responses
– Interpretation yields information about underlying
traits, or states
n Situational variables
– Environmental, interpersonal, and intrapersonal
variables can effect responses
n Psychometric Considerations
– Subject to uncontrolled variations in test protocol
– Test re-test or split half reliability estimates may
be inappropriate
Behavioral Assessment Methods
n Objective observation of a subject’s behaviour is a
technique that falls in the category of behavioral
assessment
Behavioral observations are widely made in interviews and in
a variety of workaday settings. Employers, supervisors, and
teachers—either formally or informally—make use of
behavioral observations in making decisions about people for
whom they have responsibility
n Focus on behavior as opposed to underlying traits, or states
– Target behaviors are considered to be measurable events
– Observations are made of one person at a time
– Behavior as a specific response to the environment
– Behavior is measured directly or indirectly
Sources of Inaccuracy in Personality
Testing
n Personality assessment largely depends on
self-report

n Response sets may affect personality results


Social Desirability
Some test takers choose socially acceptable
answers or present themselves in a favourable
light
Faking
Faking -- some test takers may respond in a
particular way to cause a desired outcome

– may “fake good” (e.g., in employment settings) to


create a favourable impression

– may “fake bad” (e.g., in clinical or forensic settings)


as a cry for help or to appear mentally disturbed

– may use some subtle questions that are difficult to


fake because they aren’t clearly face valid
Behavioral Observation and
Rating Scales
n Subject’s behavior is observed and recorded
– Well defined target behaviors
n Attachment behavior in infants
– Specific measures
n Frequency
n Duration
n Intensity
– Rating scales
n Direct, or indirect behaviors
n Broad, or narrow focus
When to Use what?

n Each design has strengths and weakness;


strength of one is weakness of another
n Which design a researcher uses depends
on the research question and the goal of
research
n Taken together, three designs provide
complementary methods for exploring
personality. ECLECTIC Approach
Issues in Behavioral
Assessment
n Validity of construct being measured
– Definition of the target behavior
– Behavioral changes across time and situation
n Reliability
– Definition of the target behavior
– Behavioral changes across time and situation
– Inter-rater reliability (contrast effect)
– Classical test theory versus generalizability
theory
– Reactivity
THANK YOU

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