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Week 3 Tutorial Discuss Aspects of Reliability/ Validity That Must Be Considered in Assessments

The document discusses the concepts of reliability and validity which are important features of assessments. Reliability refers to how consistently a test measures a characteristic, while validity refers to what the test actually measures and how well it measures that. The document outlines different types of validity including criterion-related, content-related, and construct-related validity. It also discusses how reliability and validity can be affected by factors like test forms, raters, and environmental conditions. The test should reliably and validly measure characteristics important for the job in question.

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Hanisah Rahman
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54 views

Week 3 Tutorial Discuss Aspects of Reliability/ Validity That Must Be Considered in Assessments

The document discusses the concepts of reliability and validity which are important features of assessments. Reliability refers to how consistently a test measures a characteristic, while validity refers to what the test actually measures and how well it measures that. The document outlines different types of validity including criterion-related, content-related, and construct-related validity. It also discusses how reliability and validity can be affected by factors like test forms, raters, and environmental conditions. The test should reliably and validly measure characteristics important for the job in question.

Uploaded by

Hanisah Rahman
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Week 3 Tutorial

discuss aspects of reliability/


validity that must be
considered in assessments

Concepts of Reliability and


Validity
Testreliabilityandvalidityare two
technical properties of a test that
indicate the quality and usefulness of
the test.
These are the two most important
features of a test.
You should examine these features
when evaluating the suitability of the
test for your use.

Principles of Assessment Discussed


Use onlyreliableassessment
instruments and procedures.
Use only assessment procedures and
instruments that have been
demonstrated to be valid for the
specific purpose for which they are
being used.
Use assessment tools that are
appropriate for the target population.

What makes a good test?

An employment test is considered "good" if


the following can be said about it:
The test measures what it claims to
measure consistently or reliably. This
means that if a person were to take the
test again, the person would get
asimilartest score.
The test measures what it claims to
measure. For example, a test of mental
ability does in fact measure mental
ability, and not some other characteristic.

The test is job-relevant. In other


words, the test measures one or
more characteristics that are
important to the job.
By using the test, more effective
employment decisions can be made
about individuals. For example, an
arithmetic test may help you to
select qualified workers for a job that
requires knowledge of arithmetic
operations.

Test reliability

Reliability refers to how dependably


or consistently a test measures a
characteristic. If a person takes the
test again, will he or she get a similar
test score, or a much different score?
A test that yields similar scores for a
person who repeats the test is said to
measure a characteristic reliably.

Some possible reasons are the following:


Test taker's temporary psychological
or physical state. Test performance
can be influenced by a person's
psychological or physical state at the
time of testing. For example, differing
levels of anxiety, fatigue, or motivation
may affect the applicant's test results.
Environmental factors. Differences in
the testing environment, such as room
temperature, lighting, noise, or even the
test administrator, can influence an
individual's test performance.

Test form. Many tests have more than one


version or form. Items differ on each form, but
each form is supposed to measure the same
thing. Different forms of a test are known
asparallel forms or alternate forms. These
forms are designed to have similar measurement
characteristics, but they contain different items.
Because the forms are not exactly the same, a
test taker might do better on one form than on
another.
Multiple raters. In certain tests, scoring is
determined by a rater's judgments of the test
taker's performance or responses. Differences in
training, experience, and frame of reference
among raters can produce different test scores
for the test taker.

Test validity
Validity is the most important issue in selecting a test.
Validity refers towhat characteristicthe test measures
andhow wellthe test measures that characteristic.
Validity tells you if the characteristic being measured
by a test is related to job qualifications and
requirements.
Validity givesmeaningto the test scores. Validity
evidence indicates that there is linkage between test
performance and job performance.
Validity also describes the degree to which you can
make specific conclusions or predictions about people
based on their test scores. In other words, it indicates
the usefulness of the test.

A test's validity is established in


reference to a specific purpose; the test
may not be valid for different purposes.
For example, the test you use to make
valid predictions about someone's
technical proficiency on the job may not
be valid for predicting his or her
leadership skills or absenteeism rate.
This leads to the next principle of
assessment.
Similarly, a test's validity is established
in reference to specific groups.
These groups are called the reference

For example, a test designed to predict the performance of


managers in situations requiring problem solving may not
allow you to make valid or meaningful predictions about
the performance of clerical employees. If, for example, the
kind of problem-solving ability required for the two
positions is different, or the reading level of the test is not
suitable for clerical applicants, the test results may be valid
for managers, but not for clerical employees.

Test developers have the responsibility of describing the


reference groups used to develop the test. The manual
should describe the groups for whom the test is valid, and
the interpretation of scores for individuals belonging to
each of these groups. You must determine if the test can be
used appropriately with the particular type of people you
want to test. This group of people is called yourtarget
population or target group.

Validity
Criterion-related validationrequires
demonstration of a correlation or other statistical
relationship between test performance and job
performance. In other words, individuals who score
high on the test tend to perform better on the job
than those who score low on the test. If the criterion
is obtained at the same time the test is given, it is
called concurrent validity; if the criterion is obtained
at a later time, it is called predictive validity.
Content-related validationrequires a
demonstration that the content of the test
represents important job-related behaviors. In other
words, test items should be relevant to and
measure directly important requirements and
qualifications for the job.
Construct-related validationrequires a

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