Chapter 9: Testing and Individual DifferencesAP Psychology Mrs. Ware

Vocabulary & Key People

Achievement tests Validity

Aptitude tests KEY PEOPLE

Construct validity Alfred Binet

Contetnt validity Sir Francis Galton

Crystallized intelligence Howard Gardner

Emotional intelligence Arthur Jensen

Factor analysis Robert Sternberg

Fluid intelligence David Wechsler

intelligence tests

Mental age

Personality tests

Reification

Reliability

Standardization

Test Norms

Measuring Individual Differences

Psychology relies heavily on testing individuals, it is part of the foundation for psychological analysis. To be effective, however, strict guidelines must be followed.

Validity: Does the test actually measure what we say it does/what we want it to?

Ex. Reading on a math test

Face validity: Does the test look like it tests what it is supposed to test?

Content validity: Each part of the test is representative of the larger body of knowledge.

Measuring Individual Differences

Criterion Validity: The behavior (such as college grades) that a test (such as the SAT) is designed to predict

Predictive Validity: The success with which a test predicts the behavior it is designed to predict.

Measuring Individual Differences

The second part of a credible test is reliability.

Reliability: A test yields the same results over time

Test-Retest or Split-Half Reliability

Reliable, but not valid

Not reliable, not valid

Reliable and valid

Creating Validity and Reliability

The most efficient way to create validity and reliability is to use a standardized test.

In the most basic sense, a standardized test means:

The administration and scoring is the same for each test

The results of the test can be used to draw a conclusion about the test takers in regard to the objectives of the test.

Ex. AP test, S.A.T.

Judging Normal

A “normal curve” is applied to test to determine establish “norms.” When a statistically significant sample of the population has been tested, strong conclusions can be drawn.

A normal range for IQ scores is 70-130. Scores below 70 indicate mental retardation while scores above 130 are considered gifted.

Normal Distribution of IQ Scores

Degrees of Mental Retardation

Types of Tests

There are two main types of tests:1. Objective Tests: Tests that have one set

answer, that can be scored easily by machine

Ex. Multiple choice

2. Subjective Tests: Tests in which individuals are given ambiguous figures or an open ended question which requires some interpretation and analysis.

Ex. FRQsInter-rater reliability

Sample Subjective Test

The Rorschach Inkblot Test is one of the most widely known, and inaccurate subjective tests.

The following slides are real inkblots from the test that was, at one time, a widely used test. Today, it has lost much, if not all of its credibility in determining intelligence or mental illness.

Intelligence Testing

A term that is used frequently, but often misunderstood is “intelligence.” What exactly is intelligence?

Many people disagree about what exactly intelligence is, but most do agree that it is:

Relative: defined in relation to the same abilities in a comparison group (usually age)

Hypothetically constructed: it is unobservable, but instead inferred from behavior

Testing IQ

IQ (intelligence quotient) became a popular way to classify people in the early 1900s when two French psychologists (Alfred Binet and Theodore Simon) developed a test to identify those students who were gifted, and those who needed extra help.

Binet-SimonTest

The test had four important distinctions:Scores were interpreted at their current performance

Used to identify students in need of help, not label them or categorize them

Emphasized that training and opportunity could affect intelligence

Was empirically constructed

Scoring the test was done by calculating the mental age (MA) and the chronological age (CA).

MA= The average age at which normal individuals achieve a particular score

CA= The number of years since an individuals birth

Coming to America

The idea of IQ testing became popular in America for three reasons:

A huge increase in immigration

New laws requiring universal education

Military assessing new recruits for WWI

It created an inexpensive and objective way to separate those could benefit from education or military leadership training and those who needed assistance.

Downside of IQ Testing

Despite its utility, IQ testing had a big downside. Tests ended up reinforcing prevailing prejudices about race and gender.

Ignored was the fact that environmental disadvantages limit the full development of people’s intellectual abilities.

Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale

When the Binet test was adopted by a Stanford professor, he changed the equation to make intelligence scores into non-decimal numbers. This now became known as the Intelligence Quotient (IQ).

=IQ

Components of Intelligence

Savant Syndrome: Individuals with remarkable, but rare talent, even though they are mentally deficient in other areas.

Ex. Dustin Hoffman in Rain Man

Theories of Intelligence

Spearman’s g Factor: Charles Spearman thought intelligence was a general factor behind all of our mental ability.

Catell’s Fluid and Crystallized IntelligenceFluid- reasoning ability, memory capacity, and speed of information processing.

Crystallized- ability to apply knowledge and skills in problem solving

Theories of Intelligence

Howard Gardner believed that IQ scores measured only a limited range of human mental abilities. He argued we have seven separate mental abilities he calls the multiple intelligences.

Linguistic intelligence ("word smart"):

Logical-mathematical intelligence ("number/reasoning smart")

Spatial intelligence ("picture smart")

Bodily-Kinesthetic intelligence ("body smart")

Musical intelligence ("music smart")

Interpersonal intelligence ("people smart")

Intrapersonal intelligence ("self smart")

Naturalistic intelligence (“nature smart”)