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Score Reliability
Contemporary Thinking on Reliability Issues


August 2002 | 296 pages | SAGE Publications, Inc

"This is a book that should be on the desk of anyone truly concerned with reliability. The whole question of conditional reliabilities is current and important; and, the question of reliability generalization is being opened out and moving away from Cronbach's approach. The topic is an important one."

--Richard L. Gorsuch, Director of Research in Graduate School of Psychology, Fuller Theological Seminary

Should a high school diploma be awarded to students based on their score on a final exit exam? Should businesses deny employment to people based on their score on a personality test? In a world of "high stakes" testing, it has become more important than ever to make certain the scores on which we base our decisions are reliable. Aimed at helping researchers create and evaluate scores better, this reader presents the basic concepts of classical (or "true score") and modern ("generalizability") test theory. Beginning with a review of reliability and validity issues in measurement, the book covers score reliability, reliability induction, and reliability generalization. Exercises with sample data are included at the end of each section so readers can demonstrate knowledge of the principles.

About the Author

 

Bruce Thompson is Professor and Distinguished Research Scholar, Department of Educational Psychology, Texas A&M University, and Adjunct Professor of Family and Community Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine (Houston). He is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association and an elected member of the Executive Council of the American Educational Research Association. Thompson is also the editor of the Sage Publications journal Educational and Psychological Measurement.


 
Preface
 
Part 1 Basic Concepts in Score Reliability
Bruce Thompson
Ch 1 Understanding Reliability and Coefficient Alpha, Really alpha, Really
Bruce Thompson
Exercises
Frank Baugh
Ch 2 Correcting Effect Sizes for Score Reliability
Bruce Thompson
Ch 3 A Brief Introduction to Generalizability Theory
Thomas P. Hogan, Amy Benjamin, and Kristen L. Brezinski
Ch 4 Reliability Methods: A Note on the Frequency of Use of Various Types
Xitao Fan and Bruce Thompson
Ch 5 Confidence Intervals About Score Reliability Coefficients
Bruce Thompson
Exercises
 
Part 2 The Nature of Reliability
Bruce Thompson
Ch 6 Guidelines for Authors Reporting Score Reliability Estimates
Shlomo S. Sawilowsky
Ch 7 Reliability as Psychometrics versus Datametircs
Bruce Thompson and Tammi Vacha-Haase
Ch 8 Psychometrics is Datametrics: The Test is Not Reliable
Shlomo S. Sawilowsky
Ch 9 Reliability:Rejoinder to Thompson and Vacha-Haase
 
Part 3 Reliability Induction and Reporting Practices
Tammi Vacha-Haase, Lori R. Kogan, and Bruce Thompson
Ch 10 Sample Compositions and Variabilities in Published Studies versus Those in Test Manuals: Validity of Score Reliability Inductions
Dale Whittington
Ch 11 How Well Do Researchers Report Their Measures?: An Evaluation of Measurement in Published Educational Research
Audrey L. Qualls and Angela D. Moss
Ch 12 The Degree of Congruence Between Test Standards and Test Documentation Within Journal Publications
Bruce Thompson
Exercises
Tammi Vacha-Haase
Ch 13 Reliability Generalization: Exploring Variance in Measurement Error Affecting Score Reliability Across Studies
Ping Yin and Xitao Fan
Ch 14 Assesing the Reliability of Beck Depression Inventory Scores: Reliability Generalization Across Studies
Chockalingam Viswesvaran and Deniz S. Ones
Ch 15 Measurement Error in "Big Five Factors" Personality Assessment: Reliability Generalization Across Studies and Measures
John C. Caruso
Ch 16 Reliability Generalization of the NEO Personality Scales
Bruce Thompson
Exercises
 
Index
 
About the Author

"This is a book that should be on the desk of anyone truly concerned with reliability. The whole question of conditional reliabilities is current and important; and, the question of reliability generalization is being opened out and moving away from Cronbach’s approach. The topic is an important one."

Richard L. Gorsuch
Director of Research in Graduate School of Psychology, Fuller Theological Seminary
Key features

 

  • An introductory chapter explaining reliability and validity issues in measurement as well as providing an overview of the book
  • An annotated bibliography of suggested readings of historically seminal publications
  • An introduction to each major section that highlights the major conceptual contributions of the chapters as well as laying out essential background information for students new to the language of measurement theory
  • Exercises at the end of each section using sample data for the reader to work with to demonstrate the principles discussed in each section's articles

You can purchase this book and request an instructor sample on our US College site:

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This title is also available on SAGE Research Methods, the ultimate digital methods library. If your library doesn’t have access, ask your librarian to start a trial.