Chapter 5: Measurement Concepts

When a measurement of a psychological variable is consistent or stable, it is __________.

A)valid
B)reliable
C)reactive
D)both a and c

Mary weighed herself and the scale reading was 120 pounds. A few minutes later she weighed herself again and the same scale showed she weighed 125 pounds. The scale is __________.

A)reactive
B)predictive
C)unreliable
D)invalid

One way to assess the stability of measures is by computing a Pearson __________.

A)coefficient criterion
B)linear coefficient
C)correlation coefficient
D)coefficient of determination

A correlation of 0.00 means that the two variables are __________.

A)not related at all
B)strongly related
C)negatively related
D)positively related

Which of the following indicates the strongest correlation?

A)+0.48
B)–0.98
C)+0.55
D)–0.02

When you read about reliability in an article, the correlation between two test scores will usually be referred to as the __________ coefficient.

A)score
B)internal
C)reliability
D)significance

A group of students took a cognitive development test on Monday and then took the same test again the following week. Most likely, researchers were assessing the __________ reliability of the measure

A)test-retest
B)split-half
C)odd-even
D)inter-item

Which of the following statements about test-retest reliability is FALSE?

A)The reliability coefficient of a measure should be at least .80 before the measure is accepted as reliable.
B)Sometimes test-retest reliability is artificially high because people remember how they answered the first time.
C)Test-retest reliability is the best form of reliability measurement.
D)Test-retest reliability is very useful if the variable being measured is expected to stay constant over time.

Which of the following is an indicator of the internal consistency reliability of a measure?

A)split-half reliability
B)Cronbach's alpha
C)inter-rater reliability
D)both a and b

When two raters observe the same behaviors, the extent to which their observations are in agreement is called __________.

A)split-half reliability
B)Chronbach's alpha
C)item-total correlations
D)inter-rater reliability

__________ validity refers to the adequacy of the operational definition of variables.

A)Operational
B)Construct
C)Measurement
D)Reliable

Dr. L reviewed a measurement scale designed to measure extroversion and said that it appeared to measure extroversion. The measure has __________ validity.

A)face
B)internal
C)convergent
D)predictive

__________ validity is demonstrated when a measure is NOT related to variables with which it should not be related.

A)Convergent
B)Concurrent
C)Differentiation
D)Discriminant

If participants change their behavior because they know their behavior is being measured, the measure is said to be __________.

A)systematic
B)reactive
C)predictive
D)conducive

A reliable measure yields consistent results.

A)True
B)False
True False

Split-half reliability is the correlation of each item on a test with every other item.

A)True
B)False
True False

The test-retest reliability for intelligence should be very high.

A)True
B)False
True False

Cronbach's alpha yields a value that represents the average of a number of correlation coefficients.

A)True
B)False
True False

A commonly used indicator of inter-rater reliability is called Cohen's Kappa.

A)True
B)False
True False

Predictive validity is a type of face validity.

A)True
B)False
True False

The Sensation Seeking Scale is an excellent illustration of construct validity.

A)True
B)False
True False

In a nominal scale, numeric properties are literal.

A)True
B)False
True False

A 20-item measure of depression would be classified as a ratio scale.

A)True
B)False
True False

Ratio scales have an absolute zero point

A)True
B)False
True False