Week 2 - The Past and Future of Psychological Testing & Ethics PDF

Week 2 - The past and future of psychological testing & ethics in assessment Wednesday, 11 September 2024 11:51 AM *midterm + final exams will consist of MCQ + SA questions Good to have sense of contributions of major figures, name with some context Basic concepts Test: a measurement dev...

Week 2 - The past and future of psychological testing & ethics in assessment Wednesday, 11 September 2024 11:51 AM *midterm + final exams will consist of MCQ + SA questions Good to have sense of contributions of major figures, name with some context Basic concepts Test: a measurement device that quantifies behavior Psychological test: a device for measuring characteristics of human beings that pertain to overt (observable) and covert (intraindividual) behavior Item: a specific stimulus to which a person responds overtly and that can be scored or evaluated ○ E.g. I find it hard to get out of bed ○ Stimulus is the thing that the person is responding to § Can also be an image of something, e.g. in the pattern what comes next ○ Not something that can be quantifiable, but something you have to look at and respond to Scale: tools that relate raw scores on test items to some defined theoretical or empirical distribution ○ IQ tests, GRE, MCAT - the number is only meaningful when you know what it is out of § Based on who wrote that test in a given year § Raw score = how many answers did you get right § Scale = how well you did in relation to others, helps you place yourself in relation to others ○ Note: word "scale" has some different uses in area of testing § E.g. also synonym for 'questionnaire' Difference between an individual test and group test ○ Individual: administered one-on-one, test-giver giving instructions and prompts, e.g. IQ test ○ Group: administered in group setting where multiple people are taking it at the same time, e.g. SAT ○ Wonderlic test - writing it as an individual, multiple people doing it at the same time is a group test Ability tests ○ Trying to capture, measure, assess ability to do something ○ Achievement: captures previous learning, what someone has achieved in a domain/multiple domains based on what they learned so far  ○ Wonderlic test - writing it as an individual, multiple people doing it at the same time is a group test Ability tests ○ Trying to capture, measure, assess ability to do something ○ Achievement: captures previous learning, what someone has achieved in a domain/multiple domains based on what they learned so far ○ Aptitude: focus on potential for learning a specific skill, e.g. assessment for rhythm, sing in key and hear different notes ○ Intelligence: general potential independent of previous learning, multi- domain faceted, should be independent of ○ Not black and white distinction Highlights from topic 1 - history of psychological testing Guiding question for modern-day psychological test development: how do we best measure individual differences? Different answers to question guided different eras and approaches in history of testing Social/historical factors and context have also shaped this field ○ E.g. needs of U.S. Army in WWI ○ Considering sociocultural and historical contexts in which dominant tests have been developed History of psychological testing Origins in China, over 4000 years ago ○ Examination of civil servants' fitness for office Han Dynasty: written exams testing various topics Ming Dynasty: even more formalized, highly selective testing system, to determine eligibility for public office Grueling process, not clear that the selection criteria were valid ○ Question of validity remains today Abolished by royal decree in 1906 Charles Darwin and individual differences ○ Proposed that higher forms of life evolved partially because of differences among individual forms of life within a species ○ "survival of the fittest" § More members of a species are more fit than others, how do we measure these differences? How to measure individual differences? ○ Question that inspired much of development of modern tests in 'western' contexts Sir Francis Galton (British) ○ Sought to apply Darwin's theories to the study of human beings ○ Designed experimental studies to demonstrate individual differences in sensory and motor functioning (e.g. reaction time, visual acuity) James Cattell (American) ○ Coined term 'mental test' ○ Based work on Galton's research  ○ Sought to apply Darwin's theories to the study of human beings ○ Designed experimental studies to demonstrate individual differences in sensory and motor functioning (e.g. reaction time, visual acuity) James Cattell (American) ○ Coined term 'mental test' ○ Based work on Galton's research Experimental psychology and psychosocial measurement ○ Second important line of inquiry in the history of testing ○ Emphasis on scientific method, objectivity, and rigorous experimental control § Psychophysical measurement to capture certain phenomenon ○ Use of instruments to measure sensory processes (e.g. reaction time) with the (false) idea that these represented intelligence § Brass instruments era □ Various instruments used made of brass, measuring things very precisely and accurately Advent of intelligence testing movement ○ Turn of 20th century: French minister of public instruction appointed commission to study ways of identifying students with 'subnormal' intelligence to provide appropriate educational services § Alfred Binet on commission, invented first modern intelligence test in 1905 § First invented to help struggling students - how can we identify these students and help them? □ Resources to best help them Notable aspects of Binet's early tests ○ Standardization sample, providing norms to which scores could be compared ○ Concept of mental age Versions of Binet's test were refined and improved over subsequent years ○ Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale became popular in the US Impact of world war I on the development of psychological testing in the US ○ Need for quick, efficient means of evaluating the emotional and intellectual functioning of thousands of military recruits ○ Demand for large-scale group testing ○ Robert Yerkes: Harvard psychologist, helped to design structured group tests of human ability for the US Army Development of personality testing ○ Influence of the needs of the Army, used to screen military recruits ○ Structured personality group tests to measure characteristics or traits thought to be stable ○ Paper-and-pencil, multiple choice or true/false Development of projective personality tests ○ Partly due to criticisms of structured personality tests ○ Ambiguous stimuli and often subjective interpretation and scoring procedures Further development of personality testing  ○ Paper-and-pencil, multiple choice or true/false Development of projective personality tests ○ Partly due to criticisms of structured personality tests ○ Ambiguous stimuli and often subjective interpretation and scoring procedures Further development of personality testing ○ Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) ○ More empirically rigorous approach to structured personality testing ○ Fewer assumptions made about what test items mean ○ One of most widely used tests today (MMPI-2 and subsequent versions) ○ To be discussed further later in semester Overarching themes ○ Popularity of tests, types of tests, fluctuated over the years ○ Influence of historical periods and events ○ Popularity of psychological tests tied into evolution of clinical psychology and other applied areas of psychology ○ Psychological testing is both central and controversial topic within psychology Current and future trends Testing is one of the few unique functions of practicing psychologists ○ Likely to remain an important part of psychologists' roles and identities ○ Challenges around issues of cost and insurance coverage Ongoing research advances likely to contribute to further improvements to existing tests and development of new tests ○ Advances in theory and methods Increased integration of technological advances is likely to shape the future of psychological testing in substantial ways Major current issues ○ Best practices and guidelines for virtual/remote psychological testing ○ Integration of AI into the practice of assessment Ethics in assessment Canadian code more general, few less points to consider in assessment American more concrete and specific in how ethical principles apply in psychological research Ethics in psychological practice Psychologists are guided by official codes of ethics or conduct, which they must follow in clinical practice Overarching ethical principles combined with more specific guidelines and rules for ethical practice Crucial aspect of graduate training in psychology Canadian code of ethics for psychologists Defined by four ethical principles, which need to be considered and balanced  rules for ethical practice Crucial aspect of graduate training in psychology Canadian code of ethics for psychologists Defined by four ethical principles, which need to be considered and balanced in ethical decision making Principles derived based on responses by Canadian psychologists asked to resolve hypothetical ethical dilemmas, and from examination of other ethics codes Principles are ordered according to the weight each should generally be given when two or more principles conflict Currently 4th edition, published in 2017 4 principles ○ Principle I: respect for the dignity of persons and peoples ○ Principle II: responsible caring ○ Principle III: integrity in relationships ○ Principle IV: responsibility to society APA Standard 9: assessment 9.01: bases for assessments ○ Base any opinions on sufficient information and appropriate techniques ○ Usually only provide opinions after conducting an actual examination of the individual(s) ○ If an examination is not possible, must make clear statements about this and about the limitations of any observations provided 9.02: use of assessments ○ Only use appropriate tools and techniques, based on research evidence ○ Use instruments that have been established as valid and reliable with populations that are appropriate to the individual being tested ○ If validity and reliability have not been established, must decide the benefits and limitations of the test results and their interpretation ○ Must consider the individual's language preference and competence Informed consent Three elements ○ Disclosure § Knowing what the research is about ○ Competency § Competent enough to say 'yes I can do this' and provide consent § Children - getting informed consent from parents § Asent - consent mainly from parents § At what age can a kid provide consent for themselves? ○ Voluntariness