What do you see?

Personality Tests Chapter 13.4 p. 363-368 Learning Objective: What’s the use of personality tests? Personality Tests

Are Tests Legitimate? Reliability: Consistency of a test; get the same results in similar circumstances Test-Retest: Re-taking a test after a short time come up with the same result Scorer: Same results when scored at different times by different people (interscorer) Split-half: Randomly divide test items in half and score each half separately; scores should be about the same

Test Validity Measuring what a test is supposed to measure Example: PE class doesn’t measure your English language skills Predictive validity: how well a test predicts performance Must have a clear purpose established

Standardization Must be administered (given) and scored the same way every time Establishing a norm (average score) amongst a large group of people Creating a curve Examples of Standardized tests: SAT ACT Other “High Stakes” tests

Personality Tests Used to: Assess a person’s characteristics Identify problems Potential psychological disorders Predict future behavior

Objective Personality Tests A person must choose from a number of possible responses Types of tests: MMPI CPI Myers-Briggs Objective tests should be followed up by interview/discussion should a problem develop

MMPI-2 Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory Shows habits, delusions, fears, sexual attitudes, potential psychological disorders In scoring test, look for patterns of responses Best for extreme cases of psychological disorders

CPI California Psychological Inventory Does NOT measure for psychiatric illnesses DOES check for responsibility, tolerance Used FOR: leadership, management, stress

Myers-Briggs Checks decision making and encoding of an individual The 16 possible types helps an individual understand how to relate to others Introvert vs. Extrovert Intuition vs. Sensing Feeling vs. Thinking Perceiving vs. Judging

Projective Personality Tests Open-ended responses; a person is supposed to tell a story or give explanation With no prior meaning, projective tests give an indication to an individuals’ own wants, needs, and feelings Types: Rorschach Inkblot Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)

Rorschach Inkblot Test Developed 1921 by Hermann Rorschach 10 cards with inkblot designs chosen by emotional appeal to people Hand person a card, ask what they see Ask general questions to discover why the person gave their initial answers Many claim the test lacks validity and reliability

TAT 20 cards with pictures of suggestive situations Person tells a story based on the picture (how it developed, who the “characters” are, how it ends) Psychologist focuses on themes of responses Assesses motivation and personality characteristics

Homework Use one of the TAT pictures (either use one of the previous 3 images or find a different one online) to make up your own story about it. 12 sentences long, hand-written or typed. Be sure to include the build-up to the scene, what’s happening in the scene, and come up with an ending. Give characters a name, place, time.

Journal What does it mean to be intelligent? (8 sentences)

Word Bank Recall Confabulation Insight Schemas Syntax Mental Set Eidetic Memory Thinking Elaborative Memory Metacognition Memory Semantics Prototype Storage Short-Term Memory Phonemes Algorithm Episodic Memory Procedural Memory Functional Fixedness

Intelligence & Achievement Tests Chapter 13.2 & 13.3 Learning Objective: Understanding what intelligence is and how you can test it Intelligence & Achievement Tests

Intelligence No 100% agreed upon answer A definition: ability to acquire new ideas, new behavior, and adapt to new situations Types of intelligence tests: Stanford-Binet Wechsler Test

Views Of Intelligence Two-Factor Theory Of Intelligence- proposes that a person’s intelligence is composed of a general ability level and specific mental abilities L.L. Thurston believed that intelligence is composed of seven abilities and should not be a measurement of one factor. Howard Gardner believed that testing pure logic omits other skills. He believed in eight intelligences (Verbal, Logical, Musical, Body, Interpersonal, Intrapersonal, Naturalist).

Views Of Intelligence Cont. 4. Triarchic Theory- proposes that a person’s intelligence involves analytical, creative, and practical thinking skills 5. Emotional Intelligence- interpersonal and intrapersonal abilities needed to understand and use knowledge of emotions effectively

Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale Intelligence-Quotient (IQ)- standardized measure of intelligence based on a scale in which 100 is average IQ= (Mental Age/Chronological Age) X 100 Has since been replaced by more common Otis-Lennon Ability Test

The Wechsler Tests Yield percentile scores in several areas (vocabulary, information, arithmetic, picture arrangement, etc.) Separate IQ scores for different abilities Gives a more detailed picture

Uses & Meanings Of IQ Scores Measure the ability to solve certain problem types Used to identify learning disabilities Do not directly measure the ability to pose problems or question the validity of problems

Controversy Over IQ Testing Nature Vs. Nurture Cultural Bias- an aspect of intelligence test in which the wording used in questions may be more familiar to people of one social group than to another group

Measuring Achievement, Abilities, & Interests Section 3 Measuring Achievement, Abilities, & Interests

Aptitude Tests Aptitude Tests- estimates the probability that a person will be successful in learning a specific new skill I.e. ACT, SAT

Achievement Tests Achievement Tests- measures how much a person has learned in a given subject or area, not just their innate abilities

Interest Inventory Interest Inventory- measures a person’s preferences and attitudes in a wide variety of activities to identify areas of likely success