Psychology 2080A-001

Introduction to Test and Measurement

If there is a discrepancy between the outline posted below and the outline posted on the OWL course website, the latter shall prevail.

 

WESTERN UNIVERSITY 

LONDON               CANADA 

Department of Psychology 

2021 - 2022 

 

Psychology 2080A Section 001 

Introduction to Test and Measurement 

 

 

  1. CALENDAR DESCRIPTION 

 

This course examines principles of psychological assessment in an applied context through lectures and demonstrations. Topics will include reliability and validity, legal and ethical issues in test construction, and selected controversial questions relating to assessment in areas such as personnel selection, standardized testing in schools, and group differences in test performance.  

 

Antirequisite: Psychology 3840F/G.  

 

Antirequisites are courses that overlap sufficiently in content that only one can be taken for credit. If you take a course that is an antirequisite to a course previously taken, you will lose credit for the earlier course, regardless of the grade achieved in the most recent course. 

 

Prerequisite: Not Applicable. 

 

3 lecture hours; Course Weight: 0.5 

 

Unless you have either the prerequisites for this course or written special permission from your Dean to enrol in it, you may be removed from this course and it will be deleted from your record. This decision may not be appealed. You will receive no adjustment to your fees in the event that you are dropped from a course for failing to have the necessary prerequisites. 

 

 

2.0 COURSE INFORMATION 

 

Instructor: Jose A. Espinoza  

Office and Phone Number: SSC 8424A  

Office Hours: By Appointment (see OWL Sign-Up Tool)  

Email: jespinoz@uwo.ca  

 

Teaching Assistant: TBA  

Office:  

Office Hours:  

Email:  

 

Time and Location of Classes: Mondays, 2:30pm to 5:30pm in AHB-1R40. 

Delivery Method: In-Person (Synchronous) 

 

Students who are in emotional/mental distress should refer to Health and Wellness @Western https://www.uwo.ca/health/ for a complete list of options about how to obtain help. 

 

Please contact the course instructor if you require material in an alternate format or if you require any other arrangements to make this course more accessible to you. You may also wish to contact Student Accessibility Services (formerly known as Services for Students with Disabilities) at 519-661-2147. 

 

 

 

3.0 TEXTBOOK 

 

Psychological Testing: Principles, Applications, and Issues 

Authors: Kaplan, R.M. & Saccuzzo, D.P. (2018) | Edition: 9th Edition (Belmont, CA.; Wadsworth) 

  • Note. This is a special edition of the text printed for this course and should have the words “Psychology 2080 A/B” on the front cover). Please DO NOT use older versions of this book. 
  • The digital version of the textbook (e-book) is available via the online Western Bookstore platform. To purchase, go to: https://bookstore.uwo.ca/product/cebcodeid34561. For any questions regarding purchasing, please contact the UWO bookstore directly at: book.store@uwo.ca 

 

 

4.0 COURSE OBJECTIVES & LEARNING OUTCOMES 

 

The objectives of this course are to: 

  • explain important terms and concepts related to psychological testing and measurement, with special attention to concepts of reliability and validity. 
  • provide basic knowledge about psychological tests and test administration in applied areas, such as education, work, and health.  
  • familiarize students with potential pitfalls in testing and assessment by describing problems with specific tests, testing procedures, and the inappropriate use of test results.  
  • Introduce students to ethical issues of psychological testing and their implications. 

 

Learning Outcome  

Learning Activity  

Assessment 

Depth and Breadth of Knowledge.  

  • Describe various forms of assessment used in psychological testing (e.g., interviewing, self-report, and observation) and recognize their respective advantages and disadvantages in practice. 

Lecture and readings 

Exams and Reflections 

Knowledge of Methodologies.  

  • Distinguish between key concepts in test and measurement (e.g., reliability, validity). 
  • Identify and explain common procedures and methods used in psychological testing and measurement.  

Lecture and readings 

Exams and Psychometric Annotation 

Application of Knowledge.  

  • Compare competing approaches to the assessment of intelligence and personality and identify their strengths and weakness. 
  • Understand and express issues with test bias and fairness in psychological tests. 

Lecture and readings 

Exams 

Communication Skills.  

  • Appropriately describe psychometric information for tests and explain approaches to psychological assessment in various areas of practice. 

Lecture and readings 

Psychometric Annotation 

 

 

 

 

 

5.0 EVALUATION 

 

Exams (75%) 

 

Grades in this course will be partly determined by two exams containing multiple-choice items, with the possibility of other formats (e.g., fill-in-the-blank, select-all, matching). There will be one Midterm Exam, to take place during class hours, and one Final Exam to be scheduled by the Registrar (see 6.0 Assessment/Evaluation Schedule). The percentage of the course grade allotted to each exam is as follows: 

  • Midterm Exam: 35% 
  • Final Exam: 40% 

 

The Final Exam is partly cumulative and will include some items on content covered from September 13 to September 27, insofar as they reflect content critical to the full class. Additional information about format (e.g., time allowance) for both Exams will be provided during lecture and on the OWL course website. 

 

All material covered in lecture and the assigned readings is eligible for evaluation. Lectures and assigned readings complement each other and neither should be considered a substitute for the other. Some material covered in lecture will not be covered in the readings. Equally, some material covered in the readings will not be covered in lecture.  

 

Psychometric Annotation (15%) 

 

To demonstrate your understanding of key concepts in test and measurement, you will be responsible for completing one paper during the course. For this paper, you will need to identify one psychological measure that has been published in a peer-reviewed journal and describe some of its basic psychometric features and applications, including: 

  • Providing a description of the measure and the construct it is designed to assess 
  • Summarizing the measure’s intended applications 
  • Noting its reliability (see Lecture 2 and Ch.3) 
  • Noting evidence of validity (see Lecture 3 and Ch. 4) 
  • You may need to search for and reference additional journal articles for this. 
  • Briefly describing its strengths and limitations 

 

The paper should be a maximum of 500 words and will be submitted via OWL. The psychological measure you select must be a self-report measure or a performance instrument (e.g., ability test). 

 

Resources on how to find measures published in peer-reviewed journals and example measures will be available on OWL. However, you must select a different measure from the examples posted.  

 

The paper is due on November 15 at 11:55pm. 

 

Reflections (10%) 

 

To encourage you to engage with the course content, you will be required to complete two Reflections during the course, each worth 5%. Each Reflection should be 100-125 words and should: 

  • Identify and describe one or two main “takeaways” or “conclusions” that you’ve learned during that half of the course.  
  • Identify one area that you are “unclear” on or would like to learn more about and why. 

 

Reflections will be graded out of 5 following these guidelines: 

  • 0 = Not submitted 
  • 1 = Mostly incomplete 
  • 3 = Partially complete or evidencing little insight into material 
  • 5 = Complete and evidencing excellent insight into material 

 

Reflections will be submitted via OWL and you must complete one for each half of the course (before and after the Midterm Exam): 

  • Reflection #1 is due on October 18 at 11:55pm and must pertain to content covered during the period of September 13 to October 18. 
  • Reflection #2 is due on December 6 at 11:55pm and must pertain to content covered during the period of November 8 to December 6.  

 

5.1 POLICY ON MISSING COURSEWORK 

 

Exams: Students that are approved for an excused absence (see 11.0 Policy on Accommodation for Illness or Other Absences) must communicate with the instructor to be scheduled for a make-up exam. This communication must occur no later than 24 hours after the end of the period covered by the excused absence. Make-up exams will cover the same material as the original exam but may follow an entirely different format (e.g., composed entirely of essay-length questions). The percentage allotted to a missed exam will not be “rolled over” into future exams. 

 

Psychometric Annotation and Reflection: Students that are approved for an excused absence (see 11.0 Policy on Accommodation for Illness or Other Absences) will receive a 3-day extension to the due date for the relevant assignment which starts immediately after the end of the period covered by the excused absence. For example, an excused absence for Reflection #1 that ends on October 18, will result in a new due date of October 21 at 11:55pm. If the excused absence covered until October 20, then the new due date would be October 23 at 11:55pm, and so on.  

 

The student must communicate with the instructor no later than 24 hours after the end of the period covered by the excused absence acknowledging their understanding of the 3-day extension afforded by the excused absence and the new due date for the Psychometric Annotation or Reflection. Any Psychometric Annotation or Reflection submitted after the relevant due date (extended or otherwise) will be graded as a zero.  

 

The expectation for course grades within the Psychology Department is that they will be distributed around the following averages: 

 

70%  1000-level to 2099-level courses 

72%  2100-2999-level courses 

75%  3000-level courses 

80%  4000-level courses 

 

The Psychology Department follows Western’s grading guidelines, which are as follows (see: http://www.uwo.ca/univsec/pdf/academic_policies/general/grades_undergrad.pdf) 

 

A+ 90-100 One could scarcely expect better from a student at this level 

A 80-89 Superior work that is clearly above average 

B 70-79 Good work, meeting all requirements, and eminently satisfactory 

C 60-69 Competent work, meeting requirements 

D 50-59 Fair work, minimally acceptable 

F below 50 Fail 

 

Note that in the event that course grades are significantly higher or lower than these averages, instructors may be required to make adjustments to course grades. Such adjustment might include the normalization of one or more course components and/or the re-weighting of various course components. 

 

Policy on Grade Rounding: Please note that although course grades within the Psychology Department are rounded to the nearest whole number, no further grade rounding will be done. No additional assignments will be offered to enhance a final grade; nor will requests to change a grade because it is needed for a future program be considered. To maximize your grade, do your best on each and every assessment within the course. 

 

 

 

 

 

6.0 ASSESSMENT/EVALUATION SCHEDULE 

 

Evaluation 

Date 

Notes 

Reflection #1 

October 18 at 11:55pm 

Submitted via OWL. 

Midterm Exam 

 

October 25 

Readings and lectures from September 13 to October 18. 

Psychometric Annotation 

November 15 at 11:55pm 

Submitted via OWL. 

Reflection #2 

December 6 at 11:55pm 

Submitted via OWL. 

Final Exam 

 

Scheduled by Registrar, 

December 10–21. 

Readings and lectures from November 8 to end, with some key content from September 13–27. 

 

 

7.0 CLASS SCHEDULE 

 

Date & Lecture 

Topic 

Readings 

September 13: Lecture 1 

Course Introduction 

History & Basic Statistics 

Ch. 1–2 

September 20: Lecture 2 

Reliability 

Ch. 3 

September 27: Lecture 3 

Validity 

Ch. 4 

October 4: Lecture 4 

Creating Tests 

Ch. 5 

October 18: Lecture 5 

Interviews and Computers in Testing 

Ch. 6 

October 25 

Midterm Exam 

Readings and lectures from September 13 to October 18 

November 8: Lecture 6 

Intelligence 

Ch. 7 

November 15: Lecture 7 

Personality 

Ch. 8 

November 22: Lecture 8 

Applications: Education and Work 

Ch. 9 

 

November 29: Lecture 9 

Applications: Health 

Ch. 10 

December 6: Lecture 10 

Test Bias and Ethical Issues 

Ch. 11–12 

TBA 

Final Exam 

(scheduled by Registrar, December 10–21) 

Readings and lectures from November 8 to end, with some key content from September 13–27 

 

 

8.0 LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT 

 

We acknowledge that Western University is located on the traditional lands of the Anishinaabek, Haudenosaunee, Lūnaapéewak and Attawandaron peoples, on lands connected with the London Township and Sombra Treaties of 1796 and the Dish with One Spoon Covenant Wampum. 

 

With this, we respect the longstanding relationships that Indigenous Nations have to this land, as they are the original caretakers. We acknowledge historical and ongoing injustices that Indigenous Peoples (e.g. First Nations, Métis and Inuit) endure in Canada, and we accept responsibility as a public institution to contribute toward revealing and correcting miseducation, as well as renewing respectful relationships with Indigenous communities through our teaching, research and community service. 

 

 

9.0 STATEMENT ON ACADEMIC OFFENCES 

 

Students are responsible for understanding the nature and avoiding the occurrence of plagiarism and other scholastic offences. Plagiarism and cheating are considered very serious offences because they undermine the integrity of research and education. Actions constituting a scholastic offence are described at the following link: http://www.uwo.ca/univsec/pdf/academic_policies/appeals/scholastic_discipline_undergrad.pdf 

 

As of Sept. 1, 2009, the Department of Psychology will take the following steps to detect scholastic offences. All multiple-choice tests and exams will be checked for similarities in the pattern of responses using reliable software, and records will be made of student seating locations in all tests and exams. All written assignments will be submitted to TurnItIn, a service designed to detect and deter plagiarism by comparing written material to over 5 billion pages of content located on the Internet or in TurnItIn’s databases. All papers submitted for such checking will be included as source documents in the reference database for the purpose of detecting plagiarism of papers subsequently submitted to the system. Use of the service is subject to the licensing agreement, currently between Western and Turnitin.com (http://www.turnitin.com). 

 

Computer-marked multiple-choice tests and/or exams will be subject to submission for similarity review by software that will check for unusual coincidences in answer patterns that may indicate cheating. 

 

In classes that involve the use of a personal response system (PRS), data collected using the PRS will only be used in a manner consistent to that described in this outline. It is the instructor’s responsibility to make every effort to ensure that data remain confidential. However, students should be aware that as with all forms of electronic communication, privacy is not guaranteed. Your PRS login credentials are for your sole use only. Students attempting to use another student’s credentials to submit data through the PRS may be subject to academic misconduct proceedings.  

 

Possible penalties for a scholastic offence include failure of the assignment/exam, failure of the course, suspension from the University, and expulsion from the University. 

 

10.0 POLICY ON THE USE OF EXAM PROCTORING SOFTWARE 

 

When examinations and tests cannot be given in person (e.g., in courses coded as Distance Studies; in the event of a lockdown order), they may be conducted using either a monitoring platform such as Zoom or a remote proctoring service, such as Proctorio. If Zoom is used for exam invigilation, you will be required to keep your camera on for the entire session, hold up your student card for identification purposes, and share your screen with the invigilator if asked to do so at any time during the exam. The exam session using Zoom will not be recorded.* 

If a remote proctoring service is used, the service will require you to provide personal information (including some biometric data). The session will be recorded. The instructor will alert you to the use of this software as close as possible to the start of the term, however, in the event that in-person exams are unexpectedly canceled, you may only be given notice of the use of a proctoring service a short time in advance. More information about remote proctoring is available in the Online Proctoring Guidelines. Please ensure you are familiar with any proctoring service’s technical requirements before the exam. Additional guidance is available at the following link: https://www.uwo.ca/univsec/pdf/onlineproctorguidelines.pdf 

 

* Please note that Zoom servers are located outside Canada. If you would prefer to use only your first name or a nickname to login to Zoom, please provide this information to the instructor in advance of the test or examination. See this link for technical requirements: https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us   

 

11.0 POLICY ON ACCOMMODATION FOR ILLNESS OR OTHER ABSENCES 

 

Western’s policy on Accommodation for Medical Illness can be found at:  
http://www.westerncalendar.uwo.ca/PolicyPages.cfm?PolicyCategoryID=1&Command=showCategory&SelectedCalendar=Live&ArchiveID=#Page_12 

 

The full policy for consideration for absences can be accessed at: https://www.uwo.ca/univsec/pdf/academic_policies/appeals/Academic_Consideration_for_absences.pdf 

 

If you experience an extenuating circumstance (e.g., illness, injury) sufficiently significant to temporarily make you unable to meet academic requirements, you may request accommodation through the following routes:  

  1. Submitting a Self-Reported Absence form (for circumstances that are expected to resolve within 48 hours); 
  1. For medical absences, submitting a Student Medical Certificate (SMC) signed by a licensed medical or mental health practitioner in order to be eligible for Academic Consideration;  
  1. For non-medical absences, submitting appropriate documentation (e.g., obituary, police report, accident report, court order, etc.) to Academic Counselling in their Faculty of registration in order to be eligible for academic consideration. Students are encouraged to contact their Academic Counselling unit to clarify what documentation is appropriate. 

 

Students must see the Academic Counsellor and submit all required documentation in order to be approved for certain accommodation. The self-reported absence form must be submitted before the exam/coursework deadline in order to be valid. It may NOT be used for absences longer than 48 hours; coursework/tests/exams/etc., worth more than 30% of the final grade; or exams scheduled in the December or April final-exam periods: http://counselling.ssc.uwo.ca/procedures/medical_accommodation.html 

 

Students seeking academic consideration: 

  • are advised to consider carefully the implications of postponing tests or midterm exams or delaying handing in work;   
  • are encouraged to make appropriate decisions based on their specific circumstances, recognizing that minor ailments (upset stomach) or upsets (argument with a friend) are not normally an appropriate basis for a self-reported absence; 
  • must communicate with their instructors no later than 24 hours after the end of the period covered by either the self-reported absence or SMC, or immediately upon their return following a documented absence 

 

Students seeking accommodation for religious purposes are advised to contact Academic Counselling at least three weeks prior to the religious event and as soon as possible after the start of the term. 

 

12.0 CONTINGENCY PLAN FOR RETURN TO LOCKDOWN: IN-PERSON & BLENDED CLASSES 

 

In the event of a COVID-19 resurgence or any other event that necessitates the course delivery moving away from face-to-face interaction, all remaining course content will be delivered entirely online, either synchronously (i.e., at the times indicated in the timetable) or asynchronously (e.g., posted on OWL for students to view at their convenience). The grading scheme will not change. Any remaining assessments will also be conducted online, as determined by the course instructor. 

 

13.0 STATEMENTS CONCERNING ONLINE ETIQUETTE 

 

In courses involving online interactions, the Psychology Department expects students to honour the following rules of etiquette: 

  • please “arrive” to class on time 
  • please use your computer and/or laptop if possible (as opposed to a cell phone or tablet) 
  • please ensure that you are in a private location to protect the confidentiality of discussions in the event that a class discussion deals with sensitive or personal material 
  • to minimize background noise, kindly mute your microphone for the entire class until you are invited to speak, unless directed otherwise 
  • In classes larger than 30 participants please turn off your video camera for the entire class unless you are invited to speak 
  • In classes of 30 students or fewer, where video chat procedures are being used, please be prepared to turn your video camera off at the instructor’s request if the internet connection becomes unstable 
  • Unless invited by your instructor, do not share your screen in the meeting 

 

The course instructor will act as moderator for the class and will deal with any questions from participants. To participate please consider the following: 

  • If you wish to speak, use the “raise hand” function and wait for the instructor to acknowledge you before beginning your comment or question. 
  • Please remember to unmute your microphone and turn on your video camera before speaking. 
  • Self-identify when speaking. 
  • Please remember to mute your mic and turn off your video camera after speaking (unless directed otherwise). 

 

General considerations of “netiquette”: 

  • Keep in mind the different cultural and linguistic backgrounds of the students in the course. 
  • Be courteous toward the instructor, your colleagues, and authors whose work you are discussing. 
  • Be respectful of the diversity of viewpoints that you will encounter in the class and in your readings. The exchange of diverse ideas and opinions is part of the scholarly environment. “Flaming” is never appropriate. 
  • Be professional and scholarly in all online postings. Use proper grammar and spelling. Cite the ideas of others appropriately. 

 

Note that disruptive behaviour of any type during online classes, including inappropriate use of the chat function, is unacceptable. Students found guilty of Zoom-bombing a class or of other serious online offenses may be subject to disciplinary measures under the Code of Student Conduct. 

 

14.0 OTHER INFORMATION 

 

Office of the Registrar: http://registrar.uwo.ca   

 

Student Development Services: www.sdc.uwo.ca  

 

Please see the Psychology Undergraduate web site for information on the following:  

http://psychology.uwo.ca/undergraduate/student_responsibilities/index.html 

 

- Policy on Cheating and Academic Misconduct 

- Procedures for Appealing Academic Evaluations 

- Policy on Attendance 

- Policy Regarding Makeup Exams and Extensions of Deadlines 

- Policy for Assignments 

- Short Absences 

- Extended Absences 

- Documentation 

- Academic Concerns 

- 2021-2022 Calendar References 

 

If you wish to appeal a grade, please read the policy documentation at: https://www.uwo.ca/univsec/pdf/academic_policies/appeals/appealsundergrad.pdf 

Please first contact the course instructor. If your issue is not resolved, you may make your appeal to the Undergraduate Chair in Psychology (psyugrd@uwo.ca). 

 

Copyright Statement: Lectures and course materials, including power point presentations, outlines, videos and similar materials, are protected by copyright. You may take notes and make copies of course materials for your own educational use. You may not record lectures, reproduce (or allow others to reproduce), post or distribute any course materials publicly and/or for commercial purposes without the instructor’s written consent. 

 

Policy on the Recording of Synchronous Sessions: Some or all of the remote learning sessions for this course (if scheduled) may be recorded. The data captured during these recordings may include your image, voice recordings, chat logs and personal identifiers (name displayed on the screen). The recordings will be used for educational purposes related to this course, including evaluations. The recordings may be disclosed to other individuals participating in the course for their private or group study purposes. Please contact the instructor if you have any concerns related to session recordings. Participants in this course are not permitted to privately record the sessions, except where recording is an approved accommodation, or the student has the prior written permission of the instructor.