Psychological Assessment

Seniors’ In-Service Training

Worksheet #3
Aices Jannae L. Tabac Rucel Mae A. Trocio Janella
Louise P. Bula
Name: ___________________________________
July. 29, 2020
Date: ___________________________________

KEY TERM EXERCISE:

Key Term Definition

Inferences Logical deductions about events that cannot be

observed directly.

Descriptive Statistics Methods used to provide a concise description of a

collection of quantitative information

Inferential Statistics Methods used to make inferences from observations

of a small group of people to a larger group of
individuals

Measurement The application of rules for assigning numbers to

objects.

Magnitude The property of moreness; the ability to compare.

Equal Intervals It is the difference between two points at any place on

the scale that has the same meaning like the
difference between two other points that differ by the
same number of scale units.

Absolute Zero It is obtained when nothing of the property being

measured exists.

Nominal Scales These are not really scales at all. Their only purpose is
to name objects.

Ordinal Scale A scale with the property of magnitude but not equal
intervals or an absolute 0.

Interval Scale When a scale has the properties of magnitude and

equal intervals but not absolute 0.

Ratio Scale A scale that has all three properties

 Key Term Definition

Frequency Distribution Displays scores on a variable or a measure to reflect

how frequently each value was obtained. X axis would
contain the frequency of the scores while the Y axis
would contain the score.

Percentile Rank What percent of the scores fall below a particular

score?

Percentile Specific scores or points within a distribution; divide

the total frequency for a set of observations into
hundredths.

Mean Arithmetic average score in a distribution

Standard Deviation It is the approximation of the average deviation

around the mean

Variance It is the average squared deviation around the mean.

Z Score It is the difference between a score and the mean,

divided by the standard deviation.

Symmetrical Binomial Probability Distribution It occurs when there are two mutually exclusive
possible outcomes. It determines the probability of
observing a specified number of successful outcomes
in a specified number of trials.

McCall’s T T Score In this system, the mean is 50 rather than 0 and the
standard deviation is 10 rather than 1.

Quartiles Points that divide the frequency distribution into

equal fourths

Median The 50th percentile

Interquartile Range Bounded by a range of scores that represents the

middle 50% of the distribution

Deciles Similar to quartiles except that they use points that

mark 10%

Stanine system Converts any set of scores into a transformed scale

which ranges from to comes from standard
nine has a mean of and a standard deviation of
 Key Term Definition

Norms It is the performances of a defined group on particular

tests.

Norm-referenced Test It compares each person with a norm.

Criterion referenced Test It describes the specific types of skills, tasks, or

knowledge that the test taker can demonstrate.

PROPERTIES OF SCALES

Based on Kaplan Saccuzzo s book on Psychological Testing there are three properties of scales As such you are
to fill out the table below to familiarize yourselves with them.

Properties of Scales Definition/Description Examples other than what is in the

book

Magnitude It is a property of moreness; the EDUCATION

ability to compare.
RATING (EXCELLENT, GOOD, FAIR)

Equal Intervals It is the difference between two YEAR

points at any place on the scale
that has the same meaning like the PAIN LEVEL
difference between two other
points that differ by the same
number of scale units.

Absolute Zero It is obtained when nothing of the WEIGHT

property being measured exists.
DISTANCE
 SCALES OF MEASUREMENT

To familiarize yourselves with the scales of measurement, please fill out the table below with the missing
information.

Scales of Measurement Magnitude, Equal Recommended measures What operations can you
Interval, Absolute Zero of central tendency do with this scale of
measurement; what type
(Just indicate M, EI, or of statistical analysis can
AZ) you make?

Nominal NONE MODE Each observation can be

placed in only one
mutually exclusive
category. It can make
frequency distribution
without any
mathematical
manipulations of the
data.

Ordinal M MEDIAN It can be manipulated

using arithmetic but, the
MODE results is often difficult to
interpret because it
reflects neither the
magnitudes of the
manipulated observations
nor the true amounts of
the property that have
been measured.

Interval M MEAN It can apply any

arithmetic operation to
EI MEDIAN the differences between
scores. Also results can
MODE be interpreted in relation
to the magnitudes of the
underlying property.
However, interval data
cannot be used to make
statements about ratios.
 Ratio M MEAN Any mathematical
operation is permissible.
EI MEDIAN

AZ MODE

UNDERSTANDING THE STANDARD NORMAL DISTRIBUTION

Please refer to the picture above and answer the following questions:

1. If on a Depression test, your client had a T-score of 70, what would this indicate?
- It means that the client is already 2 standard deviation away from the mean. This implies that a person does
display symptoms and experience it usually above normal or sometimes, severely.

2. A person has an IQ score of 55. What does that imply?

 - It implies that the person got the average amount of score which most people usually get when they will
take the same IQ test.

3. What is a simple way to explain percentage of cases in the 8 portions of the curve?

- The percentage of cases in the 8 portions of the curve immediately tells you what percentage does your
data belong to in regards to a certain number of standard deviations from the mean.

4. If a person has a Z score of 3.0, what does that mean?

- It is most likely that the person belongs to the above average group of people in a normal distribution. For
instance, in an exam, it implies that the person belongs to those few people who got a high score compared
to the average amount of scores that other individuals got.

5. Based on the illustration above, describe what a percentile, a cumulative percentage, and a stanine score
would tell us.
- The percentile would tell us the point of the score within a distribution and the percentage of the cases
that are below the said score. For cumulative percentage, it calculates the percentage of the acquired
cumulative frequency within each interval and may also tell us what percentage of the population
encompasses the construct being searched for. Lastly, stanine scores are scores that are converted to fall
between a scale from 1-9 which would tell us that scores that fall within the range of 5 is considered
average and anything below that would be below the average and anything above it would be higher than
the average.

DISTINGUISHING BETWEEN NORM-REFERENCED AND CRITERION-REFERENCED TESTS

Indicate which are best assessed using norm-referenced or criterion-referenced tests by putting (NR) for norm-
referenced tests and (CR) for criterion-referenced tests.

1. The Board Licensure Examination for Psychometricians and Psychologists. (CR)

2. Your grade for the Senior s In-Service Training (CR)
3. A test to learn about a student s progress at school (NR)
4. You want to compare your score with your peers taking the same test. (NR)
5. Your school wants to know your standing compared to the rest of the students your age in the country
(NR)
 Fill out the table below with 5 characteristics of Norm-referenced tests and criterion-referenced tests. You may
also put in examples.

Norm-Referenced Tests Criterion-Referenced Tests

It forces competition among people. For instance, It measures a student s performance in a fixed criteria
children would always do their best to exceed from The criteria include the specific goal, brief reports of
the average amount of people. what a person is capable of doing, and their expected
outcome.

It defines the performance of a specific person. For
instance, by knowing that Ana ranked the highest
above all the children in the room, we will know her
key competencies which gave her an advantage to
gain her rank.
It emphasizes the consistency of an individual. It can
support and give evidence whether what is written in
the report about the person is consistent with his or
her results.

It gives self-confidence. For students who belong to It reveals the mastery of an individual. This test judges
the higher rank, they will gain a sense of confidence how well the student understands a certain field or
knowing that they did well. On the other hand, topic.
students who gained the lower rank will gain some
confidence to be better and work hard for them to
improve on the next test.

It compares each person with a specific norm It describes the specific types of skills, tasks, or
knowledge that the test taker can demonstrate.

It can play an important role in identifying problems
and suggesting new directions for individualized
programs of instruction.
It can identify whether the standards are met or not.
For instance, teachers who administers this kind of
test will know whether their student is doing well or if
not, they can give meaningful feedback which can help
them improve on the lesson.

References:

Kaplan, R. & Saccuzzo, D. (2017). Psychological Testing: Principles, Applications, and Issues (9
ed.). United States of America: Cengage Learning.