PSYC4543: Psychological Measurements

Fall 2005

Ø         My website address: http://www.usao.edu/usao-psychology/walkerc.htm

I.     Required Texts

Cohen, R.J. & Swerdlick, M.E. (2005). Psychological Testing and Assessment (6^th Ed.). Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill Publishers.

Cohen, R.J. (2005). Exercises in Psychological Testing and Assessment: An Introduction to Tests and Measurement (6^th Ed.). Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill Publishers.

II.     Course Description:  

This course will cover the basic principles, research, and theories on the testing and measurement of psychological constructs. Students should expect to complete the course with knowledge of various techniques for psychological testing, familiarity of several professionally developed tests, the ability to develop, administer and interpret certain tests, and knowledge of measurement theory which includes reliability and validity. Students will demonstrate this knowledge on exams, class discussions, and a research paper.

III.     Course Objectives:

A.     Understand the components of test administration, scoring and the interpretation of statistical information that you will be exposed to and can judge or evaluate the adequacy of that information.

B.     Know and explain statistical techniques to derive central tendencies, variability, correlation and standard scores.

C.     Know about test bias and controversies concerning the use of psychological tests.

IV.     Grading:

Exams: There will be 4 non-cumulative unit exams, each worth 100 points, covering text and lecture materials. The purpose of the exams is to test your knowledge, comprehension and ability to apply concepts covered in the course. Exams will consist of multiple choice, short answer, true & false, and/or listing type questions.  See course schedule for exam dates.  Make-up exams will only be given in case of emergency.  You must contact me before the date of the exam to schedule a make-up test.

Article Reviews: You will review five (5) articles pertaining to the creation of tests and measurements.  Each article review is worth 10 points and the questions to use in your reviews will be made available in class. In addition to your reviews you must include an APA-style reference for each article. This assignment is due October 19^th (this assignment can not be emailed - it must be turned in as a hard copy).

Workbook/Homework Assignments: Throughout the semester you will complete 10 homework assignments worth 10 points each.  Each homework assignment will be comprised of one or two exercises that can be located in your workbook. Due dates for each homework assignment are located on the course schedule. Homework assignments are due at class time. Below is the list of exercises that will be completed as homework.     

Hmwk #1: Ex. 3-5 (pg. 37)                    Hmwk #5: Ex. 8-2 (pg. 122)  

Hmwk #2: Ex. 4-2 (pg. 40)                    Hmwk #6: Ex. 11-2 (pg. 180)

Hmwk #3: Ex. 5-6 (pg. 76)                    Hmwk #7: Ex. 11-3 (pg. 180)

Hmwk #4: Ex. 6-10 (pg. 100)                 Hmwk #8: Ex. 12-4 (pg. 203)

Hmwk #5: Ex. 8-2 (pg. 122)                   Hmwk #9: Ex. 16-1 (pg. 239)

Hmwk #6: Ex. 11-2 (pg. 180)                 Hmwk #10: Ex. 16-4 (pg. 244)

Participation:

Class participation will be based solely on attendance.  Everyone will begin the semester with 20 points and each absence will result in a 2-point deduction. You are allowed to miss two class periods without penalty (I recognize that emergencies do occur). However, during the last three class periods in which students will be working on group projects, each absence will result in a deduction of 5 points. 

Note: Attendance is also important as I will not be emailing the overheads that I use in class. If you are not here, you will be responsible for obtaining notes from your classmates.

Class Project

During the last three class periods you will be separated into groups and asked to create your own personality questionnaire.  Your questionnaire must contain a minimum of 30 questions and 4 factors.  The write-up accompanying your questionnaire should contain a full description of how your team created the questionnaire, how you would go about norming the questionnaire, how you would obtain reliability and validity evidence and what group(s) your questionnaire would be appropriate for. More information pertaining to this assignment will be provided as the semester progresses. 

V.     Bonus

Bonus points can be obtained by completing the crossword puzzle located on the first page of each chapter in your workbook.  Each completed puzzle will be worth 5 points. To receive the full 5 points, each item must be successfully completed. Each incorrect term will result in a 1 point reduction. A total of 5 puzzles can be completed for bonus. The last day to submit bonus assignments is December 2^nd.

VI.     Evaluation and Grading:

Grades are determined through accumulation of points on tests and assignments. There are 620 points possible.

VII.     Policy Statement

A.  Professionalism.  Students are expected to be organized and professional enough to: 

1)       come to class prepared and on time.

2)       complete and turn in assignments as indicated by the course calendar.

3)       take tests at the scheduled time.  Make-up exams will only be given when arrangements have been made prior to the scheduled testing date.

B.     Plagiarism/Cheating:  Students are expected to maintain high standards of academic integrity.  Any student who engages in any form of academic dishonesty will be assigned a failing grade and reported to the vice president for academic affairs.  Academic dishonesty includes but is not limited to plagiarism, fabrication, cheating, and forgery or alteration of documents (see the student handbook for definitions and descriptions of each of these). 

C.      Americans with Disabilities Statement:  Any student needing academic accommodations for a physical, mental or learning disability should notify student services and the course instructor within the first two weeks of the semester so that appropriate accommodations can be arranged.

Syllabus subject to change with notice