Psychometrics

CLI PA603 - Psychometrics

Credits: 2

This course focuses on the theory and techniques supporting various forms of psychological measurement and assessment. Topics covered include classical test theory, scales of measurement, item response theory (IRT), latent vs. observable variables, item construction, factor structure, and item reduction through exploratory factor analysis (EPA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). This course builds on previous courses that have introduced reliability and validity and examines these topics in more detail. Issues of ethics and standards in test development, issues of test fairness with diverse populations, and test and response biases will be discussed. Practical applications of psychometric principles will be presented in the context of introducing students to program evaluation procedures and in the context of evaluating outcome measures that attempt to assess the effectiveness of psychotherapy.

Pre-requisite: RS526