Psychometric characteristics

Kazdin, A. E., Rodgers, A., Colbus, D. (1986). The Hopelessness Scale for Children Psychometric characteristics and concurrent validity. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 54, 241—255. 

Birmaher, B., Khetarpal, S., Brent, D., Cully, M., Balach, L., Kaufman, J., and McKenzie-Neer, S. (1997) The Screen for Child Anxiety-Related Emotional Disorders (SCARED) scale construction and psychometric characteristics. / Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 36 545-553. 

Lowman, R. L. and Schurman, S. J. (1982). Psychometric characteristics of a vocational preference inventory short form. Educational and Psychological Measurement 42 601-13. 

Without any specific mention, the presuppositions and criticisms highlighted in this section concern the classical psychometric studies focusing on the role of psychometric characteristics in risk perception. 

All measures employed in this study have been used in research before and proved good psychometric characteristics with respect to reliability and validity. Table 9 gives an overview of the constructs and items which were used in this study. 

Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI). The BSI, developed by Derogatis in 1983, is the shorter form of the SCL-90-R (19). It is also self-administered and assesses the same nine symptom dimensions as the SCL-90-R and three global indices using 53 items. Dimension scores correlate highly with comparable SCL-90-R scores and it shares most psychometric characteristics. It takes 10 to 15 minutes to complete and is used widely with community adolescents and adults, inpatients, and outpatients. The BSI demonstrates good reliability and validity (18). 

Support for the evaluation of the non-technical make up of a candidate is very commonly sought by carrying out some form of psychometric tests on the candidates. Psychometric tests are designed to assess either ability (cognitive tests) or personality characteristics and there are three basic types ones to assess a specific ability, e.g. numeracy, verbal and spatial perception ones to test general mental ability, e.g. an-... 

The key assumption of this theory is that there is a continuum of cognitive style, ranging from high adaption to high innovation, on which people can be placed dependent on the characteristic mode in which they solve problems (create or make decisions). The Kirton Adaption-Innovation Inventory (KAI) is the psychometric measurement devised to locate respondents on this continuum. It is concerned with the different ways in which people think, and particularly the way they show their creativity, solve problems and make decisions. Three sub traits, which are measured to give a total score, are explained as follows [C-51] ... 

Some defining characteristics of adaptors and innovators found using this psychometric measure are shown below [C-51]. 

Such an extension of the psychometric paradigm reveals that the study of risk apprehension is more and more centred on the perceiving subject than on the characteristics of the physical danger. This new look at risk perception tends to make it less dependent on the possible bias in the answers induced by the comparison of very different activities and technologies, inherited fi om the early catalogues of risks, whose objective aimed more at risk acceptance than at studying risk perception processes (Starr 1969). 

First, a fundamental presupposition is underlying the psychometric studies of risk perception the idea that risk perception in itself is quantifiable. Even if other considerations are taken into accoimt - such as the qualitative characteristics of risks - the researchers of the University of Oregon suppose that all these data - including the qualitative characteristics - may be represented by a set of numerical values. This quantified conception of risk perception reveals a reductionist approach to risk, unable to accoimt for a polythetic concept of risk such as the one advocated... 

These methods are based on measuring air temperature in equilibrium with a product and some other air characteristic like water content, wet bulb temperature, or dew temperature. With these data and the use of an enthalpy diagram of moist air or tables, its hygrometric level can be measured and thus the value of the product in equilibrium with this air. There are chromatographic, psychometric, and manometric methods. 

This chapter provides an overview of the psychometric properties of the HSOPSC using both classical test theory (CTT) and the modem approach, often referred to as Item Response Theory (IRT). To enhance the understanding and importance of IRT, the basic principles will first be introduced. In partictrlar, three fundamental outcomes of the IRT approach will be highlighted (1) item characteristic curves, (2) measurement information, and (3) invariance. Moreover, this chapter will present data that have been previously analysed and... 

Waterson, P.E., Jackson, J., Stride, C., Hutchinson, A., Hammer, A. and Manser, T. in preparation. The Hospital Survey of Patient Safety Culture (HSPSC) A Cross-national Review of Study Characteristics and Psychometric Properties. Unpublished manuscript. 

Psychometric tests measure characteristics that influence behavior but not how a person behaves when using these characteristics. 

In conclusion our method can be framed as psychometric and cultural theory of risk approach, with in addition some components to obtain a better overview on possible influences on risk perception causes attributed to disasters, images of and associations on nature and environment (Szalay and Deese 1978), several personal and demographic characteristics, and experience from past events. 

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