In second language (L2) listening assessment, various factors have the potential to impact the validity of listening test items (Brindley & Slatyer, 2002; Buck & Tatsuoka, 1998; Freedle & Kostin, 1999; Nissan, DeVincenzi, & Tang, 1996; Read, 2002; Shohamy & Inbar, 1991). One relatively unexplored area to date is who controls the aural input. In traditional standardized listening tests, an administrator controlled recording is played once or twice. In real world or classroom listening, however, listeners can sometimes request repetition or clarification. Allowing listeners to control the aural input thus has the potential to add test authenticity but requires careful design of the input and expected response as well as an appropriate computer interface. However, if candidates feel less anxious, allowing control of listening input may enhance examinees' experience and still reflect their listening proficiency. Comparing traditional and self paced (i.e., examinees having the opportunity to start, stop, and move the audio position) delivery of multiple choice comprehension items, my research inquiry is whether self paced listening can be a sufficiently reliable and valid measure of examinees' listening ability. Data were gathered from 100 prospective and current university ESL students. They were administered computer based multiple choice listening tests: 10 identical once played items, followed by 33 items in three different conditions: 1) administrator paced input with no audio player visible, 2) self paced with a short time limit, and 3) self paced with a longer time limit. Many facet Rasch (1960/1980) modeling was used to compare the difficulty and discrimination of the items across conditions. Results indicated items on average were similar difficulty overall but discriminated best in self paced conditions. Furthermore, the vast majority of examinees reported they preferred self paced listening. The quantitative results were complemented by follow up stimulated recall interviews with eight participants who took 22 additional test items using screen capture software to explore whether and when they paused and/or repeated the input. Frequency of and reasons for self pacing did not follow any particular pattern by proficiency level. Examinees tended to play more than once but not two full times through, even without limited time. Implications for listening instruction and classroom assessment, as well as standardized testing, are discussed.

Thesis advisor: Larry H. Ludlow / Preparing and supporting teachers to enact teaching practice that responds to diversity, challenges educational inequities, and promotes social justice is a pressing yet daunting and complex task. More research is needed to understand how and to what extent teacher education programs prepare and support teacher candidates to enhance the achievement of all learners while challenging systematic inequity (Cochran-Smith, Ell, Ludlow, Grudnoff, & Aitken, 2014). One piece of empirical evidence needed is a measure that captures the extent to which teachers enact teaching practice for equity. This study developed an instrument – the Teaching Equity Enactment Scenario Scale (TEES) - to measure the extent of equity-centered teaching practice by applying Rasch measurement theory (Rasch, 1960) and Guttman’s facet theory (Borg & Shye, 1995). The research question addressed whether the TEES scale can measure teachers’ self-reported enactment of practice for equity in a reliable, valid, and authentic manner. This study employed a three-phase design, comprising an extensive process of item development, a pilot study and a final full-scale administration. Fifteen scenario-style items were developed to capture the enactment levels of six interconnected principles of teaching practice for equity. Using the Rasch rating scale model the outcome was a 15-item TEES scale that reliably and validly measures increasing levels of teaching practice for equity progressing through low, moderate, and high levels of enactment. The distribution of the scenarios confirmed their hypothesized order and the instrument development principles of Rasch measurement - unidimensionality, variation and a hierarchical order of the items, as well as a uniform continuum defining the construct. The scale also provides meaningful interpretations of what a raw score means regarding one’s equity-centered teaching practice. The overall findings suggest that the novel approach of combining Rasch measurement and facet theory can be successful in developing a scenario-style scale that measures a complex construct. Moreover, the scale can provide the evidence needed in research on preparing and supporting teachers to teach with a commitment to equity and social justice.

Information systems (IS) research frequently uses survey data to measure the interplay between technological systems and human beings. Researchers have developed sophisticated procedures to build and validate multi-item scales that measure latent constructs. The vast majority of IS studies uses classical test theory (CTT), but this approach suffers from three major theoretical shortcomings: (1) it assumes a linear relationship between the latent variable and observed scores, which rarely represents the empirical reality of behavioral constructs; (2) the true score can either not be estimated directly or only by making assumptions that are difficult to be met; and (3) parameters such as reliability, discrimination, location, or factor loadings depend on the sample being used. To address these issues, we present item response theory (IRT) as a collection of viable alternatives for measuring continuous latent variables by means of categorical indicators (i.e., measurement variables). IRT offers several advantages: (1) it assumes nonlinear relationships; (2) it allows more appropriate estimation of the true score; (3) it can estimate item parameters independently of the sample being used; (4) it allows the researcher to select items that are in accordance with a desired model; and (5) it applies and generalizes concepts such as reliability and internal consistency, and thus allows researchers to derive more information about the measurement process. We use a CTT approach as well as Rasch models (a special class of IRT models) to demonstrate how a scale for measuring hedonic aspects of websites is developed under both approaches. The results illustrate how IRT can be successfully applied in IS research and provide better scale results than CTT. We conclude by explaining the most appropriate circumstances for applying IRT, as well as the limitations of IRT.

A prevalência de crianças com atrasos no desenvolvimento é estimada em torno de 16 a 18%, sendo que menos de um terço dessas crianças são identificadas por serviços básicos de saúde. Estima-se que no Brasil a taxa de identificação de crianças com problemas do desenvolvimento é ainda menor uma vez que existe uma lacuna de instrumentos validados e normatizados para crianças de idades entre zero a seis anos de idade. A identificação de atrasos e comprometimentos do desenvolvimento cognitivo de crianças é essencial já que quanto mais cedo houver encaminhamento para intervenção, maiores são os benefícios. A escala cognitiva do Inventário Dimensional de Avaliação do Desenvolvimento Infantil (IDADI) é composta por 106 itens que avaliam o desempenho em funções como formação de conceitos, simbolização, abstração, percepção, atenção, velocidade de processamento da informação, processamento visoespacial, solução de problemas e memória. O presente estudo objetivou investigar as evidências de validade relacionadas à estrutura interna da escala cognitiva do IDADI e descrever as transformações das estimativas de desenvolvimento cognitivo ao longo das faixas etárias da amostra. 1336 crianças foram avaliadas a partir das respostas das mães aos itens do inventário. Análises de Rasch indicaram consistência interna plenamente satisfatória e ótima discriminação dos participantes. Os itens forneceram uma medida compreensível do traço latente avaliado indicando validade de construto e precisão da escala. As faixas etárias tiveram diferenças significativas com grande tamanho de efeito e análises de agrupamento apontaram para diferentes padrões de associação entre desenvolvimento e idade ao longo do tempo. Deste modo, a escala cognitiva do IDADI se mostrou um instrumento válido e útil capaz de avaliar os diferentes estágios do desenvolvimento cognitivo infantil. / The prevalence of children with developmental delays is estimated to range from 16% to 18%, but less than one-third of these children are identified by their health care providers. In Brazil, underdetection of children with developmental problems is even greater due to the limited number of standardized screening and assessment tools with appropriate normative data. Early detection of delays and disabilities is essential, because the earlier the intervention, the greater the benefit. In order to address this issue, the cognitive scale of the Inventário Dimensional de Avaliação do Desenvolvimento Infantil (IDADI; Dimensional Inventory for Child Development Assessment) was developed. It consists of 106 items that assess, via mother report, cognitive development on symbolization, abstraction, perception, attention, information processing speed, visuospatial processing, problem solving and memory. A sample of 1336 Brazilian children took part on the study. Rasch analysis indicated satisfactory discrimination. Items provided a comprehensive measure of the latent trait indicating construct validity and scale reliability. Age groups had significant differences with large effect size. Cluster analyzes indicated different patterns of association between cognitive development and age over time. Thus, the results point out that the cognitive scale of IDADI can be considered a valid and useful tool, capable to assess the different stages of child cognitive development.

by Tan Ah Kiang. / Bibliography: leaves 90-96 / Thesis (M.A.Ed.) -- Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1983

Diversos estudos têm demonstrado associação entre o temperamento e os níveis de ansiedade pré-operatória em crianças. Entretanto, a natureza desta associação não é consenso. Como a maioria desses estudos utilizou o questionário EASI (emocionalidade, atividade, sociabilidade e impulsividade) como instrumento para mensurar o temperamento, o presente estudo examina em profundidade as propriedades psicométricas do mesmo utilizando a análise de Rasch, para determinar se o instrumento mede de forma adequada o temperamento de crianças. Além disso, outras análises são aplicadas para explorar novas estruturas fatoriais do instrumento original. A habilidade da nova versão do EASI para discriminar diferentes níveis de ansiedade no período préoperatório imediato em crianças também foi investigada. Trata-se de um estudo transversal, com amostra de conveniência, onde foram incluídas crianças entre dois e seis anos agendadas para procedimentos cirúrgicos eletivos ambulatoriais. Os cuidadores das crianças completaram um formulário sócio-demográfico, o questionário EASI e uma Escala Análogo-Visual (EAV) de 100mm. Também, a Escala de Ansiedade Pré-Operatória de Yale (mYPAS) foi aplicada imediatamente antes da administração da medicação préanestésica, pelo anestesista pediátrico. Uma vez que o escore médio de compreensão das questões, medido pela EAV, foi superior a 80mm, considerou-se que o nível de compreensão da versão traduzida do EASI foi adequado. O questionário foi respondido por 110 cuidadores. Os resultados da análise de Rasch evidenciaram que as quatro subescalas da estrutura original apresentam desempenho inadequado (especialmente baixo índice de classificação correta dos aspectos do temperamento). A análise de componentes principais gerou uma solução com dois fatores. O Fator 1 é composto de itens de atividade e impulsividade, e o Fator 2 é predominantemente composto por itens das sub-escalas de sociabilidade e atividade. As sub-escalas originais do EASI não se correlacionaram com os escores da mYPAS, à exceção da sociabilidade (r=-0,449; P <0,001). O Fator 1 apresentou correlação positiva (r=0,239; P =0,0034) com a mYPAS, enquanto o Fator 2 apresentou correlação negativa (r=-0,404, P <0,0001). A análise de Rasch indicou que o instrumento original teve poder de discriminação insuficiente. Dentre os dois fatores propostos, os doze itens que compõem o Fator 1 apresentam perfil estatístico adequado, com alto poder de discriminação e relevância clínica. O Fator 2 não tem poder de discriminação adequado no seu formato atual, e ainda necessita de ajustes. / Some studies have shown correlation between temperament and preoperative anxiety levels in children. However, the nature of the association is not consensual. As most of these studies have used the EASI (emotionality, activity, sociability and impulsivity) questionnaire as an instrument to assess temperament, the present study examines the psychometric properties of this questionnaire in depth using the Rasch analysis to determine whether it is suitable for measuring children’s temperament. In addition, further analyses are carried out to explore potentially new factorial structures of the original instrument. The ability to discriminate between different levels of a child’s anxiety in the immediate preoperative period was also examined. It is a cross-sectional study, with a convenience sample of children aged between 2 and 6 years, to be submitted to outpatient elective surgeries. Children’s caregivers completed a socio-demographic form, the EASI questionnaire and a 0-100mm Analogue-Visual Scale (VAS). In addition, the Yale Preoperative Anxiety Scale (mYPAS) was performed immediately prior to the administration of pre-anesthetic medication by the pediatric anesthetist. As the mean comprehension level of the EASI-questions on VAS score was above 80mm, the translation of EASI was considered adequate. The questionnaire was answered by 110 caregivers. Results from Rasch analysis showed that the four subscales have inadequate perfomance (especially low person separation indices). Principal component analysis yielded a two-factor solution. Factor 1 is composed of activity and impulsivity items, and factor 2 is predominantly composed of items from the sociability and activity subscales. The original EASI subscales did not correlate with m-YPAS scores, with exception of sociability (r=-0.449; P <0.001). Factor 1 had a positive correlation (r=0.239; P=0.0034) with m-YPAS, while factor 2 showed a negative correlation (r=-0.404, P <0.0001). Rasch analysis indicated that the original EASI instrument has insufficient separation power. The twelve items that compose Factor 1 show adequate fit statistics, high separation power, and clinical meaning. Factor 2 is not sufficiently powerful in its current state, and still requires refinements.

The concept of patient empowerment, although acknowledged by the medical community as important, is rarely understood and seldom given priority in the illness trajectory of the cancer patient. A pilot study of a Shared Care Model amongst haematological cancer patients highlighted the fact that some patients spoke of a sense of empowerment and an overall sense of greater control when more fully included in the treatment and management of their condition. The research which forms the basis of this thesis focused on the role of empowerment in the wellbeing of cancer patients. There were three objectives to be met by completing this research. Firstly, to demonstrate that empowerment is a uniquely identifiable concept and can be measured separately from other quality of life indicators. Secondly, the study sought to explore that concept that empowerment takes into account the way in which patients act upon their prognosis and optimise the outcomes of treatment. Thus it is believed that accessing tailored resources and support structures benefit cancer patients and those who are caring for them such as close family members and friends by helping the patient achieve an individual level of empowerment. Finally, the research sought to explore the concept that empowerment improves psychological outcome in patients. The benefits are increased empowerment and an active use of coping strategies amongst patients in order to regain a measure of control over their illness. The Patient Empowerment Scale was developed to measure empowerment as an individual construct. '...' The Patient Empowerment Scale (15 items) was shown to be a reliable measure of empowerment and fitted the model well. A qualitative methodological approach sought to address and explore the second and third concepts. In addition, the concept of empowerment as it relates to motivation and self-efficacy was investigated qualitatively using in-depth interviewing technique. A phenomenological methodology was used to explore the 'lived experience of cancer patients' in regard to regaining control of their illness and the management thereof. Participants were interviewed using concepts identified for the Patient Empowerment Scale such as support strategies and use of resources. A series of interviews with breast cancer patients were conducted whereby patients responded to a number of questions. The questions explored areas such as support mechanisms in relation to cancer, their relationships with health professionals and significant others and their attitude toward and use of other resources and support systems such as support groups, spirituality, complementary therapies. In addition their views on acceptance and adaptation to their altered health status were explored. Results The research confirmed that it is feasible to measure empowerment as a separate quality of life indicator. Furthermore, that empowerment is linked to motivation and self-efficacy beliefs. The research also demonstrated that there are a number of core areas which are fundamental to regaining control and increasing empowerment for patients. These core areas are linked to support mechanisms, willingness to adapt and to access resources tailored to meet their needs. Patient empowerment emerged as a key aspect of enhanced quality of life regardless of prognosis and improved psychological outlook.

An examination of the logical relationships between attitude statements suggests that attitudes can be ordered according to favourability, and can also stand in relationships of implication to one another. The traditional representation of attitudes, as points on a single dimension, is inadequate for representing both these relations but representing attitudes as intervals on a single dimension can incorporate both favourability and implication. An interval can be parameterised using its two endpoints or alternatively by its midpoint and latitude. Using this latter representation, the midpoint can be understood as the �favourability� of the attitude, while the latitude can be understood as its �generality�. It is argued that the generality of an attitude statement is akin to its latitude of acceptance, since a greater semantic range increases the likelihood of agreement. When Coombs� Theory of Unidimensional Unfolding is reformulated using the interval representation, the key question is how to measure the distance between two intervals on the dimension. There are innumerable ways to answer this question, but the present study restricts attention to eighteen possible �distance� measures. These measures are based on nine basic distances between intervals on a dimension, as well as two families of models, the Minkowski r-metric and the Generalised Hyperbolic Cosine Model (GHCM). Not all of these measures are distances in the strict sense as some of them fail to satisfy all the metric axioms. To distinguish between these eighteen �distance� measures two empirical tests, the triangle inequality test, and the aligned stimuli test, were developed and tested using two sets of attitude statements. The subject matter of the sets of statements differed but the underlying structure was the same. It is argued that this structure can be known a priori using the logical relationships between the statement�s predicates, and empirical tests confirm the underlying structure and the unidimensionality of the statements used in this study. Consequently, predictions of preference could be ascertained from each model and either confirmed or falsified by subjects� judgements. The results indicated that the triangle inequality failed in both stimulus sets. This suggests that the judgement space is not metric, contradicting a common assumption of attitude measurement. This result also falsified eleven of the eighteen �distance� measures because they predicted the satisfaction of the triangle inequality. The aligned stimuli test used stimuli that were aligned at the endpoint nearest to the ideal interval. The results indicated that subjects preferred the narrower of the two stimuli, contrary to the predictions of six of the measures. Since these six measures all passed the triangle inequality test, only one measure, the GHCM (item), satisfied both tests. However, the GHCM (item) only passes the aligned stimuli tests with additional constraints on its operational function. If it incorporates a strictly log-convex function, such as cosh, the GHCM (item) makes predictions that are satisfied in both tests. This is also evidence that the latitude of acceptance is an item rather than a subject or combined parameter.

This study investigated the association between family socioeconomic status, family race/ethnicity, quality of services and the impact of those services on the family for families who had participated in a northeastern state's IDEA, Part C Early Intervention Program. Data for this study came from 1,108 families who responded to a survey distributed by the state's Early Intervention Program. The survey contained two Rasch-based measurement scales designed to yield measures of family perceptions of the quality of early intervention services they had received and the impact of those services on their family. Results of the study indicated that measures of quality of services were significantly and positively related to family outcomes. However, neither family race/ethnicity nor socioeconomic status was associated with quality of services. Results related to the strong association between quality of services and positive family outcomes are interpreted in light of previous research on the outcomes of family-centered care models. Results related to the parity of service quality across racial/ethnic and socioeconomic groups are interpreted in relation to two important characteristics of high-quality programs: cultural competency and service coordination.

Background: Among the instruments commonly used by occupational therapists working in the area of rehabilitation of persons with neurological disorders are evaluations of both occupation, such as activities of daily living (ADL), and body functions. While persons with neurological diagnoses typically have symptoms that represent diminished neurobehavioral functions, the resulting pattern of neurobehavioral impairments affecting ADL performance often differs among diagnostic groups. Usually, neurobehavioral impairments are evaluated in a context that is separate from and not natural for ADL task performance. The A-ONE is a unique instrument that can be used to evaluate both ADL performance (ADL scale) and, in the natural context of the ADL task performance, the underlying neurobehaviors that cause diminished ADL task performance among persons with neurological disorders (Neurobehavioral scale). The scales of the instrument are of ordinal type, and in their existing form, do not have measurement properties. Measurement properties are a requirement of evidence-based and quality assured rehabilitation services. The overall aim of this doctoral study was to further develop and validate the A-ONE. This included (a) internal validation to explore the potential for converting the ordinal scales of the instrument to interval scales, (b) examination of which of the neurobehavioral items would be most beneficial and clinically useful for constructing a new Neurobehavioral Impact (NBI) scale for evaluating persons with different neurological diagnoses, and (c) exploration of whether persons with right and left cerebrovascular accidents (RCVA, LCVA) differ in mean NBI measures.  Methods: This thesis is comprised of four studies which all contribute in different ways to the validation of the scales of the A-ONE. In the first three studies, Rasch analyses, a widely accepted modern test theory methodology, was used to examine internal validity of the scales and the reliability of the A-ONE measures. In the fourth study, ANCOVA was used to explore between group differences, and Pearson correlation coefficients were used to explore relations between person measures from the different A-ONE scales. Results: The first study of 209 persons diagnosed with CVA and dementia provided support for converting the ordinal ADL scale to an interval scale that has potential to be used to measure change in ADL performance over time. The second and third studies, including 206 and 422 persons respectively, indicated that it is possible to construct several unidimensional versions of a new NBI scale from the neurobehavioral items of the instrument, each with different item content and hierarchical item structure. Further, some of these NBI scales could be used across different diagnostic groups. When exploring differences between 215 persons with RCVA and LCVA on the NBI scale developed for CVA, results of the ANCOVA (with ADL ability as a covariate) indicated that there is no significant difference between groups in their mean NBI measures, despite known differences in patterns of neurobehavioral impairments. Conclusions: The results of this thesis indicate that the A-ONE, although developed by traditional psychometric methods for the purpose of providing useful information for intervention planning, now also has the potential to be used to measure change and compare diagnostic groups. This additional feature will likely enhance both clinical and research potential of the instrument. In order to make the results of the study accessible for clinicians, conversion tables need to be developed.