Question 1

The approach to personality test construction that examines a set of correlations among many items in order to identify which items are highly correlated is called the ________ approach.

Accepted Answer

A)  nomothetic 
B)  idiographic 
C)  rational 
D)  factor analytic

Question 2

Which of the following statements does NOT apply to rationally constructed personality scales?

Accepted Answer

A)  The items must all be face-valid indicators of what the tester is trying to measure. 
B)  The person who completes the form must be able and willing to report an accurate self-assessment. 
C)  Each item must mean the same thing to the person who fills out the form as it did to the psychologist who wrote it. 
D)  Items are selected with the aid of statistical analyses such as item response theory (IRT).

Question 3

The primary criterion for item selection in the empirical method of test construction is determining whether the item ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  makes the scale more reliable 
B)  discriminates between two known groups 
C)  loads highly on its primary factor 
D)  will be challenged in a legal context

Question 4

Personality assessment refers to ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  a treatment for personality disorders 
B)  the analysis and interpretation of genetic markers of personality 
C)  the measurement of any characteristic pattern of behavior, thought, or emotion 
D)  the selection of a group of individuals with the most unique temperaments

Question 5

One objection to the use of vocational interest tests is that these tests ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  measure conscientiousness rather than vocational interest 
B)  may discourage women or minority group members from joining certain fields 
C)  measure performance ability rather than job interest 
D)  can be used to tell individuals what kind of occupational group they most resemble

Question 6

Imagine that you want to develop a test to measure depression. You gather a set of 100 potential test items and ask a sample of people diagnosed with clinical depression and a sample of nondepressed people to respond to the items. For your final version of the test, you decide to keep only the 15 items that the depressed and nondepressed groups answered differently. You are using a(n) ________ method of test construction.

Accepted Answer

A)  factor analytic 
B)  rational 
C)  projective 
D)  empirical

Question 7

An important aspect of the definition of personality is its relative consistency across time and situations.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 8

Which of the following is NOT one of the Big Five?

Accepted Answer

A)  psychoticism 
B)  conscientiousness 
C)  neuroticism 
D)  agreeableness

Question 9

The two basic criteria for evaluating the validity of a personality judgment are ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  rationality and empiricism 
B)  usefulness and practicality 
C)  agreement and behavioral prediction 
D)  consensus and ability to generate testable hypotheses

Question 10

According to the text, which projective test appears to have produced evidence that comes close to establishing its validity?

Accepted Answer

A)  Draw-A-Person Test 
B)  Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) 
C)  Buss-Perry Aggression Q-Sort 
D)  Draw-A-Face Test

Question 11

The consensus among trait researchers is that three broad traits are truly essential.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 12

Most rationally constructed scales fail at least one or more of the criteria for valid S assessment.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 13

If a test consists of a list of True/False questions and is graded using a computer-scored answer sheet, then it is a(n) ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  projective test 
B)  Q-sort 
C)  objective test 
D)  commonality scale

Question 14

According to the underlying theory of projective tests, the stimulus itself (e.g., an inkblot or a TAT card) directly causes responses to each stimulus.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 15

Dr. Akita is designing a test to measure sociability. She writes items that seem directly and obviously related to sociability, such as "I like to go to parties" and "I enjoy the company of other people." Dr. Akita is using the ________ method of test construction.

Accepted Answer

A)  empirical 
B)  factor analytic 
C)  rational 
D)  projective

Question 16

A projective tests yields ________ data.

Accepted Answer

A)  B 
B)  I 
C)  L 
D)  S

Question 17

One study reported that the correlation between one scoring system for the Rorschach inkblots and mental health was about .33.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 18

Inventories derived from the empirical method sometimes have items that seem strange or even objectionable to test takers ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  in order to catch test takers who are faking responses 
B)  because those items correlated with outcomes of interest to the test developers 
C)  to identify test takers who are prudish and close-minded 
D)  because those items seemed the most content-valid to the test developers

Question 19

If you were shown an inkblot and asked to describe what you saw, you would be taking the ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  MMPI 
B)  CPI 
C)  Rorschach test 
D)  Thematic Apperception Test

Question 20

The sole basis on which items are selected for empirically derived personality scales is whether ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  their content adequately reflects the construct to be measured 
B)  they are correlated with other items on the scales 
C)  the respondent will be willing and able to give an accurate self-assessment for them 
D)  they are answered differently by different kinds of people

Exam 5: Personality Assessment I: Personality Testing and Its Consequences

The approach to personality test construction that examines a set of correlations among many items in order to identify which items are highly correlated is called the ________ approach.

Which of the following statements does NOT apply to rationally constructed personality scales?

The primary criterion for item selection in the empirical method of test construction is determining whether the item ________.

Personality assessment refers to ________.

One objection to the use of vocational interest tests is that these tests ________.

An important aspect of the definition of personality is its relative consistency across time and situations.

Which of the following is NOT one of the Big Five?

The two basic criteria for evaluating the validity of a personality judgment are ________.

According to the text, which projective test appears to have produced evidence that comes close to establishing its validity?

The consensus among trait researchers is that three broad traits are truly essential.

Most rationally constructed scales fail at least one or more of the criteria for valid S assessment.

If a test consists of a list of True/False questions and is graded using a computer-scored answer sheet, then it is a(n) ________.

According to the underlying theory of projective tests, the stimulus itself (e.g., an inkblot or a TAT card) directly causes responses to each stimulus.

Dr. Akita is designing a test to measure sociability. She writes items that seem directly and obviously related to sociability, such as "I like to go to parties" and "I enjoy the company of other people." Dr. Akita is using the ________ method of test construction.

A projective tests yields ________ data.

One study reported that the correlation between one scoring system for the Rorschach inkblots and mental health was about .33.

Inventories derived from the empirical method sometimes have items that seem strange or even objectionable to test takers ________.

If you were shown an inkblot and asked to describe what you saw, you would be taking the ________.

The sole basis on which items are selected for empirically derived personality scales is whether ________.