PSYCHOMETRIC TESTS

PSYCHOMETRIC TESTS Introduction

Psychometrics is the field of study concerned with the theory and technique of educational and psychological measurement, which includes the measurement of knowledge, abilities, attitudes, and personality traits. The field is primarily concerned with the construction and validation of measurement instruments, such as questionnaires, tests, and personality assessments. Application of psychometric tests 1. To assist in diagnosis: Rorschach inkblot test

2. To assist in the formulation of psychological and identification of areas of stress and conflict : Thematic apperception test

3. To determine the nature of the deficits that are present : 4. Cognitive neuropsychological assessments To assess severity of psychopathology and response to treatment: Hamilton rating scale for depression Brief psychiatric rating scale

5. To assess general characteristics of the individual : Assessments of intelligence Assessment of personality

6. Criminal psychologists might employ questionnaires to measure impulsivity and its relation to crime. 7. Health psychologists might measure peoples optimism in relation to their response to cancer diagnosis. 8. Occupational psychologists often employ personality tests to predict job performance and job suitability, e.g. Furnham (1992) reported that workers with high negative affect tend to be less productive and have less job satisfaction, etc

A psychological test is an objective, standardized measure of cognition, affect and or conation. Expressed in another way, it is a reliable and unbiased measure of psychological constructs that describe thinking, emotional, and behavioural processes.

Characteristics of a good psychometric test:

A psychometric test must be:

Objective: The score must not affected by the testers beliefs or values Standardized: It must be administered under controlled conditions, A test is considered to be standardized if it has been administered to sufficiently large and representative sample of the target population, and if through appropriate statistical procedures the essential elements have been retained and the unnecessary elements removed.

Reliable: It must minimize and quantify any intrinsic errors, A good psychological test should be reliable; that is, it should yield consistent results.

Validity: A good psychological test should be valid; that is, it should assess what it purports to assess, neither more nor less.

Predictive: It must make an accurate prediction of performance Non Discriminatory: It must not disadvantage any group on the basis of gender, culture, ethnicity, etc.

Sensitivity is the avoidance of false negatives; is the ability of a test to detect what it seeks to detect; there should be no sins of omission. A rating scale for depression, for example should easily and completely indentify all depressive symptoms that may be present.

Specificity is the avoidance of false positives; it is the ability of a test to avoid contamination with unrelated psychopathology; there should be no signs of commission. A rating scale for depression, for example, should not be reactive to schizophrenic psychopathology. A good psychological test should have satisfactory reliability, validity, sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values, and efficiency; it should be standardized.

TYPES OF PSYCHOLOGICAL TESTS 1. Projective tests 2. Personality tests

3. Intelligence tests 4. Neuropsychological tests 5. Rating scales 6. Miscellaneous test Achievement tests are usually seen in educational or employment settings, and they attempt to measure how much you know about a certain topic (i.e., your achieved knowledge), such as mathematics or spelling. Aptitude tests are also generally used in educational and employment settings, and they attempt to measure how much of a capacity you have (i.e., your aptitude) to master material in a particular area, such as mechanical relationships. Attitude tests-Attitude test assess an individual's feelings about an event, person, or object. Attitude scales are used in marketing to determine individual (and group) preferences for brands, or items. Typically attitude test use either a Thurston Scale, or Likert Scale to measure specific items. Neuropsychological tests attempt to measure deficits in cognitive functioning (i.e., your ability to think, speak, reason, etc.) that may result from some sort of brain damage, such as a stroke or a brain injury. Occupational tests attempt to match your interests with the interests of persons in known professions. The logic here is that if the things that interest you in life match up with, say, the things that interest most school teachers, then you might make a good school teacher yourself.

INTELLIGENCE TESTS
Intelligence tests attempt to measure your intelligence, or your basic ability to understand the world around you, assimilate its functioning, and apply this knowledge to enhance the quality of your life. Intelligence, therefore, is a measure of a potential, not a measure of what youve learned (as in an achievement test), and so it is supposed to be independent of culture. The trick is to design a test that can actually be culture-free; most intelligence tests fail in this area to some extent for one reason or another. Intelligence can be defined as the ability to assimilate factual knowledge, to recall either recent or remote events, to reason logically, to manipulate concepts (either numbers or words), to translate the abstract to the literal and the literal to the abstract, to analyze and synthesize forms,

and to deal meaningfully and accurately with problems and priorities deemed important in a particular setting. Intelligence varies tremendously from person to person. A. IQ test In 1905, Alfred Binet introduced the concept of the mental age (MA), which is the average intellectual level of a particular age. The intelligence quotient (IQ) is the ratio of MA to CA (chronological age), multiplied by 100 to eliminate the decimal point; it is represented by the following equation: IQ= IQ tests which contain a series of tasks typically divide the tasks into verbal (relying on the use of language) and performance, or non-verbal (relying on eye-hand types of tasks, or use of symbols or objects). Examples of verbal IQ test tasks are vocabulary and information (answering general knowledge questions). Non-verbal examples are timed completion of puzzles (object assembly), making designs out of coloured blocks (block design). IQ tests (e.g., WAIS-IV-Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale- 16 to 89 years of age, WISC-IVWechsler Intelligence Scale for Children age 5 to 15 years, Wechsler preschool and primary Scale of Intelligence Revised (WPPSI-R) for 4 to 6 years of age, Cattell Culture Fair III, Woodcock-Johnson Tests of Cognitive Abilities-III, Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scales V) Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale WAIS- It is the best standardized and most widely used intelligence test in clinical practice today. It was constructed by David Wechsler at New York University Medical Center and Bellevue Psychiatric Hospital. Designed in 1939. The latest revision is WAIS -IV. The WAIS is composed of 11 subjects made up of six verbal subtests and five performance subtests, which yield a verbal IQ, a performance IQ and a combined or full- scale IQ. Intelligence levels are based on the assumption that intellectual abilities are normally distributed (in a bell shaped curve) throughout the population. Verbal and performance IQs and the full-scale IQ are determined by the use of separate tablets for each of the seven age groups (from 16 to 64 years) on which the test was standardized. Distribution of IQ Scores The average, or normal, range of IQ is 90 to 110; IQ scores of at least 120 are considered superior. According to DSM IV TR classification of Intelligence by IQ Range is :

Classification Profound MR Severe MR Moderate MR Mild MR Borderline Dull normal Normal Bright normal Superior Very superior

IQ Range below 20 or 25 20-25 to 35 -40 35-40 to 50-55 50-55 to about 70 70-79 80 to 90 90 to 110 110 to 120 120 to 130 130 and above

Academic achievement tests (e.g. WIAT, WRAT, Woodcock-Johnson Tests of AchievementIII) are designed to be administered to either an individual (by a trained evaluator) or to a group of people (paper and pencil tests). The individually-administered tests tend to be more comprehensive, more reliable, more valid and generally to have better psychometric characteristics than group-administered tests. However, individually-administered tests are more expensive to administer because of the need for a trained administrator (psychologist, school psychologist, or psychometrician).

B. Binet- Kamat test

Binet test is a test of general intelligence. The performance of a child on the items of this test is compared with age-averaged norms obtained from children of various ages. This results in a conclusion that, for example, a particular child is performing at the 8 year old level. The ageaverage that matches the childs performance defines the mental age of the child being tested. A child with above average intelligence, therefore have a mental age, which exceeds his chronological age. Its Indian adaptation is called Binet- Kamat test. It helps to calculate IQ. Intelligence Quotient is defined as the childs mental age divided by his chronological age.

C. Ravens progressive matrices. (RPM)

It is a culture free intelligence test. RPM consist of 60 problems which are presented to the subject in serial order in a printed in a booklet. Each problem consist a pattern or a series of patterns with a missing element. The subject is required to identify the missing element from a

presented set of choices. The subjects performance on the RPM yields a percentile score which locates his intellectual position in the population. PERSONALITY TESTS Personality tests attempt to measure your basic personality style and are most used in research or forensic settings to help with clinical diagnoses. Objective Personality Assessment (Rating scale or self-report measure) The objective approach to personality assessment is characterized by the reliance on structured, standardized measurement devices, which typically have a self report nature. A structured approach reflects the tendency to use straight forward test stimuli, such as direct questions about persons opinions of themselves and unambiguous instructions about completing the test. . Prominent examples of objective personality tests include the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory, Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory-III,Child Behavior Checklist, and the Beck Depression Inventory. Objective personality tests can be designed for use in business for potential employees, such as the NEO-PI, the 16PF, and the OPQ (Occupational Personality Questionnaire), all of which are based on the Big Five taxonomy. The Big Five, or Five Factor Model of normal personality, has gained acceptance since the early 1990s when some influential meta-analyses (e.g., Barrick & Mount 1991) found consistent relationships between the Big Five personality factors and important criterion variables. Another personality test based upon the Five Factor Model is the Five Factor Personality Inventory - Children (FFPI-C.)

Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)

The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI), a self reported inventory, is the most widely used and most thoroughly researched objective personality assessment instrument. The MMPI was developed in 1937 by Starke Hathaway, a psychologist, and J. Charnley Mc Kinley, a psychiatrist. The test was eventually updated and is now called the MMPI-2. The test consists of more than 500 statements, to which subjects must respond with true or false or cannot say . The test may be used in card or booklet form, and several computer programs exist to process responses. The MMPI gives scores on 10 standard clinical scales, each of which was derived empirically ( ie. Homogeneous criterion groups of psychiatric patients were used in developing the scales) Objective Measures of personality in Adults

1. MMPI 2. MMPI-2

566 items, true or false, self report format; 17 primary scales 567 items .true or false; self report format; 20 primary scales 175 items; true-false; self report format; 20 primaryscales 175 items; true false ; self report format ; 25 primary scales

3. Million Clinical Multiaxial Inventory (MCMI) 4. MCMI-II

5. 16 Personality Factor Questionnaire == True false, self report format; 16 personality Dimensions 6. Personality Assessment Inventory(PAI)== 344 item ; likert-type format; self report; 22 scales 7. California Personality Inventory (CPI) 8. Jacson Personality Inventory(JPI) Scales 9. Edwards personal preference Schedule == Force choice; self-report format == 103 items ; true-false; self report format == True-false; self report format; 17 scales == true-false; self report format; 15 personality

10. Psychological Screening Inventory(PSI)

11. Eysenck Personality Questionnaire(EPQ) == True-false; self report format 12. Adjective Checklist (ACL) 13. Comrey Personality Scales (CPS) == True-false; self report ; or informant report == True false ;self report format; 8 scales scale

14. Tennessee Self Concept Scale (TSCS)== 100 items; true- false; self report format,14 Structured Clinical Diagnostic Assessments

To provide numerical scores on diagnostic scales used to score the severity of illness and in monitoring recovery. This help to standardize a subject cohort and provide objective outcome measures for assessing treatment response. Eg. Hamilton Rating Scale for depression, the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale, the Yale Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale ( YBOCS ), and the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Dissociative Disorders ( SCID-D). PROJECTIVE PERSONALITY ASSESSMENT (Free response measures) The projective approach to personality assessment is defined by the use of unstructured, often ambiguous test stimuli. Several semi structured situations and projective type stimuli have been developed, including perceiving ink blots, drawing pictures, and telling stories on the basis of presented pictures. Types: 1. Rorschach test == 10 stimulus cards of inkblots, some colored , others achromatic

2.

Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)== 20 Stimulus cards depicting a number of scenes of varying ambiguity

3.

Sentence Completion Test == A number of different devices available, all sharing the same format with more similarities than differences

4. Holtzman Inkblot Technique (HIT) ==2 Parallel forms of inkblot cards with 45 cards per form 5. Figure drawing ==Typically human forms but can involve houses or other forms 6. Make-a-picture Story (MAPS) == SIMILAR TOtat; however, stimuli can be manipulated by the patient. Other projective tests include the House-Tree-Person Test, Robert's Apperception Test, and the Attachment Projective. A. RORSCHACH TEST It was devised by Hermann Rorschach, a swiss psychiatrist, who about 1910 began to experiment with ambiguous inkblots. The Rorschach (the inkblot test), composed of standard set of ten cards of inkblots serves as a stimulus for associations; in the standard series , the blots are reproduced on cards 7 by 91/2 inches and are numbered from 1 to 10. Five of the blots are black and white; the other 5 include colors. The cards are shown to a patient in a particular order , and the psychologist keeps a record of the patients verbatim responses, along with initial reaction times and total time spent on each card. After completion of the free association phase, the examiner conducts an inquiry phase to determine important aspects of each response that are crucial to scoring. The ten inkblots Below are the ten inkblots of the Rorschach test printed in Rorschach's Rorschach Test Psychodiagnostic Plates, together with the most frequent responses for either the whole image or the most prominent details according to various authors. B. THEMATIC APPERCEPTION TEST (TAT) It was designed by Henry Murray and Christiana Morgan as part of a normal personality study conducted at the Harvard Psychological Clinic in 1943. The TAT consists of a series of 30 pictures and a blank card. Typically a patient is shown 10 cards and asked to make up stories about them. The patient is asked to tell what is

going on in this picture, what was going on before the picture was taken, what the individual in the picture are thinking and feeling, and what is likely to happen in the future. The TAT is a projective test in that, like the Rorschach test, its assessment of the subject is based on what he or she projects onto the ambiguous images. Therefore, to complete the assessment, each narrative created by a subject must be carefully recorded and analyzed to uncover underlying needs, attitudes, and patterns of reaction. Although most clinical practitioners do not use formal scoring systems, several formal scoring systems have been developed for analyzing TAT stories systematically and consistently. Two common methods that are currently used in research are the:

Defense Mechanisms Manual DMM. This assesses three defense mechanisms: denial (least mature), projection (intermediate), and identification (most mature). A person's thoughts/feelings are projected in stories involved.

Social Cognition and Object Relations SCOR scale. This assesses four different dimensions of object relations: Complexity of Representations of People, Affect-Tone of Relationship Paradigms, Capacity for Emotional Investment in Relationships and Moral Standards, and Understanding of Social Causality

c. Sentence completion test (SCT)

It is designed to tap patients conscious associations to areas of functioning in which clinicians may be interested. The SCT is composed of a series of sentence stems (usually 75 to 100) such as I like , sometimes I wish , that the patient is asked to complete in their own words. Time pressure is usually applied; patients are instructed to write down the first thing that comes to mind. With the individual protocol, most clinicians use an inspection technique and note particularly those responses that express strong affects, that tend to be given repeatitively, or that are unusual or particularly informative in any way. Areas in which denial operates are often revealed through omissions, bland expressions, or factual reports d. WORD ASSOCIATION TECHNIQUE Carl Gustav Jung devised the word- association technique. He presented stimulus words to patients and had them respond with the first word that came to mind. After the initial

administration of the list, some clinicians today repeat the list and ask the patient to respond with the same words that he or she used previously, discrepancies between the two administrations may reveal associational difficulties. Complex indicators include long reaction times, blocking difficulties in making responses, unusual responses, repetition of the stimulus words, apparent misunderstanding of the word, slang associations, perseveration of earlier responses , and ideas or unusual mannerisms or movements accompanying a response. Because it is easily quantified, the test continues to be used as a research instrument, although its popularity has diminished greatly over the years. e. DRAW A PERSON TEST This test was used as a measure of intelligence in children. It is easily administered, usually with the instructions. After completion of the first drawing, the patient is asked to draw a picture of a person of the sex opposite that of the figure in the drawing. A general assumption is that the drawing a person represents the expression of self or of the body in the environment. Most clinicians use drawing primarily as a screening technique, particularly to detect brain damage. The Draw-A-Person test requires the subject to draw a person. The results are based on a psychodynamic interpretation of the details of the drawing, such as the size, shape and complexity of the facial features, clothing and background of the figure. As with other projective tests, the approach has very little demonstrated validity and there is evidence that therapists may attribute pathology to individuals who are merely poor artists. A similar class of techniques is kinetic family drawing CLINICAL NEUROPSYCHOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT OF ADULT It examines the relationship between behavior and brain functioning in the realms of cognitive, motor, sensory, and emotional functioning. Neuropsychological assessment is indicated to identify cognitive defects, to differentiate incipient depression from dementia., to determine the course of an illness., to assess neurotoxic effects to evaluate the effects of treatment( eg.surgery for epilepsy,pharmaco therapy), and to evaluate learning disorders. REASONING, CONCEPT FORMATION AND PROBLEM SOLVING Patients with cerebral disease are likely to loss the capacity to reason abstractly and to lack flexibility in problem solving or adapting to change situation. Frontal lobe disease is associated with impaired abstract reasoning.

WISCONSIN CARD SORTING TEST (WCST) To assess abstract reasoning and flexibility in problem solving. Stimulus card of different color, form, and number are presented to patients to sort into groups according to a principle established by the examiner ( eg. To sort by color, ignoring form and number). The procedure, repeated several times, measures the capacity for abstract thinking and flexibility. Persons with damage to the frontal lobes or to the caudate and some persons with schizophrenia give abnormal responses. MEMORY Short term memory and recent memory is impaired in patients with brain damage and also in aging. Memory testing Wechsler memory scale (WMS-R) is the most widely used memory test for adults. It is a composite of verbal paired associate and paragraph retention, visual memory for designs, orientation, digit span, rote recall of the alphabet, and counting backward. The scale yields a memory quotient (MQ), which is corrected for age and generally approximates the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale intelligence quotient (WAIS IQ); amnestic conditions, such as Korsakoffs syndrome are characterized by a disproportionately low MQ but relatively preserved IQ. BENTON VISUAL RETENTION TEST The Benton Visual Retention Test is sensitive to short term memory loss. ORIENTATION Orientation for person or place is rarely disturbed in patients who are brain damaged and who are not psychotic or severely demented, although defects in temporal orientation, which can reflect the integrity of recent memory are common. BENDER VISUAL MOTOR GESTALT TEST It is a test of visuomotor coordination that is useful for both children and adults. It was designed in 1938 by Lauretta Bender of New York University Medical Center and Bellevue Psychiatric Hospital, who used it to evaluate maturational levels in children. By the age of 10 and certainly by age 12, a child copies should be reasonably accurate and well organized. The test material consists of nine separate designs, adapted from those used by Max Wertheimer in his studies in Gestalt psychology. Each design is printed against a white background on a separate card.

Presented with unlined paper. Patients are asked to copy each design with the card in front of them. There is no time limit. The Bender Gestalt Test is probably used most frequently with adults as a screening device for signs of organic dysfunction. MINI-MENTAL STATUS EXAMINATION (MMSE) MMSE is a screening test that can be used during a patients clinical examination. It is also a practical test to track the changes in a patients cognitive state. Of a possible 30 points, a score below 25 suggests possible impairment, and a score below 20 indicates definite impairment.

Rating scales:
Rating scales are instruments used to assess the magnitude or severity of a psychological disorder. The scales are available for a wide range of disorders, and indeed for a wide range of situations with in a disorder. Certain of these are self rated, while others require to be administered by a trained rater. Common rating scales in psychiatry are: 1. For the assessment of general mental health: Goldberg general health questionnaire (GHQ) Subjective well being inventory (SUBI)

2. For the assessment of anxiety: Hamilton anxiety rating scale (HARS) Covi anxiety scale

3. For the assessment of depression: Hamilton depression rating scale(HDRS) Beck depression inventory(BDI) Youngs mania rating scale (YMRS) Bech- Rafaelson mania scale Biegel mania rating sale

4. For the assessment of mania: -

5. For the assessment of schizophrenia: Brief psychiatric rating scale Scale for assessment of positive symptoms (SAPS)

Scale for assessment of negative symptoms (SANS)

6. For overall assessment: Clinicians global inventory (CGI) Global assessment scale (GAS) ADMINISRATION OF PSYCHOMETRIC TESTS The subject should be cognitively, emotionally and conatively in a maximally fit state to undertake the test. For example, intelligence or neuropsychological testing should never be conducted on a subject who is tired, sleepy, under the effect of drugs, or otherwise cognitively compromised. Assessment of subjective well-being, marital functioning, or other aspects of emotional and social happiness should never be conducted on a subject who is disturbed by some very recent stressor. The experimenter should establish good rapport with the subject; else, the subject may not cooperate adequately, or may not reveal all relevant information. The testing condition should be comfortable and free from distractions. The subject should be provided with adequate information about the test so that he can understand the purpose & nature of the testing, and so that he can consequently respond appropriately and completely to the elements of the test. The subject should be allowed to warm-up to the testing situation with some simple psychological tests which serve as exercises. These promote rapport and attenuate pre-test anxiety. Anxiety, if present, should otherwise be allayed through the provision of appropriate reassurance & encouragement before and during testing. Psychological tests are usually administered in one to one settings. However, certain tests, such as self- report personality questionnaires, can be administered in group settings. And, special versions of other tests are available which can be projected upon a screen for administration to groups of subjects.

Different methodologies of test administration

Interviews: -Hamilton rating scale for anxiety -Brief psychiatric rating scale Questionnaires :

-Goldberg general health questionnaires -Eysenck personality inventory Pen and paper tests: -Ravens progressive matrices -Digit symbol substitution test Special apparatus tests : -Kohs block design test -Rorschach inkblot test

Interpreting scores
Psychological tests, like many measurements of human characteristics, can be interpreted in a norm-referenced or criterion-referenced manner. Norms are statistical representations of a population. A norm-referenced score interpretation compares an individual's results on the test with the statistical representation of the population. In practice, rather than testing a population, a representative sample or group is tested. This provides a group norm or set of norms. One representation of norms is the Bell curve (also called "normal curve"). Norms are available for standardized psychological tests, allowing for an understanding of how an individual's scores compare with the group norms. Norm referenced scores are typically reported on the standard score (z) scale or a rescaling of it. A criterion-referenced interpretation of a test score compares an individual's performance to some criterion other than performance of other individuals. For example, the generic school test typically provides a score in reference to a subject domain; a student might score 80% on a geography test. Criterion-referenced score interpretations are generally more applicable to achievement tests rather than psychological tests.

Limitations of psychological tests

A subject who wishes to deliberately falsify his responses to a test can easily do so. Non representative performances may arise unconsciously out of fatigue , disorders- related deficits in attention and concentration, drug related deficits in alertness and cognition, a disturbed

mood state , environmental or situational influences, a tendency to agree to disagree with all statements, poor self- awareness ,self-deception , carelessness, a lack of seriousness or other factor. Certain psychological tests are based on self report; other are based on observer-report. Both categories of tests are based on observer-report. Both categories of tests are subject to conscious and unconscious biases & distortions. In psychological testing, there are few or no gold standards to determine the true validity of measurement; for example there is no perfect yardstick for neuroticism against which the neuroticism rating of a test can be compared. The weightage given to different elements of a test is not calculated or, if calculated, may be inaccurate because of variations across individuals & situations The same response may carry different meanings in different situations; a person who describes himself as slow may be intellectually slow, careful, depressed, obsessive or calm.

Causes of falsification distortions and other response errors in psychological testing

1. Deliberate falsification -Desire to project a good impression -Desire to please the examiner -Desire to produce a particular result -Distrust of the procedure 2. Illness-related factors -Illness related deficits in attention &concentration. -Drug related impairment of alertness &cognition 3. Personality related factors -Poor self- awareness -Self deception -Tendency to agree or disagree with all statements -Carelessness 4. Situational factors. -physical discomfort

-Fatigue -Disturbed mood state -Lack of seriousness -Lack of adequate interest& motivation -Environmental influences & distractions Ethical issues involved in psychological testing Test should not distress to the subject. The results of the tests should be kept confidential, and should be disclosed only to authorized individuals. The limitations of the test should be kept in mind when preparing and communicating the report. Discussion: Which all are the psychometric tests/ ratings scales using in our setup? Are they reliable? Discuss

References 1.
Namboothiri VMD, John CJ, clinical methods in psychiatry, 2nd edn, churchil livingstone.

2. Benjamin J. Sadock , Virginia A. Sadock (2000) Kaplan & Sadock's Comprehensive

Textbook of Psychiatry, 7th edition, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins Publishers

3.

Sadock, Benjamin James; Sadock, Virginia Alcott; Kaplan & Sadock's Synopsis of Psychiatry: Behavioral Sciences/Clinical Psychiatry, 10th Edition (2007) Lippincott Williams & Wilkins

4.

Michael G. Gelder, Juan J. Lpez-Ibor, Nancy Andreasen: New Oxford Textbook of Psychiatry