Deck 19: Test Bias

Question 1

A clear case of test bias is when regression lines describing the relationship between test and criterion for two different groups

A) are parallel,but have different intercepts.
B) have the same slope and the same intercept.
C) have different slopes.
D) are based on two different means for the test.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

A test has adverse impact if it

A) decreases an individual's self-esteem.
B) systematically rejects higher proportions of minority than non-minority individuals.
C) prevents non-minority applicants from being hired.
D) is used by an untrained administrator.

Answer 2

B

Question 3

Which of the following is true of biased test items?

A) Items believed to be biased rarely are biased.
B) Apparently biased test items actually decrease test score differences.
C) Elimination of biased items does not eliminate test score differences.
D) It is impossible to eliminate bias because every item is,in some way,biased.

Answer 3

C

Question 4

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission was created by

A) the 1970 EEOC guidelines.
B) a 1978 amendment to Title VII.
C) the Office of Federal Contract Compliance.
D) Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act.

Question 5

____ attempts to identify items that are specifically biased against specific groups.

A) Differential item functioning analysis
B) Multivariate analysis
C) Ethnicity sensitive analysis
D) Measurement equivalence

Question 6

The real dispute about racial differences in intelligence test results is

A) whether the results actually exist.
B) why better tests have not been developed.
C) why the differences exist.
D) whether the differences can ever be eliminated.

Question 7

Under current guidelines,what must an employer do if a selection procedure has adverse impact?

A) Pay hefty fines.
B) Eliminate the use of the test.
C) Demonstrate the procedure's validity in making the inferences the employer wants to make.
D) Identify potential reasons for the adverse impact and provide remediation to those groups that are adversely impacted.

Question 8

If an employer declined applicants from specific minorities based on a psychological test result,that illustrates

A) racism.
B) adverse impact.
C) false positives.
D) false negatives.

Question 9

Much of the controversy regarding testing has centered on the finding that on average,the IQ scores of African Americans are

A) 15 points above the scores of white Americans.
B) 20 points below the scores of white Americans.
C) one standard deviation below the scores of white Americans.
D) two standard deviations below the scores of white Americans.

Question 10

Exhibit 19-1

Refer to Exhibit 19-1.The regression line for the combination of groups A and B in the above figure yields a predicted score of approximately ____ for a test score of 6.

A) 4.0
B) 5.5
C) 7.0
D) 8.5

Question 11

The highest scores on the SAT Reasoning Test math section are obtained by

A) white Americans.
B) Asian Americans.
C) African Americans.
D) American Indians.

Question 12

Examination of tests such as the WAIS and WISC-R have found that white males are more often depicted in test items than other groups.What has research shown about such differences?

A) No one has established that these differences affect test performance.
B) They have a greater impact on females than on males.
C) They have a substantial impact on younger children but little impact on adults.
D) They account for a large percentage of test score differences.

Question 13

Which of the following is true of job performance measures in relation to race?

A) The differences between African Americans and whites are greater for objective than subjective measures.
B) The differences between African Americans and whites are greater for subjective than objective measures.
C) Because of improved training,the differences in job performance have been almost completely eliminated.
D) Racial differences are consistent whether objective or subjective measures of job performance have been used.

Question 14

Exhibit 19-1

Refer to Exhibit 19-1.The combined regression line in the figure ____ predicts Group A and ____ predicts Group B.

A) accurately; accurately
B) accurately; under
C) under; over
D) over; under

Question 15

The 1978 Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection Procedures provides

A) ambiguous guidelines regarding racial discrimination in hiring practices.
B) guidelines for the use of psychological tests in education and industry.
C) rules employers must follow to inform current employees of a newly available position.
D) employers with the option to use any available testing procedure.

Question 16

In one study on content bias in elementary reading tests,groups of experts were able to inspect the test and eliminate items that were potentially biased toward the majority group.How did this affect the differences between scores obtained by groups of majority and minority students?

A) Differences were eliminated.
B) Differences became greater.
C) It had little or no effect.
D) Minority students scored better than majority students.

Question 17

The finding that intelligence scores have changed significantly over time for some groups lends support to the argument that

A) intelligence is not completely determined by genetics.
B) culture does not affect intelligence.
C) nature is the most important determinant of IQ.
D) socioeconomic status does not affect intelligence.

Question 18

Exhibit 19-1

Refer to Exhibit 19-1.In the above figure,a test score of 6 is associated with a criterion score of approximately ____ for Group A and ____ for Group B.

A) 5; 9
B) 5; 5
C) 6; 6
D) 8; 6

Question 19

Which of the following makes it difficult to interpret racial differences in test performance?

A) Researchers fear they will be accused of being biased.
B) Increasing numbers of individuals will not report their race when asked.
C) Many individuals are of mixed race and do not know it.
D) Racial differences have been eliminated by better test construction.

Question 20

Flaugher (1978)contends that arguments about test bias were based on misunderstandings because test developers

A) are sensitive to the opportunities people have to learn information on a test.
B) are very concerned about the individual items on a test.
C) focus on overall test performance and how it correlates with an external criteria.
D) do not focus as much on test performance.

Question 21

Inner-city children who take the WISC-R may obtain lower scores because

A) they have less fluid intelligence.
B) the city pollution has had a negative developmental impact.
C) they are not given credit for responses that are appropriate to their environment.
D) the scoring procedures of the WISC-R are loose and ambiguous.

Question 22

Scores on the BITCH have been shown to be

A) higher for white groups than for African American groups.
B) higher for African American groups than for white groups.
C) equal for African American and white groups.
D) comparable to scores on the Stanford-Binet.

Question 23

The assessment technique that best challenges traditional beliefs about testing is the

A) BITCH.
B) Chitling Test.
C) Dove Counterbalance General Intelligence Test.
D) SOMPA.

Question 24

The Chitling test

A) has only been shown to have face validity.
B) is a convincing demonstration of bias in other standardized tests.
C) was designed by a racist group to demonstrate minority inferiority in test performance.
D) is commonly used in research studies.

Question 25

Attributing low test scores to "ignorance" suggests

A) test performance might be improved by enriching the social environment.
B) those who do not score well on tests are ignorant and cannot be helped.
C) that differences between groups on IQ tests result from genetic factors.
D) placement based on low test scores is justified.

Question 26

Which SOMPA component uses the norms within a particular subgroup for defining deviance?

A) pluralistic
B) social
C) organizational
D) communal

Question 27

The SOMPA system

A) considers each child relative to all other children.
B) considers each child relative to others from the same social and cultural group.
C) assumes that all individual children should have the same score on a test.
D) views each child as independent of all other children.

Question 28

The type of analysis that starts by finding equivalent subgroups of various test takers and then comparing their performance on specific test questions is known as

A) criterion testing.
B) differential item functioning analysis.
C) validity testing.
D) reliability.

Question 29

A limitation of the BITCH is

A) poor content validity.
B) too few items.
C) undocumented criterion validity.
D) lack of normative data.

Question 30

The SOMPA system uses portions of the

A) BITCH.
B) Chitling test.
C) Stanford-Binet.
D) WISC-R.

Question 31

Williams created the BITCH to test

A) the ability to survive in the African American community.
B) IQ of African American children.
C) the ability of African Americans to survive in white communities.
D) the ability of whites to survive in white communities.

Question 32

Which viewpoint was not considered in the development of the SOMPA?

A) the medical model
B) the social systems model
C) the genetic model
D) the pluralistic model

Question 33

The BITCH is predominantly a test of

A) intelligence.
B) reasoning abilities.
C) word association.
D) personality states.

Question 34

WISC-R scores are converted into estimated learning potentials (ELPs)on the

A) BITCH.
B) SOMPA.
C) Chitling.
D) IPAT Culture Fair Test.

Question 35

In a California trial,a judge remarked that ignorance and stupidity are two competing explanations for poor test performance.According to the stupidity explanation,poor test performance

A) is caused by unstimulating environments.
B) represents a deficiency that cannot easily be changed.
C) is caused by culturally biased test items.
D) is caused by a lack of education.

Question 36

The most clear-cut case of test bias is shown when the regression lines for two groups have ____ slopes and ____ intercepts.

A) the same; different
B) parallel; different
C) the same; the same
D) different; different

Question 37

Meagan grew up in a small rural town where she was a top student in her school.She was active in the Agricultural Club,but had not had an opportunity to travel,or attend plays,operas,and formal dinners.She did not score well on an intelligence test that asked questions about these types of events.Her low score reflects

A) her low intelligence.
B) a violation of content validity.
C) low fluid intelligence.
D) high reliability of the test.

Question 38

The main type of validity evidence that exists for the Chitling Test is

A) predictive validity.
B) concurrent validity
C) face validity.
D) content validity.

Question 39

The SOMPA system includes a physical examination because

A) physical skills are related to intelligence.
B) medical problems can interfere with performance on mental measures and school assignments.
C) the SOMPA is primarily a physical health evaluation.
D) its underlying theory is that intelligence is completely biological.

Question 40

Which component of the SOMPA assumes that different subcultures are associated with different life experiences?

A) social-system
B) pluralistic
C) personal
D) systemic

Question 41

Which of the following approaches leads to the highest expected performance on the criterion?

A) regression
B) constant ratio
C) Cole/Darlington
D) quota

Question 42

Some people might advocate that separate regression lines be used to select people from different groups and that persons should be selected only on the basis of the probability they will succeed on the job.The moral position this represents is

A) unqualified individualism.
B) qualified individualism.
C) relativism.
D) quotas.

Question 43

According to ____,selection procedures are biased if the percentage of applicants admitted to a school is significantly different from the percentage in the population.

A) unqualified individualism
B) qualified individualism
C) the use of quotas
D) the EEOC

Question 44

Although the quota system may adequately represent minority groups,it

A) may underrepresent majority groups.
B) has to use the same selection procedures for all groups.
C) may result in greater failure rates among some groups.
D) may not represent the minorities of that particular community.

Question 45

An estimated learning potential is

A) a score on the WISC-R intelligence test.
B) an intelligence test score normed against individuals with the same social and cultural background as the test-taker.
C) an estimation of a child's potential to learn based on a combination of teacher and parent predictions.
D) the estimated ability of a child to learn based on the average performance of siblings.

Question 46

Studies that have examined the correlation between measures of medical school success and success as a physician in practice have shown

A) the correlation to be very high.
B) only a moderate correlation.
C) almost no correlation.
D) that successful students make successful doctors.

Question 47

A way in which the differences between groups might stimulate new interpretations is

A) to view the differences as genetic variations.
B) to view them as social handicaps.
C) to examine patterns of problem-solving within a subculture.
D) allowing the differences to be used by employers when hiring.

Question 48

The textbook takes the position that observed differences between minority and non-minority groups might be attributed to

A) biased tests.
B) biased test administrators and academicians.
C) unequal access to adequate education and stimulating experiences.
D) inherent differences between the groups.

Question 49

Which model of test fairness selects more potentially successful people from the lower group?

A) Cole-Darlington
B) constant ratio
C) quota
D) regression

Question 50

Which of the following is true of the Chitling Test?

A) Criterion validity has been well-documented.
B) The test lacks predictive validity for both minority and nonminority groups.
C) There are no longer race-based differences in scores.
D) The test is not representative of urban African American culture in the 1960s.

Question 51

According to Heckman,which of the following is responsible for many major social problems?

A) poor literacy skills
B) prejudice
C) inherent differences
D) lack of health care

Question 52

Sander's position that students who were accepted in law schools by affirmative action tend to perform worse than other students

A) is supported by other researchers.
B) is widely accepted by law schools.
C) was not well received by legal scholars.
D) has mixed by supports and rejections.

Question 53

Ms.Collins used tests to select the most qualified people she could find to hire.She did not attend to the race or gender of the applicants.Ms.Collins' technique is known as

A) employment bias.
B) qualified individualism.
C) unqualified individualism.
D) test bias.

Question 54

Differential process theory asserts that

A) various strategies may lead to a solution.
B) different ethnic groups solve problems differently.
C) individuals who solve problems in novel ways are likely to score lower on standardized tests.
D) a person's abilities are dependent upon the strategies they use.

Question 55

One problem with the standardized Medical College Admissions Test is that

A) it has not been validated against performance in medical school.
B) it has not been evaluated against performance on medical board examinations.
C) it has not been successfully evaluated against performance in actual medical practice.
D) it is extremely gender biased.

Question 56

Members of certain minority groups are more likely to have positive tuberculosis test results than are majority group members.How have public health workers interpreted this observation?

A) Members of those minority groups are more likely to live in an environment in which the spread of tuberculosis is more likely to occur.
B) Members of those minority groups have genetic predispositions to tuberculosis.
C) Members of those minority groups have less access to medical care,so simple colds are more likely to become tuberculosis.
D) Members of minority groups are more likely to be tested for tuberculosis.

Question 57

The BITCH may help to assess

A) the extent to which an African-American is in touch with his/her community.
B) how well someone will survive on the street.
C) how well an African-American child will do in school.
D) how well an African-American adult will do in a given occupation.

Question 58

Dr.X believes that the state-supported law school should accept its first year class with ethnic representation equal to the proportions of the different ethnic groups in the general population.Dr.X believes in

A) unqualified individualism.
B) quotas.
C) qualified individualism.
D) reverse discrimination.

Question 59

Which of the following was a result of the decision by the University of California to reject the SAT-I?

A) Fewer qualified students were admitted.
B) High schools changed their curricula to include more math and essay writing experiences.
C) The College Board suspended their accreditation.
D) It became difficult to recruit exceptional students because of questions about the University's academic quality.

Question 60

Which of these ethical positions most explicitly recognizes race and gender differences?

A) qualified individualism
B) unqualified individualism
C) straight regression model
D) quotas