Deck 7: Measurement

Question 1

Numerical employment interview ratings represent objective measures.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

The most appropriate measure of central tendency for nominal scale data is the median.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

If scores are classified as "low", "medium", and high", the scale of measurement is nominal.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

To achieve standardization the content of job application tests should be the same for all applicants.

Question 5

Measures are methods or techniques for describing and assessing attributes of objects that are of concern to us.

Question 6

A rank ordering of five job candidates in terms of overall qualification for the job is an example of an ordinal scale.

Question 7

Human body weight is an example of a variable measured on a ratio scale of measure.

Question 8

Scoring keys for tests should be developed immediately after the test has been administered.

Question 9

A correlation between two variables does not necessarily that one causes the other.

Question 10

With very large samples, it is possible for a fairly weak relationship to still be statistically significant.

Question 11

Research shows that when an attribute is measured by both objective and subjective means, there is often relatively low agreement between scores from the two types of measures.

Question 12

Standard scores are also useful for determining how a person performed, in a relative sense, on two or more tests.This is helpful for comparing relative standing across several tests.

Question 13

If an individual has a z-score of 2.0 on a performance test, this indicates this person's score is twice as high as the average test score.

Question 14

A correlation coefficient ranges from 0 to +1.

Question 15

Measurement standardization applies to measurement content, not the administration of measurements.

Question 16

The standard deviation is a measure of the central tendency of a scale.

Question 17

When developing measures, it is a good idea to give each rater some license to interpret the meaning of scores as fits the specific situation.

Question 18

A standard level for statistical significance is p<.50.

Question 19

When numbers are assigned by category, this reflects an ordinal scale of measurement.

Question 20

Most staffing measures can be best described as being on a ratio scale.

Question 21

If the correlation coefficient between variables X and Y is.90, this means that the proportion of common variance shared by the two variables is ninety percent.

Question 22

Perfect reliability is virtually impossible to achieve because of the presence of measurement error.

Question 23

A measure with a coefficient alpha of .55 should generally be regarding as having adequate reliability.

Question 24

The standard error of measurement is a useful indicator of how accurate actual scores of applicants are in assessing the true scores of a given measure.

Question 25

A correlation score of minus one between two sets of scores indicates an exceptionally low association or relationship between the two sets.

Question 26

If an attribute of job performance is "planning and setting work priorities," and the raters fail to rate people on that dimension during their performance appraisal, then the performance measure is contaminated.

Question 27

Comparing scores of objective measures within the same time period is a measure of internal consistency.

Question 28

The research literature indicates a high correlation between subjective and objective measures of performance.

Question 29

While correlation is valuable as an indicator of the degree of association between variables, it is generally not used as a tool for prediction.

Question 30

Error caused by failing to measure a key aspect of the attribute of interest (i.e., the attribute we wish to measure), is known as contamination error.

Question 31

Asking different questions of job applicants during comparisons of interview ratings between these same job applicants is an example of contamination error.

Question 32

Calculation of the test-retest reliability of scores between time periods is done for objective measures, not subjective measures.

Question 33

The correlation coefficient does not measure the change in one variable caused by another variable.

Question 34

In staffing the scores of individuals are treated as if they were the attribute itself, rather than merely indicators of the attribute.

Question 35

Even when measurement error is present, true scores can be measured with perfect precision.

Question 36

If all the members of a panel interview reach the same conclusion regarding a person who is being interviewed, it could be said that the interview ratings are reliable.

Question 37

A correlation coefficient of 1.0 between variables X and Y indicates that there is a perfect linear relationship between these two variables.

Question 38

Reliability sets the lower limit on validity.

Question 39

Performance appraisal ratings are subjective measures.

Question 40

The consistency of measurement of an attribute refers to its validity.

Question 41

One way that retail organizations are making use of technology is by having electronic assessment at in-store kiosks.

Question 42

Criterion measures are not used in the calculation of content validity.

Question 43

When assessing the quality of tests to be purchased, the only considerations to attend to are the qualifications of the firm and the standardization of procedures.

Question 44

Which of the following is not part of the process of measurement?

A) choosing an attribute of concern
B) assessing the attribute's acceptability to applicants
C) using the measure to gauge the attribute
D) constructing a measure of the attribute

Question 45

Investigation of applicant stock statistics is also known as "utilization analysis."

Question 46

Internet-based tests are usually not as good as paper-and-pencil based tests for predicting future job performance.

Question 47

Organizations that collect assessment data need to attend to professional standards that govern their use.

Question 48

The assessment of concurrent validity is more convenient and more efficient than the assessment of predictive validity.

Question 49

Measuring the accuracy of a mechanical ability test in predicting the job performance of current employees involves a predictive validity design.

Question 50

The use of standardized measurement eliminates the possibility of adverse impact occurring.

Question 51

According to the Uniform Guidelines for Employee Selection Procedures (UGESP), comparisons of selection rates among groups should be based on the 70% rule.

Question 52

When assessing adverse impact, the law prohibits taking sample size into account.

Question 53

One guideline for effective staffing practice is that all predictors should be routinely subjected to content validation.

Question 54

Adverse impact statistics are very stable sample estimates of the amount of true adverse impact occurring in an organization.

Question 55

A test manual will typically include administration instructions, scoring instructions, and normative data.

Question 56

The extent to which scores on a knowledge test truly reflect a job applicant's knowledge is a measure of the test's validity.

Question 57

Applicant flow statistics require the calculation of selection rates for groups and the subsequent comparison of those rates to determine if they are significantly different from each other.

Question 58

The process of criterion-related validation begins with the identification of criterion measures.

Question 59

The Uniform Guidelines in Employee Selection procedures indicates that when a selection procedure shows adverse impact, the organization must either eliminate it or justify it through presentation of validity evidence.

Question 60

Even if methodological and statistical differences across criterion-related validation studies are not controlled for statistically, it is still probable that validity can be generalized from one specific situation to another.

Question 61

The most appropriate measure of central tendency for nominal data is the ________.

A) mean
B) median
C) standard deviation
D) mode

Question 62

A scale in which objects are rank ordered according to how much of the attribute they possess, with equal space between objects.

A) nominal
B) ordinal
C) interval
D) ratio

Question 63

The likelihood that a correlation exists in a population, based on knowledge of the actual value of r in a sample from that population is the ________.

A) practical significance
B) likelihood ratio
C) functional statistic
D) statistical significance

Question 64

Which of the following levels of statistical significance would provide the most confidence that a sample correlation coefficient would not be interpreted as having a relationship in the population, when, in fact, there is no such relationship?

A) )10
B) )50
C) )01
D) )05

Question 65

A scale in which objects are rank ordered according to how much of the attribute they possess.

A) nominal
B) ordinal
C) interval
D) ratio

Question 66

A complete lack of correlation between two variables is expressed by a correlation coefficient of ________.

A) 50
B) 1.00
C) -1.00
D) zero

Question 67

The proper test to determine that a given sample correlation is statistically significant as an estimate of a correlation in a population is the ________.

A) z score
B) standard deviation
C) squared correlation coefficient
D) the t test

Question 68

Which of the following results represents statistically significance as it is commonly understood?

A) r = .30
B) p < .05
C) r > .10
D) all of the above

Question 69

The larger the correlation coefficient, ________.

A) the greater the practical significance
B) the smaller its practical significance
C) the larger its range
D) the smaller its statistical significance

Question 70

Reliability of measurement is defined as ________.

A) frequency of measurement
B) magnitude of measurement
C) accuracy of measurement
D) consistency of measurement

Question 71

Which of the following statements about measurement is not correct?

A) it assigns numbers to objects.
B) it is based on rules determined in advance.
C) it measures the object not the attribute.
D) it measures constructs.

Question 72

A nominal scale of measurement has ________.

A) rank order
B) an absolute true zero point
C) classification by categories
D) equal differences between points on a scale of measurement

Question 73

A scale in which a given attribute is categorized, and numbers are assigned to the categories, but there is no order or level implied among the categories.

A) nominal
B) ordinal
C) interval
D) ratio

Question 74

Length in inches is an example of a(n) ________.

A) ratio scale
B) nominal scale
C) ordinal scale
D) interval scale

Question 75

The correlation coefficient expresses ________.

A) causality
B) variance
C) strength of the relationship between two variables
D) the range between two variables

Question 76

The process of ensuring that all test takers receive the same tests in the same context, as a way to eliminate extraneous influences on test performance is called ________.

A) standardization
B) optimization
C) rationalization
D) inflation

Question 77

Which of the following is a true statement?

A) true score divided by error equals actual score
B) actual score equals true score plus error
C) actual score plus error equals true score
D) true score equals variance plus error

Question 78

Rankings of the finishes of competitors in a foot race is an example of a(n) ________.

A) ratio scale
B) ordinal scale
C) interval scale
D) none of the above

Question 79

The variability of a measure is best captured by the ________.

A) mean and standard deviation
B) range and standard deviation
C) range and median
D) mode and mean

Question 80

A z score of 3.0 for a job applicant's score on an aptitude test indicates the applicant ________.

A) achieved a score 3 points higher than the average score
B) received a score 3 standard deviations above the mean score
C) had a score 3 percent higher than the average score
D) had a score plus or minus 3 points relative to the mean score