Assignment

Creation of an evaluative, comprehensive literature review. You will select a psychological measure or test(odara) Ontario domestic assault risk assessment) 8-10 pages.

You will evaluate the test using research in peer-reviewed psychology journals to substantiate claims about its validity, reliability, applications, and implications

This assessment will assess your mastery with respect to the following course outcomes:

· Analyze the primary tools and methods used in the development of valid, reliable psychological tests and assessments

· Evaluate the appropriateness of the psychometric methods used to develop, validate, administer, and interpret the results of psychological measurement instruments in published research studies

· Apply psychometric principles to the evaluation of the methods employed and results of published research studies

· Evaluate the influence of cultural and environmental factors on the effectiveness of psychological testing and assessment

· Assess the ethical issues involved in test administration and interpretation of testing and assessment results Prompt

Your literature review should answer the following prompt: What is the overall appropriateness and practical value of your selected psychological assessment measure?

Specifically, the following critical elements must be addressed: I. Background of the test

a. What is the purpose of the test?

b. What type of test is it? What type of information does it yield?

c. How is it administered and scored? Who publishes the results?

d. For whom is this test intended? Who else has utilized this test?

II. Assessment of the test

a. To what extent does the test employ appropriate psychometric principles?

b. To what extent has the reliability and validity of the test been demonstrated for varying populations?

c. What are the cut scores for "normal" versus "at-risk" and/or "clinically significant"? Is the method for interpreting and communicating the results (e.g., scaled scores, percentile ranks, z-scores, t-scores) appropriate?

d. Are there any specific cultural concerns that should be attended to? To what extent do cultural and environmental factors for minorities or special populations impact the effectiveness of the measure?

e. To what extent are there ethical issues related to the use, administration, and interpretation of this measure?

III. Practical applications of the test

a. Under what circumstances would you give this test? Provide example scenarios in which the test would be helpful to another mental health professional, parent, teacher, student, individual, court, business, or other profession?

b. For what purposes and with what clients would you not consider it useful? What are the limitations of this test?

c. What issues must you attend to carefully in order to present the test results accurately (e.g., not over- or under-interpret their significance) and ethically?

d. What strategies would you use to help you or your client make decisions resulting from an assessment (e.g., pairing results with other kinds of information)?