5 Steps to a 5 AP Psychology, 2010-2011 Edition (60 page)

(D) failing eyesight, which can be compensated for by large print being used on the test

(E) a problem in her concrete operational thought

1. B—
Aptitude tests measure our potential for learning whereas achievement tests measure what we have already learned.

2. A—
For a standardization sample to be useful it must fairly represent all the types of people who will be taking it at a future date.

3. B—
A split-half reliability measure correlates the scores on one half of the questions on a test with the other half. If they are consistent, then the test results are reliable. The odd–even question format is only one way to test for split-half reliability.

4. B—
Group tests are more economical and easier to administer to a larger group of people in less time with less need for a professional examiner and complicated grading criteria. Most results are computer generated.

5. C—
Spearman’s
g
is a general ability that fuels many
s
, or special talents. His two-factor model does tend to support the genetic basis of intelligence, but
g
does not mean this.

6. A—
Sternberg argued that traditional IQ tests are limited to measuring the analytical abilities of students—mostly verbal, mathematical, and logical reasoning. He believes that both practical and creative intelligence are overlooked by these tests, but should be measured because of their importance in both adapting to the existing environment and shaping new ones.

7. D—
The formula for determining the Stanford-Binet IQ score is MA/CA × 100. This formula shows that Freddie’s intelligence quotient would be 12/10 × 100 or 120.

8. E—
In comparison to white students, black students average IQ scores 10 to 15 points lower.

9. B—
Questions at either extreme are thrown out because these fail to show individual differences, which is the whole point of standardized tests.

10. C—
Many older individuals like Barika show this decline in fluid intelligence, possibly because they get fewer opportunities to use their abstract reasoning. The speed at which they can answer these types of questions decreases as well. Their overall crystallized intelligence, or information that they have gathered over a lifetime, is often unimpaired.

Tests are used to make decisions.

Psychometricians
(measurement psychologists)—focus on methods for acquiring and analyzing psychological data; measure mental traits, abilities, and processes.

Standardization and norms:

Constructs
—hypothetical abstractions related to behavior and defined by groups of objects or events.

Standardization
—two-part test development procedure: first establishes test norms from the test results of the large representative sample then assures that the test is both administered and scored uniformly for all test takers.

Norms
—standards used to compare scores of test takers.

Reliability and validity:

Reliability
—consistency of results over time (repeatability); methods of measurement include test-retest, split half, alternate form.

Validity
—test measures what it is supposed to measure; methods of measurement include face, content, predictive, construct.

Types of tests:

•
Performance tests
—test taker knows how to respond to questions and tries to succeed.

•
Speed tests
—large number of relatively easy items in limited test period;

•
Power tests
—items of varying difficulty with adequate test period.

Aptitude tests
—assess person’s capacity to learn, predict future performance (example: SAT).

Achievement tests
—assess what a person has already learned (example: AP test).

Group tests
—test many people at one time; test taker works alone; cheaper; more objective.

Individualized tests
—interaction of one examiner with one test taker; expensive; subjective grading.

Ethics and standards in testing:

APA and other guidelines detail standards to promote best interests of client, guard against misuse, respect client’s right to know results, and safeguard dignity. Informed consent needed. Confidentiality guaranteed.

Culture-relevant tests
—test skills and knowledge related to cultural experiences of the test takers.

Intelligence and intelligence testing:

Reification
—construct treated as a concrete, tangible object.

Intelligence
—aggregate or global capacity to act purposefully, to think rationally, and to deal effectively with the environment.

Stanford-Binet intelligence test
—constructed by Lewis Terman—was an individual IQ test with IQ calculated using ratio formula: Mental age/chronological age × 100. Now, IQ based on deviation from mean, for children and for adults. Five ability areas assessed both verbally and nonverbally.

Wechsler intelligence tests
—Three age-based individual IQ tests: WPPSI (Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence), WISC (Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children), WAIS (Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale); two scores—verbal and performance; difference between two helpful for identifying learning disabilities; deviation IQ score—100 mean/mode/median, 15 pt SD; good for extremes of gifted and mentally retarded or cognitively disabled.

Degrees of Mental Retardation:

• Mild—IQ 50–70; can self-care, hold job, may live independently, form social relationships.

• Moderate—IQ 35–49; may self-care, hold menial job, function in group home.

• Severe—IQ 20–34; limited language and limited self-care, lack social skills, require care.

• Profound—IQ under 20; require complete custodial care.

Factor analysis
—a statistical procedure that identifies common factors among groups of items by determining which variables have a high degree of correlation.

Charles Spearman used factor analysis to identify
g
: general factor underlying all intelligence, also
s
: less important specialized abilities.

Thurstone’s
primary mental abilities
—seven distinct intelligence factors.

John Horn and Raymond Cattell identified two intelligence factors:

•
Fluid intelligence
—those cognitive abilities requiring speed or rapid learning that tend to diminish with adult aging.

•
Crystallized intelligence
—learned knowledge and skills, such as vocabulary, which tend to increase with age.

Multiple intelligences
—Howard Gardner’s theory that people process information differently and intelligence is composed of many different factors, including at least eight intelligences: logical-mathematical, verbal-linguistic, spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, and naturalistic.

Emotional intelligence
—Peter Salovey and John Mayer’s construct defined as the ability to perceive, express, understand, and regulate emotions; similar to Gardner’s interpersonal and intrapersonal intelligences.

Triarchic theory of intelligence
—Robert Sternberg’s idea of three separate and testable intelligences: analytical (facts), practical (“street smarts”), and creative (seeing multiple solutions).

Heredity/environment and intelligence:

Both nature and nurture contribute to intelligence.

Cultural-familial retardation
—retardation attributed to sociocultural deprivation.

In twin studies, correlation of IQs of identical twins was much higher than fraternal twins or other siblings (favoring nature).

Flynn effect
—steady increase in performance on IQ tests over the last 80 years, possibly resulting from better nutrition, educational opportunities, and health care (favoring nurture)

Human diversity:

Within-group differences
—range of scores for variables being measured for a group of individuals.

Between-group differences
—usually the difference between means of two groups of individuals for a common variable.

Stereotype threat
—Claude Steele’s concept that anxiety influences achievement of members of a group concerned that their performance on a test will confirm a negative stereotype. This may account for lower scores of blacks on intelligence tests or girls on math tests.

IN THIS CHAPTER

Summary:
What is the first thing that comes to mind when you think about psychology? Before you took a psychology course, it was probably mental health, especially abnormal behavior. Actually, 90% of what psychologists study is about normal behavior. As President of the American Psychological Association, Martin Seligman promoted the
positive psychology movement
, an emphasis on the study of human strengths, fulfillment, and optimal living to help us improve our lives. Although this movement is gaining in strength and popularity, mental health professionals are still needed to help people suffering from psychological problems.

This chapter looks at definitions, causes and types of psychological disorders.

Key Idea

Defining abnormal behavior

Causes of abnormal behavior

Anxiety disorders

Somatoform disorders