The standard error of the mean is one of the three main standard errors in psychometrics and psychology. Its purpose is to help conceptualize the error in estimating the mean of some population based on a sample. The SEM is a well-known concept from the general field of statistics, used in an untold number of […]
One of my graduate school mentors once said in class that there are three standard errors that everyone in the assessment or I/O Psych field needs to know: mean, error, and estimate. They are quite distinct in concept and application but easily confused by someone with minimal training. I’ve personally seen the standard error of […]
In the past decade, terms like machine learning, artificial intelligence, and data mining are becoming greater buzzwords as computing power, APIs, and the massively increased availability of data enable new technologies like self-driving cars. However, we’ve been using methodologies like machine learning in psychometrics for decades. So much of the hype is just hype. So, what […]
Cognitive diagnostic models are a psychometric paradigm for designing and scoring tests with the goal of providing a profile of examinee skill mastery rather than just an overall test score. CDMS are an area of psychometric research that has seen substantial growth in the past decade, though the mathematics behind them, dating back to MacReady […]
What is a rubric? It’s a rule for converting unstructured responses on an assessment, such as essays that students write, into structured data that we can use psychometrically. Why do we need rubrics? Measurement is a quantitative endeavor. In psychometrics, we are trying to measure things like knowledge, achievement, aptitude, or skills. So we need […]
Today I read an article in The Industrial-Organizational Psychologist (the colloquial journal published by the Society for Industrial Organizational Psychology) that really resonated with me. Has Industrial-Organizational Psychology Lost Its Way? -Deniz S. Ones, Robert B. Kaiser, Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, Cicek Svensson Why? Because I think a lot of the points they are making are also true […]
