REFERENCES:

Foundations of Psychological Testing

Sandra A. McIntire & Leslie A. Miller(2000)

Psychological Testing: Principles and Application

5th Edition
Kevin R. Murphy & David Shofer
 Computers have become a familiar tool in
the psychological testing industry.
Although the use of scoring and
interpreting tests is no longer new,
computers now facilitate and enhance all
phases of the testing process.
Source: Adapted
from Hartman(1986)
 The use of computers to store data is
a practical necessity; large-scale testing
programs can generate mountains of
papers, and the storage and retrieval of
hard copies of test responses can be
surprisingly difficult.
 Computers have made it possible to construct
better and more valid tests.
› In education, for example, textbook publishers now
offer computerized test construction software to help
them prepare for course exams. These programs
contain a test bank- a large number of questions on
the topics in the textbook. The questions are
categorized by chapter and sometimes by difficulty.
 Some computer-based tests are
exact copies of their paper-and-
pencil counterparts.
 These are tests made up of questions chosen
from a large test bank to match the skill and
ability level of the test taker.
› In adaptive tests, all test takers start with the same set of
questions-usually those of moderate difficulty. As the test
progresses, the computer software chooses and presents
the test taker with harder or easier questions depending on
how well he or she answered the previous questions.
 The use of adaptive testing dates to
Binet at the beginning of the 20th
century.

 The advent of CAT allowed the

psychologist to administer important
tests, such as the Graduate Record
Examination using the adaptive testing
methods.
 Computers are used to score and interpret
scores of psychological tests.

 Organizations are relying more and more on

the use of computerized scoring and
interpretation to decrease the time it takes to
assess an individual’s performance and
produce a report outline their strengths and
development opportunities (areas need
improvement)
 The highest level of computer
involvement in testing is when the
computer not only interprets test scores
but also decides on the appropriate
treatment, therapy training program,
and so on.
 The use of computers to aid in the
interpretation of test scores can take
many forms.
› In its simplest form, a computer might
merely retrieve and display information
about the reliability and accuracy of test
scores or about various norms that might be
used to interpret tests.
› In its most extreme form, it might
involve a completely automated
testing, diagnosis and treatment
system.
› The first widely used CBTI systems
were developed in the 1960s to aid
clinicians in interpreting scores on
the MMPI.