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Content Validity

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Synonyms

Logical validity; Rational validity

Definition

Content validity refers to the degree to which the test content elicits behaviors that are representative of the universe of construct-related behaviors the test is designed to measure.

Introduction

Content validity is an important criterion for the development and evaluation of psychological and educational tests (broadly defined as evaluative device or procedure including scales, interviews, behavior observations, and assessment processes integrating information from diverse sources; cf. AERA, APA, and NCME 2014). Each test yields at least one test score that is used as an indicator of a latent individual difference variable (construct). During test development, the test developer assigns a label to the test score (e.g., verbal reasoning) but whether the test score actually measures what the label suggests needs careful scrutiny of the test content. To support the validity argument concerning a specific test score, a rational...

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References

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Correspondence to Christoph J. Kemper .

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Kemper, C.J. (2017). Content Validity. In: Zeigler-Hill, V., Shackelford, T. (eds) Encyclopedia of Personality and Individual Differences. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28099-8_1289-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28099-8_1289-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-28099-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-28099-8

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Behavioral Science and PsychologyReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Business, Economics and Social Sciences

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