___________________________________________________________________________________

_________________

Subject Psychology

Paper No and Title Paper 4: Applied Psychometrics

Module No and Title Module 8: A History and Overview of Psychological Testing

Module Tag PSY_P4_M8

TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. Learning Outcomes
2. Introduction
3. Psychological Assessment & Psychological Testing: What are they?
3.1 Psychological Test
3.2 Psychological Assessment
4. Some more definitions of psychological test
5. Nature and characteristics of psychological tests
6. Applications of psychological testing
7. Qualifications of a good psychological test
8. History of psychological testing
9. Summary

PSYCHOLOGY PAPER 4: Applied Psychometrics

MODULE 8: A History and Overview of Psychological Testing
___________________________________________________________________________________
_________________
1. Learning Outcomes
After studying this module, you shall be able to:

 Understand the concept of Psychological testing.

 Differentiate between Psychological assessment and Psychological testing.
 Know the nature and characteristic features of psychological tests.
 Know the applications of psychological testing in various settings.
 Identify the attributes of a good psychological test.
 Trace the historical underpinnings of psychological testing.

2. Introduction
A layman meeting a psychologist considers him no less than a magician who has the skill of
reading intelligence, personality, motivations, attitudes, values, interests, social skills of others.
Psychologists respond to this curiosity and elevated hopes of others by means of tools of
psychological testing and assessment. Maloney and Ward (1976) distinguished ‘testing’ from
‘assessment’ in regard to their respective objectives. The objective of psychological testing is to
measure the magnitude of a psychological attribute. In assessment, by contrast, the aim is to go
beyond the numerical measure to reflect on the strength or absence of a psychological attribute.
This module heaves light on the concept of Psychological assessment and Psychological testing.
It explains the applications of psychological testing in various settings and discusses the nature
and characteristics of psychological tests. Detailed account and intriguing efforts involved in
historical origin and development of psychological testing across the globe are also documented.

Psychological tests are standardized measurement tools consisting of a series of questions (called
items) which assess certain aspects of a person’s individuality and describes it in terms of scores
or categories. A good psychological test or a good measuring tool or instrument is reliable, valid,
have well defined norms and contain clear instructions for administering, scoring and
interpretation. Psychological tests have widespread applications in a variety of settings including
educational, organizational, human resource management, counseling, clinical, consumer and
military domains.

3. Psychological Assessment and Testing: What are they?

Consider an example in which an assessor is interested in gauging the numerical value of IQ of a

student by administering a standardized psychological test of intelligence. One might speak and
prefer of using the term ‘intelligence testing’ in such a case. In contrast, consider another example
in which an evaluator is not just interested in obtaining the IQ score of his student but, rather,
wishes to answer a referral question about his performance in a regular classroom by exploring his
intellectual strengths and weaknesses. In other words, he attempts to understand his student’s
problem in the broader framework for which a wide range of information will be required and new
methods need to be applied along with routine standardized intelligence testing. In such a case, the
term ‘intelligence assessment’ would be preferable to the term’ intelligence testing’.

Used synonymously and interchangeably by many, psychological testing and psychological

assessment carry different objectives and meanings. Maloney and Ward (1976) articulated the
PSYCHOLOGY PAPER 4: Applied Psychometrics
MODULE 8: A History and Overview of Psychological Testing
___________________________________________________________________________________
_________________
differences between the two-

Psychometric tests usually just add up the number of correct answers or the number of certain
types of responses or performances with little if any regard for the how or mechanics of such
content, clinical assessment is often far more interested in ‘how’ the individual processes rather
than the results of what he processes. The two operations, in fact, serve very different goals and
purposes. (p.39).

3.1 Psychological Test: Psychological tests are tools consisting of a series of questions (called
‘items’) which asses certain aspects of a person’s individuality and describe it in terms of scores
and categories Used in wide variety of settings like clinical, academic, organizational, military
etc., psychological testing entails behavioral observation and provide solutions to some of the
life’s most vital questions. As defined by Maloney & Ward (1976, p.9), “It is the process of
administering, scoring and interpreting psychological tests”. In this, decisions and predictions
about a client/subject are made entirely on the basis of test scores. The objective of psychological
testing is limited to measure the magnitude of some psychological trait or attribute.

3.2 Psychological Assessment: Psychological assessment, on the other hand, is a broad umbrella
term referring to the process of thoughtful appraisal and evaluation of the client or testee to
explore his strengths and weaknesses by a highly trained tester. The aim of assessment goes
beyond the numerical indices of more technical-like purpose of testing, but, comprises of rich
texture of the thoughtful, problem-solving process. Psychological assessment acknowledges that
tests are one type of instrument used by professional assessors to gauge a client’s behavior, but
assessment goes beyond the use of psychological tests as a key to meaningful evaluation. In many
evaluation contexts, the term, “assessment” is preferable to “testing”,

According to Cohen & Swerdlik (2001), Psychological assessment is the gathering and
integration of psychological-related data for the purpose of making a psychological evaluation,
accomplished through the use of the tools such as tests, interviews, case studies, behavioral
observation, and specially designed apparatuses and measurement procedures. They defined
Psychological testing as the process of measuring psychology-related variables by means of
devices or procedures designed to obtain a sample of behavior.

Since the field of psychometrics is primarily concerned with the construction and validation of
measurement instruments, such as questionnaires, tests, and personality assessments, a detailed
account of psychological testing is highlighted in the module.

4. Some More Definitions of Psychological Test

Psychological tests, varied and wide in their use and approach, are not easy to define. Many
definitions of psychological test are proposed by many researchers. In its simplest form, a test
can be defined as a measuring instrument or device designed to measure a variable or an attribute.
Drawing on this definition of test, a psychological test refers to a measuring instrument or device
designed to measure psychological variables and attributes (Example, intelligence, personality,
interest, aptitude, beliefs, values etc.).

Various definitions of psychological test proposed are:

According to Anne Anastasi (1988), a psychological test is essentially an objective and

standardized measure of a sample of behavior.
PSYCHOLOGY PAPER 4: Applied Psychometrics
MODULE 8: A History and Overview of Psychological Testing
___________________________________________________________________________________
_________________
 Frank Freeman (1955) has defined a psychological test as a standardized instrument
designed to measure objectively one or more aspect of a total personality by means of
samples of performance on behavior.
 According to Elmer Lemke and William Wiersma (1976), a psychological test is a device
for quantitative assessment, educational and psychological assessment, and educational
and psychological attributes of an individual. According to them, operationally, a test
secures a sample of behavior.
 According to Bean (1953), a test is an organized succession of stimuli designed to
measure quantitatively, or to evaluate qualitatively, some mental process, trait or
characteristic.
 According to Singh (2006), a psychological or educational test is a standardized
procedure to measure quantitatively or qualitatively one or more than one aspect of a trait
by means of a sample of verbal or non-verbal behavior.
 According to Sandra A. McIntire and Leslie A. Miller (2007) psychological tests are
instruments that require the testee to perform some behavior. The behavior performed is
used to measure some personal attribute, trait or characteristic – such as intelligence –
that is thought to be important in describing and understanding the behavior.
 According to Robert J. Gregory (2004), a test refers to a standardized procedure for
sampling behavior and describing it with categories of scores. In addition, most tests
have norms or standards by which the result can be used to predict other more important
behavior.

So, often, going through the above definitions, it appears that a test consists of a series of items,
on the basis of which some information is sought about one or more aspect of an individual or
groups traits, abilities, motives, attitude, and so on. This is done by making individuals/group
perform on a series of questions called ‘test items’, which elicit the desired behavior related to the
intended trait/ability being measured.

As can be seen from some definitions mentioned above (for example, Freeman 1955; McIntire
and and Miller 2007; and so on), some behavioral dimensions of a person’s individuality (like
personality, intelligence) have received more attention compared to others. McIntire and Miller
(2007) have offered a continuum of some of the most and least commonly recognized type of
psychological tests, as given in Figure 1.

Figure 1. A Continuum of Psychological Tests

More Typical ˂----------------------------------------------------˃ Less Typical
Personality Test Vocational Tests Self Scored magazine Rural Portion of
Tests Driving Test
Intelligence Test Interest Emunctories
Classroom Quizzes and Structured
Achievement Tests Exams Employment
Interviews
Ability Tests
Assessment Centres
Source: McIntire and Miller (2007)

5. Nature and Characteristics of Psychological Tests

PSYCHOLOGY PAPER 4: Applied Psychometrics

MODULE 8: A History and Overview of Psychological Testing
___________________________________________________________________________________
_________________
A simple look to previously mentioned definitions of psychological tests is enough to bring out
their essential characteristics. According to the definition given by Robert J. Gregory, the chief
characteristics of a psychological test are:

1. Standardized Behavior: A test is considered to be standardized if the procedure for

administering it is uniform from one examiner and setting to another. This is ensured by
outlining clear-cut instructions for the administration of test in the test manual.
2. Behavior Sample: A test targets a well-defined and finite behavior or domain known as
the sample of behavior due to the constraints involved in truly comprehensive testing. For
example, Weschler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) uses 35 carefully selected words to
judge the vocabulary of testee.
3. Scores or Categories: This is based on the premise that ‘whatever exist at all, exist in
some amount’ (Thorndike 1918, cited in Gregory 2004), and ‘anything that exists in an
amount can be measured’ (McCall 1939, cited in Gregory op.cit.).

This essentially means that psychological tests assign some specific number (category) to some
abstract quality (for example, aptitude, memory etc.) according to some rules (measurement).

6. Application of Psychological Testing

Psychological tests are used in variety of settings.

 Tests administered in classrooms to assess ability, aptitude or interest of a student with

respect to a particular occupation or stream of studies represents the use of psychological
testing in academic and educational settings.
 When used in counseling settings, psychological tests aim to bring improvement in the
assessee’s adjustment, productivity and quality of life.
 In clinical settings, psychological testing aids in screening and diagnoses of behavioral
problems in patients. A psychotherapist uses diverse assessment procedures and
psychological testing to know the effect of a particular type of psychotherapy on client’s
condition.
 In the business world, a wide range of achievement, aptitude, personality, interest and
motivational assessments are done to make significant decisions about hiring,
promotions, transfers, trainings, performance and eligibility of employees.
 Psychological testing is also an important tool to track the pulse of consumer behavior.
Using a wide variety of attitude and value tests, consumer psychologists appropriately
judge the public receptivity to a new brand, a new product or a new advertising or a
marketing campaign.
 Psychological testing is an integral part of the process of development of psychological
theories.
 More recently, the field of psychometrics is gaining popularity in forensic medicine.

7. Qualities of a Good Psychological Test

PSYCHOLOGY PAPER 4: Applied Psychometrics

MODULE 8: A History and Overview of Psychological Testing
___________________________________________________________________________________
_________________
With such a widespread application of psychological testing in many arenas, assessment
professionals are keen on evaluating the quality of tests. The criteria for a good test are laid down.
Some of the essential qualities that a good psychological test must have are:

1. A good psychological test should have precise definitions of concepts pertaining to the
phenomena or their attributes being measured.
2. Clear instructions for administration, scoring and interpretations must be laid down.
3. Psychometric soundness: This includes reliability and validity of a measure. These two
are extremely important properties of all sound measures.

The validity of a measure is defined as the degree to which a measure actually measures
what it claims or seeks to measure (Nunnally, 1967). In other words, a test is considered
valid when it measures what it is purported to measure. Thus, an intelligence test must
measure the level of intelligence and not any other related construct or attribute.
Traditionally, three basic types of validity have been established, each of which relates
to a different aspect of the measurement situation. These are (a) content validity, (b)
empirical validity and (c) construct validity.

Another criterion essential for ensuring the psychometric soundness of a psychological

test is reliability. The reliability of a measure is the degree to which the results of
measurement are free of error. A measuring instrument is considered reliable if its
results remain constant when the measurement of a given attribute is taken by different
observers or at different points in time. In other words, a perfectly measuring instrument
consistently measures in the same way on repeated trials. It gives consistent results from
one set of measurement to another. It may be pointed out that some error is bound to
occur in any type of measurement. To the extent to which measurement error is slight, a
measure is said to be reliable. Reliability of a measuring tool can be established by the
methods of (a) test-retest, (b) parallel forms, (c) split-half, and (d) methods of rational
equivalence.

4. Norms/standards: The performance of a test-taker on a particular psychological test is

done by comparing his/her scores with the performance scores of other test-takers.
Norms are (statistical) average series of a large and representative group of subjects
(Peterson and Kolen1989, cited in Gregory, 2004). Norms help in determining the test
taker’s relative standing in comparison to a representative population. A good
psychological test must have adequate norms for evaluation and interpretation.

8. History of Psychological Testing

Psychological testing, as it is today, is the outcome of many years’ informal and formal effort to
assess the human abilities in certain terms and make predictions on the basis of it. Historically
there is much varied geography of psychological testing. According to Erford (2007), the Greeks
may have been the first to use assessments for educational or military purpose. Most of the
scholars and text books trace the origin of psychological testing in the eleventh century B.C.E. in
China (Yan, 1999), when Chinese set up civil service exams for the selection of mandarins. Every
third year in China, oral examinations were given to help evaluate the work of the employees and
make decisions about their promotions.

PSYCHOLOGY PAPER 4: Applied Psychometrics

MODULE 8: A History and Overview of Psychological Testing
___________________________________________________________________________________
_________________
The testing movement gained its psychological character with the publication of Charles
Darwin’s all time influential book The Origin of Species (1859). Darwin’s idea offered major
impetus to work on the individual differences and it was Sir Francis Galton, a relative of Darwin,
who soon began applying Darwin’s idea to the study of human abilities. In his book Hereditary
Genius (1869), Galton contended that some persons possess certain characteristics that made
them more fit than others, and he carried out a series of experimental studies to validate his
observations.

Galton did important work on individual differences which was later extended by the US
psychologist James MC Keen Cattell, who coined the term ‘mental test’. Cattell’s doctoral
dissertation was based on Galton’s work on individual differences in reaction time. The works of
Galton and Cattell offered the stage for the development and growth in the modern testing and led
to its present status as we see today. In the previous century, however, three major areas of
application, that is, clinical, educational and industrial, acted like three major forces which led to
the phenomenal increase and growth in the development of psychological tests. The major events
in the history of psychological testing are briefly summarized in the table 1 below:

Table 1 History of Psychological Testing

500 BCE Greeks may have used assessments for educational purposes.
220 BCE Chinese set up civil service exams to select mandarins.
AD 1219 English university administers first oral examination.
ca. 1510 Fitcherberr proposes first measure of mental ability (identification of one’s age; counting 20
pence).
1540 Lesuit universities administer first written exams.
Spanish physician Huarte defines intelligence in Examen de luge (independent judgment;
meek compliance when learning).
1599 Jesuits agree to rules for administering written exams.
1636 Oxford University requires oral exams for degree candidates.
1692 German philosopher Thomasius advocates for obtaining knowledge of the mind through
objective, quantitative methods.
In working with the ‘Wild Boy of Aveyren’, Itard differentiates between normal and
abnormal cognitive abilities.
1803 Oxford University introduces written exams.
1809 Gross develops theory of observational error.
1834 Weber, pioneer in the study of individual differences, studies awareness thresholds.
1835 Queteler develops and studies normal probability curves.
1837 Seguin develops the Seguin Form Board Test and opens school for mentally retarded children.
1838 Esquirol advocates differences between mental retardation and mental illness; proposes that
mental retardation has several levels of severity.
1869 Galton, founder of individual psychology, authors Hereditary Genius, sparking study of
individual differences and cognitive heritability.
1879 Wundt establishes world’s first psychological laboratory at the University of Leipzig in
Germany.
1888 J.M. Cattell establishes assessment laboratory at the University of Pennsylvania stimulating
the study of mental measurements.
1890 Cattell coins the term ‘mental test’.
1897 Ebbinghaus develops and experiments with tests of sentence completion, short-term memory
and arithmetic.
1904 Spearman espouses two-dimensional theory of intelligence (g=general factor; s= specific
factors). Pearson develops theory of correlation.
PSYCHOLOGY PAPER 4: Applied Psychometrics
MODULE 8: A History and Overview of Psychological Testing
___________________________________________________________________________________
_________________
ca. 1905 E.L. Thomdike writes about test development principles and laws of learning, and develops
tests of handwriting, spelling, arithmetic and language. He later introduces one of the first
textbooks on the use of measurement in education.
First standardized group test of achievement published.
Jung’s Word Association Test published.
1905 Binet and Simon introduce the first ‘intelligence test’ to screen French public school children
for mental retardation.
1909 Goddard translates Binet-Simon Scale into English.
1912 Stern introduces the term ‘mental quotient’.
1916 Terman pubishes the Stanford Revision and Extension of the Binet-Simon Intelligence Scale.
1917 Yerkes and colleagues from the American Psychological Association (APA) publish the Army
Alpha and Army Beta tests, designed for the intellectual assessment and screening of the US
military recruits.
1918 Oris publishes the Absolute Point Scale, a group intelligence test.
1919 Monroe and Buckingham publish the Illinois Examination, a group achievement test.
1921 Rorschach publishes his inkblot technique.
1923 Kelly, Ruch and Terman publish the Stanford Achievement Test.
Kobs Block Design Test measures non-verbal reasoning.
1924 Porteus publishes the Porteus Maze Test.
Seashore measures of Musical Talents published.
Spearman publishes Factors in Intelligence.
1926 Goodenough publishes the Draw-a-Man Test.
1927 Spearman publishes The Abilities of Man: Their Nature and Measurement.
1928 Arthur publishes the Point Scale of Performance Tests.
1931 Stutsman publishes the Merrill-Palmer Scale of Mental Tests.
1933 Thurstone advocates that human abilities be approached using multiple-factor analysis.
Tiegs and Clark publish the progressive achievement Tests, later called the California
Achievement Test.
Johnson develops a test scoring machine.
1935 Murray and Morgan develop the Thematic Apperception Test.
1936 Piaget publishes the Origins of Intelligence
Lindquist publishes the lowa Every Pupil Tests of Basic Skills, later renamed the lowa Tests of
Basic Skills.
Doll publishes the Vineland Social Maturity Scale.
1937 Terman and Merrill revise their earlier work (Terman 1916, cited in Erford 2007) as the
Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale (SBIS).
1938 Buros publishes the first volume of the Mental Measurements Yearbook.
Bender publishes the Bender Visual-Motor Gestalt Test.
Gesell publishes the Gesel Maturity Scale.
1939 Wechsler introduces the Wechseler-Bellevue Intelligence Scale.
Original Kuder Preference Scale Record published.
1940 Hathaway and McKimey publish the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)
Psyche Cattell publishes the Cattell Infant Intelligence Scale.
1949 Wechsler publishes the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC)
Graduate Record Exam (GRE) published.
1955 Wechsler revises the Wechsler-Bellevue Intelligence Scale as the Wechsler Adult Intelligence
Scale (WAIS)
1956 Bloom publishes Taxonomy of Educational Objectives.
Kuder Occupational Interest Survey Published.
1957 Osgood designs the semantic differential scaling technique.
1959 Guilford proposes the structure of intellect model in his The Nature of Human Intelligence
Dunns publish the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test.
National Defense Education Act provides funding for career assessment screening and high
school counsellor positions
PSYCHOLOGY PAPER 4: Applied Psychometrics
MODULE 8: A History and Overview of Psychological Testing
___________________________________________________________________________________
_________________
1960 SBIS revised.
1961 Kirk and McCarthy publish the Illinois Test of Psycholinguistic Ability.
1963 R.B. Cattell introduces theory of crystallized and fluid intelligence.
1965 Strong Vocational Interest Bank published.
1966 American Educational Research Association (AERA), American Psychological Association
(APA) and National Council on Measurement in Education (NCME) published the
Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing.
1967 Wechsler publishes the Wechsler Preschool and Primary scale of Intelligence (WPPSI).
1969 Bayley publishes the Bayley Scales of Infant Development.
National Assessment of Educational Progress program implemented.
Jensen publishes How Much Can We Boost IQ and Scholastic Achievement? which is
controversial.
1972 Form L-M (Third ed.) of SBIS released.
McCarthy publishes McCarthy Scales of Children’s Abilities.
1973 Marino publishes Sociometric Techniques.
1974 Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised (WISC-R) published.
Congress passes the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).
1975 Con Congress passes Public Law 94-142, the Education for All Handicapped Children
Act.
Kuder’s General Interest Survey, Form E-published
1977 System of Multicultural Pluralistic Assessment (SOMPA) published
1979 Federal Judge Robert P. Peckham rules in Larry P. vs Wilson Riles that intelligence tests are
culturally biased when used to determine African-American children’s eligibility for mental
retardation services.
1979 Leiter International Performance Scale, a language-free test of non-verbal ability, published.
1980 In Parents in Action on Special Education vs Joseph P. Hammon, Illinois judge Grady
concludes that intelligence tests do not discriminate against African-American children due to
cultural or racial bias.
New York state legislators pass Truth in Testing Act.
1980 Volumes 1-7 of Test Critiques published.
High-speed computers begin to be used in large-scale testing programs.
Computer- adaptive and computer-assisted testing developed
1981 Wechsler publishes the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised (WAIS-R).
1983 Kaufman publishes the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children (K-ABC).
1984 US Employment Service publishes the General Aptitude Test Battery.
1985 Spa Sparrow, Balla and Cicchetti revise the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales originallypublished
by Doll (1936).
AERA, APA and NCME revise the Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing.
1986 SBIS-Fourth Edition (SBIS-4) published, as revised by Thormdike, Hagen andSattler.
1989 Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-Second Edition (MMPI-2) published.
Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scales of Intelligence revised.
1990 Authentic (performance) assessment and high-stakes testing rise to prominence.
Volumes 11-13 of Mental Measurements Yearbook published.
Volumes 8-10 of Test Critiques published.
1991 Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Third Edition (WISC-III) published.
Kunder’s Occupational Interest Survey Form DD published
1992 Wechsler Individual Achievement Test (WIAT) published.
1997 Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Third Edition (WAIS-III) published
1999 AERA, APA and NCME publish Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing-Third
Edition
Volume 5 of Tests in Print published.
2000 Nader and Nairn publish The Reign of ETS.
2001 Mental Measurements Yearbook becomes available through an electronic retrieval system
2002 Educational Testing Service revises its Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT).
PSYCHOLOGY PAPER 4: Applied Psychometrics
MODULE 8: A History and Overview of Psychological Testing
___________________________________________________________________________________
_________________
Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scales of Intelligence-Third Edition (WPPPSI-III)published.
2003 Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Fourth Edition (WISC-IV) published.
SBIS-Fifth Edition (SB-5) published.
Source: Erford (2007).

9. Summary

 Psychological testing and Psychological assessment, commonly used synonymsly, carry

different objectives and meanings. The objective of Psychological testing is to measure
the magnitude of some psychological trait or attribute. The aim of Psychological
assessment goes beyond the numerical indices of more technical-like purpose of testing,
but, comprises of rich texture of the thoughtful, problem-solving process.
 According to Robert J. Gregory (2004), a test refers to a standardized procedure for
sampling behavior and describing it with categories of scores
 According to Anne Anastasi (1988), a psychological test is essentially an objective and
standardized measure of a sample of behavior.
 A good psychological test should have precise definitions of concepts, pertaining to the
phenomena or their attributes being measured and clear instructions for administration,
scoring and interpretations.
 A psychological test must have Psychometric soundness, that is, it should be reliable and
valid. The reliability of a measure is the degree to which the results of measurement are
free of error. The validity of a measure is defined as the degree to which a measure
actually measures what it claims or seeks to measure.
 A psychological test must have well defined norms to determine the test taker’s relative
standing in comparison to a representative population.
 Psychological tests have widespread applications in a variety of settings including
educational, organizational, human resource management, counseling, clinical, consumer
and military domains.
 Charles Darwin, Francis Galton, Raymond Cattell and many other pioneers offered the
stage for the development and growth in the modern psychological testing and led to its
present status as we see today.

PSYCHOLOGY PAPER 4: Applied Psychometrics

MODULE 8: A History and Overview of Psychological Testing