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Abstract

For a sample of 127 undergraduates at a major state university, an attempt was made to estimate the concurrent validity of Quality of Effort (QE) scales and background items from the College Student Experiences (CSE) questionnaire developed by Pace relative to criterion variables from the same CSE instrument that represented perceptions by students of grades earned to date and growth in selected cognitive and affective dimensions. In addition, the factorial validity of several subscales and items within the CSE was examined. Although it is possible that several of the validity indices might have been inflated by variance associated with one or more response sets, the QE scales appeared to display at least a moderate degree of concurrent validity not much less than the level of predictive validity realized by standardized scholastic aptitude tests. The factor analysis provided dimensions basically consistent with logical groupings of scales or items within given sections of the CSE. Multitrait-multimethod validation efforts are urged to separate method (format or instrumental) variance from trait variance as a means of clarifying the construct validity of the CSE.

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References

Guilford, J. P. Fundamental statistics in psychology and education (4th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill, 1965.

Higher Education Research Institute, University of California . Composite comparative data: College Student Experiences Questionnaire. 1979-1982. Los Angeles: Author, August, 1982. (a)

Higher Education Research Institute, University of California . Composite comparative data: College Student Experiences Questionnaire, 1979-1982; Part II: Frequency of student engagement in 138 different activities. Los Angeles: Author, September 1982. (b)

Pace, C. R. College Student Experiences [Questionnaire]. Los Angeles: University of California, Laboratory for Research on Higher Education, Graduate School of Education, 1979. (a)

Pace, C. R. Measuring quality of effort: A new dimension for understanding student learning and development in college. Los Angeles: University of California, Laboratory for Research on Higher Education, Graduate School of Education, October 1979. (b)

Pace, C. R. Achievement and the quality of student effort. Los Angeles: University of California, Higher Education Research Institute, Graduate School of Education, May 1982. (a)

Pace, C. R. Measuring outcomes of college: Fifty years offindings and recommendations for the future. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1982. (b)

Student Background and Quality of Effort Correlates of Reported Grades,Opinions about College,and Perceptions of Magnitudes of Cognitive and Affective Attainment by Students in a Public Comprehensive University

Abstract

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