An Application of Practical Strategies in Assessing the Criterion-Related Validity of Credentialing Examinations

Abstract

Within the context of a comprehensive validation study, the criterion-related validities of two laboratory practitioner certification examinations were assessed Partially derived from criteria outlined by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies, the research involved assessing the relationships between examination performance andpreexamination internship supervisor performance ratings, postexamination supervisor performance ratings, gradepoint averages(GPAs), andearned credit hours in related and unrelated academic subjects. Supervisors 'overall ratings of examinees were related to total test performance. Exceptions to the positivefindings involved the relationships between content-related work area performance and scores on respective subsections of the examinations. Rather short subsections (20-60 items) appeared to lack the power to discriminantly predict performance in these areas. In addition, although GPAs in laboratory-related subjects were significantly related to examination performance, it was the amount of training in nonrelated subjects that was found to covary with examination performance. The outcomes of the present research also suggest which of the measures may be more effective, useful, and practical for other test validators. Investigators in other credentialing areas may wish to consider the strategies-adopted herefor assessing the validity of tests that they construct and administer

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