Short Essay on the Kinds of Psychological Test

There are two kinds of test-aptitude test and achievement test.

Aptitude Test:

Aptitude tests designed to predict performance over a broad range of abilities are called intelligence tests.

Other aptitude tests measure more specific abilities mechanical aptitude tests measure various types of eye-hand coordination, musical aptitude tests measure discrimination of pitch, rhythm and other aspects of musical sensitivity that are predictive of musical performance with training; and clerical aptitude tests measure efficiency at number-checking and other skills that have been found to be predictive of an individual’s later achievement as an office clerk.

Many aptitude tests have been constructed to predict success in specific jobs or vacations. Since the Second World War the armed forces have devised tests to select pilots, radio technicians, submarine crews, and many other specialists.

Aptitude is usually measured by a combination of tests. Pilot aptitude tests include not only measures of mechanical knowledge but also tests of special orientation, eye-hand coordination, and other skills. A combination of tests used for prediction is known as a test battery.

Scores from individual tests are weighted to get the best possible prediction. Scores on the tests that predict well count more than scores on tests that predict less well. If an eye-hand coordination test predicts pilot success better than a spatial orientation test, scores in eye-hand coordination will be weighted more heavily than scores in spatial orientation.

Achievement Test

Although achievement tests are most commonly used in school and government examinations, It is also used to assess what has been learned in preparation for the practice of a specially, such as low, medicine, or according. The consequences of these achievement tests are very important to the person who takes them.

The successful candidate will receive a degree or a license to practice or an opportunity to enter a desired career; the one who fails may find many paths blocked. If the tests are in any way inappropriate, their use may lead to social injustice. It is crucial that examinations be well conceived so that they measure what they are intended to measure and their scores represent fairly the abilities of the candidate who takes the tests.

Psychologists are interested in the development of achievement tests for two reasons. First, there is much demand for such tests, especially in education and in government. Second, achievement tests furnish a standard against which to judge the predictive effectiveness of aptitude tests. To devise an aptitude test for pilot success, we first need a standard or excellent flying against which to measure the aptitude.

Otherwise we have no way of checking predictions. If professors assigned college grades whimsically instead of on the basis of a student’s achievement in the course, it would be futile to try to predict grades from an aptitude battery. Thus, achievement tests furnish a standard, or criterion, for the prediction of aptitudes. With improved achievement examinations, predictions can be made more efficiently. Of course, other criteria, such as success in a job, can be used. Then the measure of success serves as a measure of achievement.