COURSE: Psych. 335 Psychological Testing

CRN 11282 cr Fall ‘09

TIME/PLACE: Tu, Th 4:00-5:15 AMH 211

INSTRUCTOR: Dr. Tom Hogan, Professor of Psychology

Office: AMH 223, Tel: Office 941-4268

e-mail Thomas.Hogan@Scranton.edu

Office hours: Tu, Th 2:30-3:30 PM, Wed 10-11 AM

Other times by arrangement.

Teaching Asssitant: Jude Krushnowski

REQUIRED MATERIALS:

Text: Hogan, T. P. (2007). Psychological testing: A practical introduction (2nd ed.). New York: Wiley.

TESTS, ASSIGNMENTS AND GRADING:

There will be 15 quizzes. Quizzes contain 12-15 multiple-choice items based on a chapter just completed. The lowest quiz grades will be dropped (except Q16). Scores are recorded in Angel.

The major written assignment is completion of a formal test review. Procedures for completing this assignment will be covered in class. There are 10 mini-assignments based directly on exercises built into the textbook. These are graded acceptable/unacceptable. The course schedule lists these assignments. Each is due the class after it is assigned unless otherwise noted. “On time” submission of an assignment means submitted at the beginning of the class when it is due. No e-mail submission of these assignments will be accepted.

Weights for the final grade are:

Sum of best 14 quizzes 70%

Test review 15%

10 Assignments 15%

Students will take a number of psychological tests throughout the term in order to help develop sensitivity to issues of test administration and interpretation.

COURSE OBJECTIVES

According to the catalog, Psych. 335 “Provides a thorough grounding in principles of psychological testing and a review of the major types of assessment, including intellectual, personality, and interest.”

The beginning of each chapter in the text contains more specific objectives. In addition, the list of Key Terms at the end of each chapter will aid your learning.

Students often ask: How well does the textbook correspond to what the instructor expects us to learn? For this course, the answer is very simple: Almost exactly. I prepared this textbook specifically for my students. Thus, what I want you to learn is in the text, except for material specifically identified for exclusion. You should read the text diligently.

ACADEMIC HONESTY:

See the University's policy on academic honesty. A student found cheating or engaging in another form of academic dishonesty will receive an F for the assignment/test.

REVISIONS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS:

The syllabus is subject to revision. Any revisions will be announced in class. Note also that you will sometimes receive e-mail announcements through Angel. Make sure you check your University e-mail account.

ON BEING SUCCESSFUL: CLASS ATTENDANCE, PROCEDURES, STUDY

1. It is doubtful that you can do well in this course without regular attendance in class.

2. You are responsible for knowing all announcements made in class, including those related to any changes in the attached schedule.

3. Classes will begin and end promptly. Suitable attire and civil behavior are expected in class.

4. Note carefully the structure of the course, as indicated in the catalog description and the attached course schedule. Roughly the first half of the course covers principles; the second half examines specific tests. This division has important implications for how the course proceeds and how you need to study. In the first half of the course, there are about 30-40 important concepts organized under about five major headings. In this part of the course, you’ll need to study the text carefully and listen attentively to lectures. In contrast, in the second half of the course, where we’re examining examples of tests, we’ll be moving rapidly across many different areas. After the rigors of the first part of the course, you’ll have a tendency to check out in the second half because it will seem so easy. Watch out for this tendency.

5. An introductory course in statistics is a real pre-requisite. If you haven’t had a course in statistics you probably can’t succeed in this course. If your knowledge of statistics is rusty, then do some review on your own. However, Psych Testing is not a statistics course; we use statistics only to the extent necessary to develop certain topics.

6. To prepare for a quiz, read the chapter carefully and pay particular attention to points emphasized in class.

7. Detailed directions for completing the test review and the mini-assignments will be given in class. Completion of the test review is carefully coordinated with chapters 1-6.

COURSE SCHEDULE Psych 335 Fall ‘09

Fall '08 Schedule			Topic/Chapter	Quiz	Assignment	.
Tu	25	Aug	Review of syllabus. Ch 1 Intro		T15, E4, E5
Th	27	Aug	Finish Ch 1. Distribute LASSI		LASSI
Tu	1	Sept	Ch 2 Sources of Info	Q1	E1, E2b
Th	3	Sept	Ch 3 Norms	Q2	Watson Glaser
Tu	8	Sept	Ch 3		T82, 86, E4, E5
Th	10	Sept	Ch 4 Reliability	Q3
Tu	15	Sept	Ch 4		T117, 135, 139, 140
Th	17	Sept	Ch 5 Validity	Q4	NEO-PI (due Sept 25)
Tu	22	Sept	Ch 5		T171, 177, E1, E4a&b
Th	24	Sept	Ch 6 Test Development	Q5
Tu	29	Sept	Ch 6		T208, 209, E7
Th	1	Oct	Ch 7 Theories of Intelligence	Q6
Tu	6	Oct	Ch 7 & Test Review Procedures (App A)		Start Test Review
Th	8	Oct	Ch 8 Ind Intell Tests	Q7
Tu	14	Oct	Fall break
Th	15	Oct	Ch 8
Tu	20	Oct	Ch 9 Group Intell Tests	Q8
Th	22	Oct	Ch 9
Tu	27	Oct	Ch 10 Neuro Tests	Q9
Th	29	Oct	Ch 11 Achievement Tests		Test Review Due
Tu	3	Nov	Ch 12 Objective Personality Tests	Q11/12	T456, 457, E1, E7
Th	5	Nov	Ch 12		Strong (due Nov 13)
Tu	10	Nov	Ch 13 Clinical Instruments	Q12
Th	12	Nov	Ch 13		T486, 504, E1, E2
Tu	17	Nov	Ch 14 Projectives	Q13
Th	19	Nov	Ch 14 & Ch 15		T538, E1 or E3
Tu	24	Nov	Ch 15 cont	Q14	T570, 575, E1
Th	26	Nov	Thanksgiving
Tu	1	Dec	Ch 16 Ethical & Legal Issues
Th	3	Dec	Ch 16
Tu	8	Dec	Finals start Quizzes on Ch 15 & 16

* Numbers next to Q indicate chapter numbers.