This Article Full Text (PDF) References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by Stricker, L. J. Search for Related Content Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

Identifying Test Items That Perform Differentially in Population Subgroups: A Partial Correlation Index

Educational Testing Service

Verbal items on the GRE Aptitude Test were analyzed for race (white vs. black) and sex differences in their functioning, using a new procedure—item partial correlations with subgroup standing (race or sex), controlling for total score—as well as two standard methods—comparisons of subgroups' item characteristic curves and item difficulties. The partial correlation index agreed with the item characteristic curve index in the proportions of items identified as performing differentially for each race and sex. These two indexes also agreed in the particular items that they identified as functioning differentially for the sexes, but not in the items that they identified as performing differently for the races. The partial correlation index consistently disagreed with the item difficulty index in the proportions of items identified as functioning differentially and in the particular items involved. The items identified by the partial correlation index as performing differentially, like the items identified by the other indexes, generally did not differ in type or content from items not so identified, with one major exception: this index identified items with female content as functioning differently for the sexes.

Applied Psychological Measurement, Vol. 6, No. 3, 261-273 (1982)
DOI: 10.1177/014662168200600302


CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?

This article has been cited by other articles:

				C. M. Woods Testing for Differential Item Functioning With Measures of Partial Association Applied Psychological Measurement, October 1, 2009; 33(7): 538 - 554. [Abstract] [PDF]

				J. M. Casas A Reflection on the Status of Racial/Ethnic Minority Research The Counseling Psychologist, October 1, 1985; 13(4): 581 - 598. [Abstract]