Greatly influenced by the work of Rasch (1960/1980), Mokken (1971) presented a nonparametric scaling procedure that is based on the theory of invariant measurement, but draws upon less strict requirements related to the scale of measurement. Because they are theoretically and empirically related to Rasch models, Mokken’s nonparametric models have been recognized as a useful exploratory tool for...

The difficulty of assessing the writing skill is well known. Different testing facets seem to affect the result of assessing the writing skill. In addition to the writer’s ability, the topic of the writing task, and methods of rating may contribute to the writer’s score. In this study, 50 EFL learners wrote four different types of writing tasks (convincing, describing, instructing, and explaini...

Whether foreign language writing is rated using analytic rating scales or holistically, the organization of ideas is invariably one of the aspects assessed. However, it is unclear what raters are sensitive to when rating writing for organization. Which do they value more highly, the physical aspects of organization, such as paragraphing and the existence of organization markers, or deeper textu...

PURPOSE To evaluate the effect of preference assessment method on treatment recommended by an individualized decision-analytic model for early prostate cancer. METHODS Health state preferences were elicited by time tradeoff, rating scale, and a power transformation of the rating scale from 63 men ages 55 to 75. The authors used these values in a Markov model to determine whether radical prost...

In EFL programs, rating scales used in writing assessment are often constructed by intuition. Intuition-based scales tend to provide inaccurate and divisive ratings of learners’ writing performance. Hence, following an empirical approach, this study attempted to develop a rating scale for elementary-level writing at an EFL program in Saudi Arabia. Towards this goal, 98 students’ essays were sco...

The paper dwells on a judgement model for R&D project evaluation using multifactor criteria based on hierarchic considerations. The idea is to employ formal tools in quantification of subjective evaluations where expert judgement is involved. Comparative evaluations on a priority scale are converted to quantities using the eigen vector concept. This is also the essence of the Analytic Hierarchi...

A statistical training study is reported which demonstrates that analytic responding on everyday reasoning problems can be increased after instruction in statistical principles. Participants were given training on the Law of Large Numbers (Fong, Krantz and Nisbett, 1986). Bias was eliminated, but only on written justifications of their responses. Belief-based responding was still utilized when ...