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The Q-Sort Method: Assessing Reliability And Construct Validity Of Questionnaire Items At A Pre-Testing Stage, Abraham Y. Nahm, S. Subba Rao, Luis E. Solis-Galvan, T. S. Ragu-Nathan

Journal of Modern Applied Statistical Methods

This paper describes the Q-sort, which is a method of assessing reliability and construct validity of questionnaire items at a pre-testing stage. The method uses Cohen's Kappa and Moore and Benbasat's Hit Ratio in assessing the questionnaire.

A Preliminary Study On The Reliability Of Physical Performance Measures In Older Day-Care Center Clients With Dementia., Vince Salazar Thomas, Patricia A. Hageman

Journal Articles: Physical Therapy

BACKGROUND: Decline in physical functional ability is an intrinsic component of the dementia syndrome. Reductions in muscle mass and strength represent a major factor in the loss of functional ability Although resistance exercise has been studied as a method for maintaining/recovering function in populations of frail older adults, people with dementia have been systematically excluded because of uncertainty about the reliability of outcome measurements.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to determine the test-retest reliability of a battery of established performance-based measures of strength and function among subjects with dementia.

SETTING: A hospital-affiliated adult day-care facility.

SUBJECTS: Twelve of …

Expert Testimony On Fingerprints: An Internet Exchange, Richard D. Friedman, David H. Kaye, Jennifer Mnookin, Dale Nance, Michael Saks

Articles

In United States v. Llera Plaza, 188 F. Supp. 2d 549 (E.D. Pa. 2002), a federal district initially limited expert opinion testimony on fingerprint identifications because the government was unable to show that such identifications were sufficiently valid and reliable under Federal Rule of Evidence 702. Then, the court withdrew the opinion. This article reproduces an exchange of notes on the initial opinion submitted by five law professors.

Measuring Socioeconomic Status: Reliability And Preliminary Validity Of Different Approaches, Paul Cirino, Rose Sevcik, Maryanne Wolf, Maureen Lovett, Robin Morris, Christopher E. Chin

Psychology Faculty Publications

This study investigated issues related to commonly used socioeconomic status (SES) measures in 140 participants from three cities (Atlanta, Boston, and Toronto) in two countries (United States and Canada). Measures of SES were two from the United States (four-factor Hollingshead scale, Nakao and Treas scale) and one from Canada (Blishen, Carroll, and Moore scale). Reliability was examined both within (interrater agreement) and across (intermeasure agreement) measures. Interrater reliability and classification agreement was high for the total sample (range r = .86 to .91), as were intermeasure correlations and classification agreement (range r = .81 to .88). The weakest agreement across …

The Conundrum Of Children, Confrontation, And Hearsay, Richard D. Friedman

Articles

The adjudication of child abuse claims poses an excruciatingly difficult conundrum. The crime is a terrible one, but false convictions are abhorrent. Often the evidence does not support a finding of guilt or innocence with sufficient clarity to allow a decision free of gnawing doubt. In many cases, a large part of the problem is that the prosecution's case depends critically on the statement or testimony of a young child. Even with respect to adult witnesses, the law of hearsay and confrontation is very perplexing, as anyone who has studied American evidentiary law and read Supreme Court opinions on the …

An Examination Of The Accuracy Of Slogans Related To Assessment Centres, Filip Lievens

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

To diffuse new management fads or to promote existing management practices slogans are often used. In this study eight slogans regarding assessment centres were retrieved from brochures of consultancy agencies and were compared to empirical research. These slogans were that assessment centres work, are expensive, fair, have a potent influence on candidates, protide insight into candidates' personality, and are not prone to trainability effects. Other slogans include that trained assessors speak the same language and that candidate reactions are positive. Resulting from this comparison a more fine-grained picture of the strengths and weaknesses of assessment centres emerges. In particular, it …

Nonparametric Estimation Of A Distribution Subject To A Stochastic Precedence Constraint, Miguel A. Arcones, Paul H. Kvam, Francisco J. Samaniego

Department of Math & Statistics Faculty Publications

For any two random variables X and Y with distributions F and G defined on [0,∞), X is said to stochastically precede Y if P(X≤Y) ≥ 1/2. For independent X and Y, stochastic precedence (denoted by X≤_spY) is equivalent to E[G(X–)] ≤ 1/2. The applicability of stochastic precedence in various statistical contexts, including reliability modeling, tests for distributional equality versus various alternatives, and the relative performance of comparable tolerance bounds, is discussed. The problem of estimating the underlying distribution(s) of experimental data under the assumption that they obey a …

Surface Micromachined Force Gauges: Uncertainty And Reliability, Jonathan W. Wittwer, Troy Gomm, Larry L. Howell

Faculty Publications

Surface micromachining of micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS), like all other fabrication processes, has inherent variation that leads to uncertain material and dimensional parameters. By considering the effects of these variations during the design of micro force gauges, the gauge uncertainty and reliability can be estimated. Without means of calibrating micro gauges, these effects are often significant when compared to experimental repeatability. The general force gauge model described in this paper can be used to measure a wide range of forces, and simple design changes can lead to improved accuracy in measurement. A method of probabilistic design is described that is not …

The Day-To-Day Reliability Of Resting Metabolic Rate, Amy Elizabeth Thompson

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

This purpose of this study was to determine the day-to-day reliability of resting metabolic rate. 18 college students, (mean age 22 +/- 3.6 yrs, height 65.78 +/- 22.0 in., body mass 68.05 +/- 10.34 kg, percent body fat 23 +/- 6.5%) gave informed consent to participate in the study. RMR was measured on four separate days over a period of 14 days. Height, weight, and resting heart rate were also recorded on each testing day. Body composition was assessed on the first day. Energy intake, energy expenditure, and caffeine intake were controlled between days. Each test was done between 7 …

Dial-In Testimony, Richard D. Friedman, Bridget Mary Mccormack

Articles

For several hundred years, one of the great glories of the common law system of criminal justice has been the requirement that prosecution witnesses give their testimony in the presence of the accused" face to face," in the time-honored phrase-under oath, subject to cross-examination, and, unless unfeasible, in open court. In the United States, this principle is enshrined in the Confrontation Clause of the Sixth Amendment, which provides that "[i]n all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right ... to be confronted with the witnesses against him." But now a new way is developing for witnesses for the prosecution …

Pisa 2000 Technical Report, Ray Adams (Ed), Margaret Wu (Ed)

Professor Ray Adams

The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) was launched by the OECD to provide internationally comparable evidence on student performance. This technical report is the product of a collaborative effort between the countries participating in PISA and the experts and the institutions working within the framework of the International PISA Consortium.