Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Taking Multiple Regression Analysis To Task: A Review Of Mindware: Tools For Smart Thinking, By Richard Nisbett (2015), Jason Makansi

Numeracy

Richard Nisbett. 2015. Mindware: Tools for Smart Thinking.(New York, NY: Farrar, Strauss, and Giroux). 336 pp. ISBN: 9780374536244

Nisbett, a psychologist, may not achieve his stated goal of teaching readers to “effortlessly” extend their common sense when it comes to quantitative analysis applied to everyday issues, but his critique of multiple regression analysis (MRA) in the middle chapters of Mindware is worth attention from, and contemplation by, the QL/QR and Numeracy community. While in at least one other source, Nisbett’s critique has been called a “crusade” against MRA, what he really advocates is that it not be used as …

Quantitative Forecasting Of Risk For Ptsd Using Ecological Factors: A Deep Learning Application, Nuriel S. Mor, Kathryn L. Dardeck

Journal of Social, Behavioral, and Health Sciences

Forecasting the risk for mental disorders from early ecological information holds benefits for the individual and society. Computational models used in psychological research, however, are barriers to making such predictions at the individual level. Preexposure identification of future soldiers at risk for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other individuals, such as humanitarian aid workers and journalists intending to be potentially exposed to traumatic events, is important for guiding decisions about exposure. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate a machine learning approach to identify individuals at risk for PTSD using readily collected ecological risk factors, which makes scanning …

Flesch-Kincaid Reading Grade Level Re-Examined: Creating A Uniform Method For Calculating Readability On A Certification Exam, Emily Neuhoff, Kristiana M. Feeser, Kayla Sutherland, Thomas Hovatter

Online Journal for Workforce Education and Development

Abstract

Objective: This study attempted to establish a consistent measurement technique of the readability of a state-wide Certified Nursing Assistant’s (CNA) certification exam. Background: Monitoring the readability level of an exam helps ensure all test versions do not exceed the maximum reading level of the exam, and that knowledge of the subject matter, rather than reading ability, is being assessed. Method: A two part approach was used to specify and evaluate readability. First, two methods (Microsoft Word^® (MSW) software and published readability formulae) were used to calculate Flesch Reading Ease (FRE) and Flesch-Kincaid Reading Grade Level (FKRGL) for multiple …