Table 3 Hypotheses and Analyses Used to Provide Validity Evidence for Each Type of Validity Inference

Scoring

The scores from the scales adequately capture students’ perceptions of the psychological construct

H1: The mean values and standard deviations on the scales of the 19-item inventory will be similar to the values on the scales of the 26-item inventory

H2: Scales in the same inventory will demonstrate evidence of coherence and independence (i.e., the scales will not be highly correlated)

A1: Computing means and standard deviations for the scales in the 19- and 26-item inventories

A2.1: Computing Pearson’s correlation coefficients to assess associations between scales in the 19-item inventory

A2.2: Conducting factor analysis for all items in the 19- and 26-item inventories

Generalization

The items are representative of all theoretically possible items relevant to the construct

H3: The scale scores for the 19-item inventory will be highly correlated with scale scores for the 26-item inventory

H4: Internal consistency analysis will indicate low error variance for each scale (i.e., Cronbach’s alpha and McDonald’s omega values will be acceptable)

A3: Computing Pearson’s correlation coefficients to assess associations between the 19- and 26-item inventory scales

A4: Calculating Cronbach’s alpha and McDonald’s omega values for each scale

Extrapolation

The scores from the scales are related to other variables as anticipated

H5: Each scale score will be related to other variables as anticipated

A5: Computing Pearson’s correlation coefficients to assess associations between the scales and student effort, instructor ratings, and course ratings