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Multidimensional Adaptive Testing

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 January 2025

Daniel O. Segall
Daniel O. Segall*
Affiliation:
Navy Personnel Research and Development Center
*
Requests for reprints should be sent to Daniel O. Segall, Defense Manpower Data Center, DoD Center Monterey Bay, 400 Gigling Road, Seaside CA 93955-6771.
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Abstract

Maximum likelihood and Bayesian procedures for item selection and scoring of multidimensional adaptive tests are presented. A demonstration using simulated response data illustrates that multidimensional adaptive testing (MAT) can provide equal or higher reliabilities with about one-third fewer items than are required by one-dimensional adaptive testing (OAT). Furthermore, holding test-length constant across the MAT and OAT approaches, substantial improvements in reliability can be obtained from multidimensional assessment. A number of issues relating to the operational use of multidimensional adaptive testing are discussed.

Keywords

computerized adaptive testingmathematical modelsmultidimensional adaptive testingmultidimensional item response theoryreliabilitytests
Type
Original Paper
Information
Psychometrika , Volume 61 , Issue 2 , June 1996 , pp. 331 - 354
Copyright
Copyright © 1996 The Psychometric Society

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Footnotes

The work reported in this paper was sponsored by the Office of Naval Research. The author wishes to thank the three anonymous reviewers for their useful comments on an earlier version of this manuscript. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the Author, are not official and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Navy Department.

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