Definition
Discriminant validity is established when test scores representing different constructs assessed with the same or different measurement methods are unrelated or demonstrate only small correlations.
Introduction
Validity refers to the degree to which the information provided by a test score that is extracted from a test or other modes of assessment adequately represents the construct it is supposed to measure. Traditionally, three main types of validity have been distinguished: criterion, content, and construct validity (Cronbach and Meehl 1955; see Validity, Criterion Validity, Content Validity, Construct Validity). Some authors (AERA, APA, & NCME 2014; Messick 1995) have subsumed content- and criterion-related evidence under construct validity, implying that construct validity can be considered the core of validity. According to this conceptualization, all of the different kinds of validity...
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Notes
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The entries on convergent and discriminant validity both address aspects of construct validity. Thus, their contents overlap.
References
American Educational Research Association, American Psychological Association, & National Council on Measurement in Education. (2014). Standards for educational and psychological testing. Washington, DC: American Educational Research Association.
Biesanz, J. C., & West, S. G. (2004). Towards understanding assessments of the Big Five: Multitrait-multimethod analyses of convergent and discriminant validity across measurement occasion and type of observer. Journal of Personality, 72, 845–876.
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Cronbach, L. J., & Meehl, P. E. (1955). Construct validity in psychological tests. Psychological Bulletin, 52, 281–302.
Messick, S. (1995). Validity of psychological assessment: Validation of inferences from persons’ responses and performances as scientific inquiry into score meaning. American Psychologist, 50, 741–749.
Ziegler, M., Booth, T., & Bensch, D. (2013). Getting entangled in the nomological net: Thoughts on validity and conceptual overlap. European Journal of Psychological Assessment, 29, 157–161.
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Baumgarten, M., Wetzel, E. (2017). Discriminant Validity. In: Zeigler-Hill, V., Shackelford, T. (eds) Encyclopedia of Personality and Individual Differences. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28099-8_1298-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28099-8_1298-1
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