07 Jun Thorough work. Be sure sources are up-to-date. If you had to create a checklist for a potential research to avoid/limit test bias in his/her work, where would you start? What is
Thorough work. Be sure sources are up-to-date. If you had to create a checklist for a potential research to avoid/limit test bias in his/her work, where would you start? What is the first thing you would priortize on the checklist?
Test Bias
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Test Bias
Test bias is very common in research, and it can occur when the test scores in the study are unequal for diverse groups because of systematic errors that the researchers may have made during the research. These errors can result from different areas such as the age of the participants, sex, race, culture, and educational background. Test bias goes beyond the scores, it also involves misunderstanding participants' abilities which may result in overestimating or underestimating their needs. Therefore, when researchers are preparing the tests, they can incur biases by putting certain sections of the population under study in a disadvantaged position. As a result, test bias can significantly threaten the test validity of the results.
How Test Bias Can Threaten the Validity of the Test Scores
Iacono et al. (2009) conducted a study on the reliability and validity of the revised triple C. The results of the study showed that triple C, which stands for Checklist of Communicative Competency is a reliable source of gathering data in research. If the data collected is not dependable, there is a possibility of test bias because unreliable data distorts the research measurements, which threatens the overall validity of the data collected. When a researcher is conducting a study on students and the test happens to be more difficult for some students than others because of factors such as age, the test can result in bias as some students are disadvantaged in the process.
The overall validity measurement is threatened by the reliability if the population from which the data is collected varies, in predictive bias, researchers are likely to overestimate or underestimate the language skills, comprehension abilities, and cultural awareness of the population resulting in biased test scores. When conducting research, a researcher needs to use uniform tests to avoid bias. If the researcher uses multiple-choice for a section of the participants and an open-ended format for another is likely to incur bias. Item bias in research can significantly threaten the validity of the test because it favors a subgroup within the study and disadvantages another (Cecilio-Fernandes et al., 2022).
Steps to Reduce Risk of Bias
There are various steps that the researcher can use to avoid the risk of bias in a study, the first one is to create a thorough research plan with adequate awareness of the possible bias that the researcher is likely to encounter in the study. Secondly, it is easier to experience the halo effect if the researcher does not place topics into categories, categorization allows the researcher time to understand the perspective of the participant. According to Ahmadi et al. (2022), the researcher can include accountability systems in the test development to ensure validation and accountability of the study.
References
Ahmadi, A., Yazdizadeh, B., Doshmangir, L., Majdzadeh, R., & Asghari, S. (2022). PROTOCOL: Systematic review of methods to reduce risk of bias in knowledge translation interventional studies in health‐related issues. Campbell Systematic Reviews, 18(2), e1236. https://doi.org/10.1002%2Fcl2.1236
Cecilio-Fernandes, D., Bremers, A., Collares, C. F., Nieuwland, W., van der Vleuten, C., & Tio, R. A. (2019). Investigating probable causes of bias in a progress test translation: a one-edged sword. Korean journal of medical education, 31(3), 193.
Iacono, T., West, D., Bloomberg, K., & Johnson, H. (2009). Reliability and validity of the revised Triple C: C hecklist of C ommunicative C competencies for adults with severe and multiple disabilities. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 53(1), 44-53. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2788.2008.01121.x
