EFFECTS AND UNDERLYING MECHANISMS OF SELF-ADAPTED TESTING

Undergraduates participated in 3 experiments related to self-adapted t esting. Experiment 1 demonstrated that, in comparison with computerize d adaptive testing, self-adapted testing reduced the influence of anxi ety on performance but took longer and was less efficient. Experiment 2 indicated that benefits of self-adapted testing cannot be attributed solely to item ordering. Instead, active choice of item difficulty se ems to be necessary. Experiment 3 demonstrated that the provision of f eedback increased the efficiency of the test but had no effect on esti mates of ability derived. The potential of self-adapted testing to red uce the influence of extraneous sources of variation in test performan ce is discussed.