Getting the Help We Need

In validating uses of testing, it is helpful to distinguish those that rely directly on the information provided by scores or score distributions (direct uses and consequences) versus those that instead capitalize on the motivational effects of testing, or use testing and test reporting to shape public opinion (indirect uses and consequences). Some uses and consequences, both direct and indirect, are intended; others are unintended. Unintended consequences pose greater challenges in test validation because they must be identified before they can be investigated. Validation of uses and consequences can employ theories and methods from various social science disciplines. Educational measurement is most closely allied with psychology and statistics, but sociologists, anthropologists, economists, linguists, and others also could help in theorizing and investigating the consequences of test use, especially indirect and unintended consequences.