FaceValidity and Psychological Tests - Case Study Example

Psychological tests and assessments work on the basis of two types of validity that include face and content. Both types of validity serve particular importance in the field of psychology and specifically in psychological measurements. Cohen, Swerdlik and Sturnam (2013) view face validity as the perception of a person under test about what a test appears to measure than the actual purpose of the given test. Stated differently, face validity is the relevance of tests with regard to what it purports to measure.

A test that seems to measure its particular purpose just from the face, structure or program even before actual testing has high face validity. This is usually observable even to the layman and does not require deep thinking or analysis of the criteria or the process.  A test may have low face validity if the structure or outward organization fails to relate to the intended purpose of the test. Face validity is very important since it gives test takers and test users substantial confidence over and increases the reliability of a test.

Cohen, Swerdlik and Sturnam (2013) reassure that lack of face validity in a test does not discredit relevance or usefulness of the given test. Content validity describes the extent or adequacy of a test covers or samples behaviours or elements that represent a collection of behaviours that the design of a test intended to measure. For a test to have content validity, it must prove to sample or cover part of elements or characteristics of a given item under test. Cohen, Swerdlik and Sturnam (2013) report that content validity is widely important in employment.

Test to determine content validity of a given employee analyzes and evaluates skills and behaviour of a given employee with relation to the skills and knowledge desired for a given job position.