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ERIC Number: EJ956081
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2012-Feb
Pages: 16
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0013-1644
EISSN: N/A
Comparison of Reliability Measures under Factor Analysis and Item Response Theory
Cheng, Ying; Yuan, Ke-Hai; Liu, Cheng
Educational and Psychological Measurement, v72 n1 p52-67 Feb 2012
Reliability of test scores is one of the most pervasive psychometric concepts in measurement. Reliability coefficients based on a unifactor model for continuous indicators include maximal reliability rho and an unweighted sum score-based omega, among many others. With increasing popularity of item response theory, a parallel reliability measure pi has been introduced using the information function. This article studies the relationship among the three reliability coefficients. Exploiting the equivalency between item factor analysis and the normal ogive model, pi[subscript (2)] for dichotomous data is shown to be always smaller than rho. Additional results imply that omega is typically greater than pi[subscript (2)] in practical conditions, though mathematically there is no dominant relationship between pi[subscript (2)] and omega. Further results indicate that, as the number of response categories increases, pi can surpass omega. The reasons why pi and omega fall short of rho are also explored from an information gain/loss perspective. Implications of the findings on scale development and analysis are discussed. (Contains 3 figures and 2 notes.)
SAGE Publications. 2455 Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320. Tel: 800-818-7243; Tel: 805-499-9774; Fax: 800-583-2665; e-mail: journals@sagepub.com; Web site: http://sagepub.com
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A