A conceptual framework is proposed for a psychometric theory of standard setting. The framework suggests that participants in a standard setting process (panelists) develop an internal, intended standard as a result of training and the participant's background. The goal of a standard setting process is to convert panelists' intended standards to points on a test's score scale. Psychometrics is involved in this process because the points on the score scale are estimated from ratings provided by participants. The conceptual framework is used to derive three criteria for evaluating standard setting processes. The use of these criteria is demonstrated by applying them to variations of bookmark and modified Angoff standard setting methods.