On Tue, 26 Jan 1999, Al Cone went:
> I HEARD SEVERAL OF THEM AT A MEETING ADMIT THEY STILL ONLY USE
> VERBAL AND QUANTITATIVE BECAUSE THEY CAN'T MAKE HEADS OR TAILS OF THE
> ANALYTICAL.
> i WAS DISAPPOINTED BECAUSE OUR STUDENTS KNOCK THE SOX OFF THE
> ANALYTICAL SECTION EVERY YEAR.
Data, anyone?
Sternberg, Robert J; Williams, Wendy M.
Does the Graduate Record Examination predict meaningful success in the
graduate training of psychology? A case study.
American Psychologist. Vol 52(6), Jun 1997, 630-641.
Abstract
The authors consider the empirical validity of the Graduate Record
Examination (GRE) as a predictor of various kinds of performance in a
graduate psychology program, including 1st- and 2nd-year grades;
professors' ratings of students' dissertations; and professors' ratings of
students' analytical, creative, practical, research, and teaching
abilities. On the basis of the triarchic theory of intelligence, the GRE
was predicted to be of some use in predicting graduate grades but of
limited or no use in predicting other aspects of performance. In fact, THE
TEST WAS FOUND TO BE USEFUL IN PREDICTING 1ST-YEAR GRADES BUT NOT OTHER
KINDS OF PERFORMANCE, WITH ONE EXCEPTION--PERFORMANCE ON THE GRE
ANALYTICAL TEST WAS PREDICTIVE,* BUT ONLY FOR MEN [emphasis added].
The authors conclude that there is a need to develop better theory-based
tests.
Institution
Yale U, Dept of Psychology, New Haven, CT, USA.
*For men (and only men), scores on the Analytical section predicted
advisers' ratings of analytical, creative, research, and teaching
abilities, and ratings of their dissertations. No such predictive
ability emerged for the GRE Verbal, Quantitative, and Psych scores.
The sample consisted of 170 graduate students at Yale, of whom 84 had
finished their dissertations at the time of the study. Ratings were
done by the students' advisers (40 in all).
--David Epstein
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
