Assessing Affective Characteristics in the Schools

437 Pages·2000·2.25 MB·English

by  Lorin W. Anderson

Assessing Affective Characteristics in the
title:
Schools
author: Anderson, Lorin W.; Bourke, S. F.
publisher: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.
isbn10 | asin: 0805831975
print isbn13: 9780805831979
ebook isbn13: 9780585336770
language: English
Educational tests and measurements,
subject
Teaching.
publication date: 2000
lcc: LB3051.A698 2000eb
ddc: 371.26
Educational tests and measurements,
subject:
Teaching.
Page iii
Assessing Affective Characteristics in the
Schools
Second Edition
Lorin W. Anderson
University of South Carolina
Sid F. Bourke
University of Newcastle
Page iv
Copyright © 2000 by Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any
form, by photostat, microfilm, retrieval system, or any other
means, without prior written permission of the publisher.
Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc., Publishers
10 Industrial Avenue
Mahwah, NJ 07430
Cover design by Kathryn
Houghtaling Lacey
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Anderson, Lorin W.
Assessing affective characteristics in the schools /
Lorin W. Anderson and Sid F. Bourke.2nd ed.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-8058-3197-5 (cloth : alk. paper)
ISBN 0-8058-3198-3 (pbk. : alk. paper)
1. Educational tests and measurements. 2. Teaching.
I. Bourke, S. F. II. Title.
LB3051.A698 2000 99-054005
371.26dc21 CIP
Books published by Lawrence Erlbaum Associates are printed on
acid-free paper, and their bindings are chosen for strength and du-
rability.
Printed in the United States of America
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Page v
Contents
Preface vii
1
Gathering Information about Students' Affect: Why
Bother? 1
2
Affective Characteristics: What Are They? 24
3
Issues in Affective Assessment: How Can Information Be
Gathered? 49
4
Affective Instruments: What Is Important and What Do
They Look Like? 76
5
Selecting and Designing Affective Instruments: How Do I
Avoid Selecting a "Lemon" or Designing a "Dud?" 101
6
Treating and Analyzing Affective Data: What Do I Do
with All the Numbers? 119
7
Interpreting Affective Data: What Do Those Numbers
Mean? 145

Page vi
8
Affective Assessment and School Improvement: So
What? 165
Appendix A 181
Appendix B 201
References 205
Index 213
Page vii
Preface
One of the reviewers who commented on the first edition of this book
said, in essence, "good book, bad timing." The timing was bad
because in 1981, at least in the United States, education had entered a
renewed basic skills phase. Traditionally, concerns for the affective
domain have been lost when attention is focused exclusively on
readin', 'ritin,' and 'rithmetic.
We hope this is a "better book" with "better timing." In making this a
"better book," we have made substantial changes, while preserving
what we believe to be the best of the first edition. The majority of the
differences between the two editions can be summarized in a series of
first editionsecond edition bullets.
· Whereas the first edition focused on selecting appropriate
instruments, the second edition has a dual focus on selecting and
designing instruments.
· Whereas the first edition discussed a wide range of strategies for
designing self-report instruments, the second edition focuses primarily
on instruments designed in accordance with the principles of Likert
scaling.
· Whereas the first edition focused on instruments containing single
affective scales, the second edition recognizes that most current
instruments contain multiple affective scales.
· Whereas the first edition assumed, for the sake of simplicity, the data
obtained from affective assessment instruments were interval in
nature, the second edition acknowledges the ordinal nature of
affective data and its consequences for scale development.

Page viii
· Whereas the first edition focused on the use of instruments to
understand individual students, the second edition has a dual focus on
individual students and groups.
· Whereas the first edition has a somewhat instrumental focus (i.e.,
using affective data to maximize student success and retention in
education), the second edition takes a somewhat broader viewthat in
addition to its instrumental utility, affect is valuable in and of itself.
There are two other noteworthy differences that we believe make this
a "better book." The first is the use of a single, small data set to
illustrate the concepts and principles in chapter 6 ("Treating and
Analyzing Affective Data") and chapter 7 ("Interpreting Affective
Data"). In addition to facilitating understanding, we believe the use of
this data set enables the reader to mimic our efforts in treating,
analyzing, and interpreting affective data.
The second difference, which also pertains to these two chapters, is
the suggested use of the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences
(SPSS) in the treatment, analysis, and interpretation of the data. Our
suggested use is not meant as an endorsement of this statistical
package. Rather, as we state in chapter 6, we believe that SPSS is "by
far the most available statistical software for social science students,"
"its syntax is more readily understandable than many other statistical
packages," and "it is a reasonably powerful and comprehensive
package."
Whether our timing is any better is more debatable. In the 20 years
since the publication of the first edition, basic skills have given way to
accountability. However, we see accountability as more of an
opportunity for affective assessment than a prohibition of it. As
written in chapter 5:
We believe that school accountability may in fact be a new, potentially rich