Validity, Construct/Content

A construct (e.g., mathematical problem solving, reading comprehension, intrinsic motivation) is any abstract trait that an examiner or researcher intends to measure. Assuring the accuracy and integrity of measures of constructs is essential. Content validity contributes to the integrity of [Page 924]measurement of a construct through the association of the items in a test with a specific content domain. Construct validity builds additional evidence for measurement integrity based on determining the degree to which the scores on a test appropriately reflect a construct of interest.

Validity is the most critical component of measurement integrity. Simply defined, measurement validity is the degree to which meaningful inferences may be drawn from test data. Although measurement validity is a unitary concept, social scientists have developed a variety of approaches ...