Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery: Item and factor analyses of Forms 8, 9, and 10.

Abstract

AIR FORCE HUMAN RESOURCES LAS BROOKS AFR NOTICEWhen Government drawings, specifications, or other data are used for any purpose other than in connection with a definitely Covernment-related procurement, the United States Government incurs no responsibility or any obligation whatsoever. The fact that the Government may have formulated or in any way supplied the said drawings, specifications, or other data, is not to be regarded by implication, or otherwise in any manner construed, as licensing the holder, or any other person or corporation; or as conveying any rights or permission to manufacture, use, or sell any patented invention that may in any way be related thereto.The Public Affairs Office has reviewed this report, and it is releasable to the National Technical Information Service, where it will be available to the general public, including foreign nationals.This report has been reviewed and is approved for publication. NANCY GUINN, Unclassified IS.. DECLASSIFICATIONDOWNGRADING SCHEDULE DISTRIBUTION STATEMENT (of this Report)Approved for public release: distribution unlimited. .This study presents an investigation of the characteristics of the items and factors which make up Forms 8. 9. DISTRIBUTION STATEMENT (ofand 10 of the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB).Data on the ASVAB forms were collected from a large sample of applicants for military enlistment at 20 geographically dispersed Armed Forces Examining and Entrance Stations (AFEES). Item and factor analyses were conducted on samples equated in ability through an external reference test. Item 20 Continued:The true score theory item analyses show the subtests to have relatively easy items in most cases. Item-test biserial correlations are quite high (about .60), indicating subtest internal consistency. In keeping with these indexes, the subtest means are high, and distributions of raw scores are skewed toward the easy range. Subtest scores have high reliability as befits homogeneous groups of items.Item response theory analyses show much the same information with easy items. Test information curves are generally unimodal and skewed toward lower ability subjects. Average item information is quite good.The factor analyses show the six forms to be quite similar to each other and to previous ASVAB forms. Solutions with the four factors labeled Verbal, Mathematical. Vocational Information. and Clerical Speed showed a median intercorrelation of .51 with a limited range.

The effects of practice on the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery.

“…The mean scores :.n :,he first administration are slightly more than one standard deviation below those reported by others (Kass et al, 1982;Ree et al, 1982).…”

“…For additional information the reader is referred to the reference works of Ree et al (1982) and Kass et al (1982). Administration followed standard procedures and was conducted by members of the Shreveport Mifltary Enlistment Processing Station (NEPS).…”

“…The standard deviations were constant over sessions and about 75% the size of the larger samples (Kass et al, 1982;Ree et al, 1982).…”

Maximum Likelihood Solution to the Parafac Model

“…According to Ree, et al (1981), we could name the first factor Technical, the second, Speeded, the third, Verbal, and the fourth, Mathematical.…”

“…The method proposed in the previous sections is applied to a subset of the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) Form 8, Ree, et al (1981). 6.…”