Psychometrics of Art – Validation of RizbA, a Quantitative Rating Instrument for Pictorial Expression

Abstract

Although art has been subject to psychological research for some time, the artwork itself received little attention in quantitative research. The rating instrument for two-dimensional pictorial works (RizbA) fills this gap by providing a tool for formal picture analysis. This study validates the questionnaire on 294 images created by 147 non-artists. In an online test-retest study the material was rated by 880 (T1) and 475 (T2) experts in visual art using RizbA. Statistical quality criteria, Principal component analysis (PCA) and indices of factor similarity were computed. The overall test's capacity of differentiation yields a partial eta-squared of .28 (T1) and .33 (T2). Test-retest reliability is .93. PCA reveals an eight-factors solution. Tucker's coefficients of congruence range between |0.82| and |1.00|. Intraclass correlation coefficients are .81 (T1) and .84 (T2). Results indicate generalizability to amateurs' works. As the first reliable tool for picture analysis, RizbA allows a more detailed examination of art and its correlates.