Differential Validity of a Differential Aptitude Test
Abstract
Two studies were conducted to examine the role of general and specific ability in predicting performance in military technical training. The first was a principal components analysis of the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB); the second was a series of regression analyses using principal component scores derived from test scores as predictors and final school grades from Air Force technical training as the criterion. In the first study, 10 principal components were derived using a nation-wide representative sample of American youth. Weights derived from this analysis were used to compute principal component scores for over 78,000 subjects in Air Force technical training in 89 jobs. The first principal component was a general ability factor (g). Some specific ability components were also interpreted. The subjects for the second study were approximately 78,000 airmen who had taken parallel forms of the ASVAB and completed technical training. Using Final School Grade as the criterion, multiple regressions were computed to determine if g was a potent predictor for all jobs and if predictive accuracy would increase if other principal components, measures of specific abilities, were added to the prediction. The regressions were computed from both uncorrected and corrected correlation matrices to properly estimate the R2 values.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- May 01, 1990
- Accession Number
- ADA222190
Entities
People
- James A. Earles
- Malcolm James Ree
Organizations
- Air Force Research Laboratory