Psychometric
Assessment Instructions and Marking
Criteria
3000
words allowed 10% above or below
The
aim in this assignment is to examine and report on the psychometric properties
of items designed to measure a psychological construct known as perfectionistic
self-presentation.
Perfectionistic
self-presentation is a dynamic interpersonal style that reflects the drive to
appear perfect and conceal imperfections in public situations (Hewitt et al.,
2003, 2017). The psychological construct is characterized by three unique
dimensions.
The
first dimension is referred to as perfectionistic self-promotion, which
involves actively proclaiming and displaying an outward image of perfection to
others.
The
second dimension is referred to as no display of imperfection, which involves
avoiding or excluding the demonstration of behaviors that could be judged by
others as imperfect.
The
third dimension is referred to as nondisclosure of imperfection, which involves
avoiding any admission of personal imperfections to others (Hewitt et al.,
2017).
To
measure perfectionistic self-presentation, Hewitt et al. (2003) developed the
Perfectionistic Self-presentation Scale (PSPS).
This
27-item scale assesses perfectionistic self-promotion (PSP; 10-items, e.g., “I
always present a picture of perfection”), non-display of imperfection (NDISP;
10-items, e.g., “It would be awful if I made a fool of myself in front of
others”), and nondisclosure of imperfection (NDISC; 7-items, e.g., “Admitting
failure toothers is the worst possible thing”).
Since
the initial validation of the PSPS there has only been only one study dedicated
to examining the psychometric properties of the original (English) version of
the scale. Saulnier et al. (2022) examined the factorial validity of the PSPS
using a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) technique. The authors found
evidence that the original 27-item PSPS may be over-extracted (i.e.,
represented by too many factors).
To
examine the possibility of over-extraction, I have (for the purpose of this assignment) to examine and report on the psychometric
properties of the PSPS. I am required to
identify whether the original PSPS measure identified by Hewitt et al. (2003)
is acceptable (i.e., the evidence I find supports the original
27-itemthree-factor structure) OR unacceptable (i.e., the evidence I find
supports an alternative scale structure and/or set of items).
Data
The dataset
required for this assessment is part of a study that has received ethical
approval via the Northumbria University Online Ethics System (Project ID:
2569).
Analysis
For
the assessment, I am expected to examine several different psychometric
properties.
·
Item
discrimination (how well the scale items differentiate between
subgroups of participants, typically those individuals who possess a high
degree of the construct being measured versus a low degree of the
construct being measured).
·
Factorial
validity (the number and nature
of dimensions underlying the construct being measured)
·
Internal
consistency (the
degree of interrelationship or homogeneity among subscale items, such that they
are consistent with one another and measuring the same thing)
·
Construct
validity (the
degree to which the scale is capable of measuring the construct intended to be
measured)
I am expected to run, interpret, report, and
discuss the results of several different statistical analyses – analyses that
allow me to evaluate the above psychometric properties: item discrimination
(e.g., t-tests), factorial validity (e.g., principal components analysis or
exploratory factor analysis), internal consistency (e.g., Cronbach’s alpha or
McDonald’s Omega), and construct validity (e.g., bivariate correlations).
Writing the Report
The final assessment will need to be written up and
submitted in the form of a 3000-word report.
The
report should have a title page, which includes the title of your
report, the word count, and student identifier
The
main body of the report should include the following sections and headings: abstract,
introduction, methods, results, discussion, references,
and appendices…
The written report should be no more than 3000
words. The precise word count of the assignment should be stated on the assignment
cover sheet. The word limit includes the abstract, main body of text, in
text citations [e.g. (Smith, 2011)], and footnotes. However, the word limit
does not include the title page, contents page, direct quotations from primary
or secondary source material arising from qualitative research, tables,
figures, illustrations, references list, or appendices.
Appendices must be clearly numbered, labelled,
and referred to appropriately in the text. The purpose of appendices is to
provide context or verification for the marker. Appendices MUST contain a copy of your final questionnaire, as
supported by the test of factorial validity, the SPSS output, and any other
material you think is important, but which does not fit neatly into the main
body of the report.
Marking
Criteria and Information
The
rubric for the Psychometrics Assignment will be used to mark the work . Given the nature of the assignment, particular attention will be paid to my
ability to report analysis accurately and with the appropriate amount of detail
as well as correctly interpret and discuss the findings in the discussion.
Appropriate
referencing is required in this assignment.
All
references must be in accordance with APA guidelines
