This article is about tests in social science that aim to maximize scientific objectivity. For legal test for reasonableness, see subjective and objective standard of reasonableness.
Objective tests are measures in which responses maximize objectivity, in the sense that response options are structured such that examinees have only a limited set of options (e.g. Likert scale, true or false).[1] Structuring a measure in this way is intended to minimize subjectivity or bias on the part of the individual administering the measure so that administering and interpreting the results does not rely on the judgment of the examiner.
Although the term ‘objective test’ encompasses a wide range of tests with which most people are somewhat familiar (i.e. Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale, Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory, Graduate Record Examination, and the Standardized Achievement Test), it is a term that arose out of the field of personality assessment, as a response and contrast to the growing popularity of tests known as projective tests.[1] These ‘projective tests’ require examinees to generate unstructured responses to ambiguous tasks or activities, the content of which is supposed to represent their personal characteristics (e.g. internal attitudes, personality traits).[2]
However, the distinction between objective and projective testing is deceptive since it indicates that objective tests are immune to bias.[1][3] Although the fixed response style of objective tests does not require interpretation on the part of the examiner during the administration and scoring of the measure, responses to questions are subject to the examinee's own response style and biases, in much the same way they are for projective measures; therefore, both test ‘types’ are vulnerable to subjective factors that may affect scores.[4] Furthermore, understanding and giving meaning to the results of any assessment, projective and objective alike, is done within the context of an examinee's personal history, presenting concerns, and the myriad of factors that can affect examinee's scores on the assessment. Thus, both objective and projective tests carry potential sources of bias and require judgment in interpretation to varying degrees.[5] Instead of categorizing tests based on overt but superficial test qualities, the merits of a particular usage of test scores should be assessed.
^ abcMeyer, G. J.; Kurtz, J. E. (2006). "Advancing personality assessment terminology: Time to retire "objective" and "projective" as personality test descriptors". Journal of Personality Assessment. 87 (3): 223–5. doi:10.1207/s15327752jpa8703_01. PMID 17134328.
^Wagner, E. E. (2008). "Beyond "objective" and "projective": A logical system for classifying psychological tests: Comment on Meyer and Kurtz (2006)". Journal of Personality Assessment. 90 (4): 402–405. doi:10.1080/00223890802108246. PMID 18584450.
^Bornstein, R. F. (2007). "Toward a process-based framework for classifying personality tests: Comment on Meyer and Kurtz (2006)". Journal of Personality Assessment. 89 (2): 202–207. doi:10.1080/00223890701518776. PMID 17764397.
Objectivetests are measures in which responses maximize objectivity, in the sense that response options are structured such that examinees have only a...
projected by the person into the test. This is sometimes contrasted with a so-called "objectivetest" / "self-report test", which adopt a "structured" approach...
In the first part, some objective functions for single-objective optimization cases are presented. In the second part, test functions with their respective...
decide whether there is intent: the earlier objectivetest, and the later rebuttable presumption. Both tests are used together in combination. Counterintuitively...
software testingobjective, such as to exercise a particular program path or to verify compliance with a specific requirement. Test cases underlie testing that...
separate objectivetests that could be used in constructing objective personality tests. One exception, however, was the Objective-Analytic Test Battery...
mainstream types of fraud, and as benefits fraud. The test has been revised to an objectivetest, with rare exceptions, by the Supreme Court in Ivey v...
Multiple choice (MC), objective response or MCQ (for multiple choice question) is a form of an objective assessment in which respondents are asked to select...
latter stage of thought an objectivetest continues to apply) taking the risk. It abolished the "objective recklessness" test set out in R v Caldwell. Two...
competing tests exist for determining whether entrapment has taken place, known as the "subjective" and "objective" tests. The "subjective" test looks at...
exam is divided into objectivetest and subjective test. The objectivetest is taken first, and after successfully passing the test, candidates can take...
original testing system with an extensive body of research, some researchers continue to raise questions. The areas of dispute include the objectivity of testers...
Although promoted as an ability test, the MSCEIT test is unlike standard IQ tests in that its items do not have objectively correct responses. Among other...
Four Prism Dioptre Reflex Test (also known as the 4 PRT, or 4 Prism Dioptre Base-out Test) is an objective, non-dissociative test used to prove the alignment...
pressure in the ear canal. Tympanometry is an objectivetest of middle-ear function. It is not a hearing test, but rather a measure of energy transmission...
system before removing or ligating the superficial system This is a more objectivetest as it does not depend on patient's pain threshold. Bergan, John J. (2006)...
[clarification needed] CA Foundation is a partially subjective and a partially objectivetest comprising the following four papers: Principles and Practice of Accounting...
fairer and more objective than a system in which some students get an easier test and others get a more difficult test. Standardized tests are designed to...
the manner of driving, and the objectivetest is essential for that. To mitigate the harshness of the objectivetest, the justices suggested its institution...
consistency from one testing site/testing occasion to another. Examiner subjectivity is minimized (see objectivity next). Major standardized tests are normed on...
specification of the stroboscopic effect visibility meter and the test method for objective assessment of lighting equipment is published in IEC technical...
Software testing is the act of checking whether software satisfies expectations. Software testing can provide objective, independent information about...
same circumstances (for negligence); or hybrid, where the test is both subjective and objective. The court will have little difficulty in establishing mens...
the null hypothesis. Hypothesis testing (and Type I/II errors) was devised by Neyman and Pearson as a more objective alternative to Fisher's p-value,...