EFFECTS OF SCORING FORMULAS ON THE DISCRIMINANT VALIDITY OF TESTS OF DIVERGENT THINKING

Two multitrait-multimethod studies were conducted to investigate the effects of two scoring formulas on the discriminant validity of the dimensions of divergent thinking. In the first study, 39 fifth-grade students were given the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking. In the second study, 60 college students were given Alternate Uses, Plot Titles, and Consequences. Findings indicate that the discriminant validity of subjectively determined originality scores is enhanced when the scores are divided by the total number of responses (yielding a percentage score). However, when the percentage formula was used to derive flexibility scores from the Torrance Tests or an originality score based on statistical rarity from the Alternate Uses test, the coefficient alpha reliabilities dropped to near zero. This finding suggests that the utility of the percentage formula is limited to subjectively determined originality scores. © 1979, Sage Publications. All rights reserved.