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Fitting a response model forn dichotomously scored items

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Abstract

A method of estimating the parameters of the normal ogive model for dichotomously scored item-responses by maximum likelihood is demonstrated. Although the procedure requires numerical integration in order to evaluate the likelihood equations, a computer implemented Newton-Raphson solution is shown to be straightforward in other respects. Empirical tests of the procedure show that the resulting estimates are very similar to those based on a conventional analysis of item “difficulties” and first factor loadings obtained from the matrix of tetrachoric correlation coefficients. Problems of testing the fit of the model, and of obtaining invariant parameters are discussed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Chicago, USA

    R. Darrell Bock

  2. Institute for Educational Research, Downers Grove, Illinois

    Marcus Lieberman

Authors
  1. R. Darrell Bock
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  2. Marcus Lieberman
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Additional information

Research reported in this paper was supported by NSF Grant 1025 to the University of Chicago.

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Darrell Bock, R., Lieberman, M. Fitting a response model forn dichotomously scored items. Psychometrika 35, 179–197 (1970). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02291262

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02291262

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