Testing Word Knowledge by Telephone To Estimate General Cognitive Aptitude Using an Adaptive Test.

Abstract A computerized adaptive test of word knowledge was administered over the telephone by reading items and response alternatives to 144 individuals who had recently enlisted in the U.S. Army and had completed the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB). The ASVAB was developed to assess the trainability of potential recruits and ASVAB data are used to compute Armed Forces Qualification Test (AFQT) scores. Subject responses were entered into a computer by a telephone interviewer, thereby allowing the computerized adaptive test program to accurately estimate individual differences by presenting approximately 10 verbal items. The Telephone Test and the AFQT scores correlated .66 in this sample, and a population correlation of .81 was estimated based on the bivariate correction for range restriction. A confirmatory factor analysis supported a four factor solution with the Telephone Test loading at a very high level (.91) on a Verbal factor, which had a substantial loading (.72) on Psychometric g. The correlations, factor loadings and administration time (5 to 10 minutes) indicate that the procedure provides an excellent measure of crystallized verbal aptitude that could be incorporated into telephone interviews and used to estimate general cognitive aptitude.