Social consequences of educational measures: A commentary.

This commentary discusses Messick's (1995) unified validity framework, which broadly characterizes the interpretation of test scores in terms of their social consequences. Scores and their interpretation can lead to unintended consequences when they capture only part of the specified construct or characteristics unrelated to the construct. The evaluation of construct underrepresentation and irrelevance requires careful investigation and rational argument about the construct and its theoretical basis, as well as any planned uses, contexts, scores, or samples. Developers also validate an assessment for specific purposes, and users share responsibility for validation for any novel use or interpretation of scores. This commentary also considers the consequences of decisions based on assessments and the consequences of local and national norms. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).