Abstract
Most computer interviewing and testing systems have adopted paper-and-pencil approaches to information gathering with little modification. However, computer technology offers two fundamental advantages over paper-and-pencil technology for psychological information gathering: (1) A computer can record ancillary data such as latencies and pressure on response keys during an interviewing session, and (2) A computer can react adaptively to special events as these arise during a session. Ways to capitalize on these advantages are outlined. A pilot study of interviewee behavior during a computer problem-screening interview is described, and the implications of the results for future research in the area are discussed. Passive and active computer testing systems occupy positions on a continuum between paper-based psychological testing and the flexible, but less well controlled, technology represented by the human. With its unique capabilities, computer technology has a special role to play in the future of psychological measurement.
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The research reported in this article was supported in part by NIMH Grant MH 26012, “Problems as Predictors of Treatment and Outcome,” Richard Longabaugh, principal investigator. The author would like to express his gratitude to Willa Kay Wiener-Ehrlich, who devised much of the interviewing software, and to Linda and William Hay, who devised the original version of the computer problem screening questionnaire. The author would also like to acknowledge the assistance of Lynelle Jenik in gathering the data, as well as that of Duane Bishop, Edward Fink, and Gabor Keitner, who recommended interesting patients for the study.
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Stout, R.L. New approaches to the design of computerized interviewing and testing systems. Behavior Research Methods & Instrumentation 13, 436–442 (1981). https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03202052
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03202052