Psychometric Consulting

Our psychometricians are highly experienced, industry-leading experts. They're widely recognized nationally through shared leadership positions with the National Organization for Competency Assurance (NOCA), the National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA), and the Council on Licensure, Enforcement, and Regulation (CLEAR).

In addition, they lend their expertise to leading industry publications such as Certification: A NOCA Handbook and the revised Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing, published by the American Educational Research Association, the American Psychological Association, and the National Council on Measurement in Education.

They are available to clients for psychometric consultation on virtually any aspect of examination policies and procedures, including:

Program design

As part of a feasibility study or a stand-alone process, CASTLE Worldwide's psychometricians can determine what type of examination best fits the skill set a client wishes to measure. In addition, they can provide guidance on which type of examination best fits the candidates and the client's timeframe, budget, and goals.

Policies and procedures manuals

Our psychometricians can help prepare policies and procedures manuals to govern the actions of an organization's staff and candidates; issues that are addressed include application processes, content challenges, testing procedures, boards of directors, etc.

Standards compliance

The psychometric staff at CASTLE Worldwide is well-versed in third-party accreditation standards including ANSI, American College on Education and NCCA.

Feasibility studies

If for any reason a client decides to conduct a feasibility study before beginning or changing a certification program, we can help with consultation, surveys, focus groups, industry research, and more.

Research studies

CASTLE Worldwide can provide ongoing recommendations on existing certification programs, emerging issues in testing and certification, and other research projects.

Content with integrity

For our exam development clients we use legally defensible procedures to record, document, and maintain records that demonstrate the validity of the test items developed and the examinations assembled.

We're proud of the psychometric integrity of our examinations. Our staff is qualified and available to testify in any state investigations or prosecutions involving any aspect of the item development or examination construction.

Program evaluation

The psychometricians at CASTLE Worldwide can review an organization's existing testing policies and programs and recommend ways to bring them into line with current industry standards and applicable laws.

Expert guidance and support

At CASTLE Worldwide, our psychometricians also train item writers in how to use online development in place of face-to-face, paper-based meetings. They make sure that psychometric guidelines addressing common item writing errors (for example, the system will not permit item writers to use “All/none of the above”) are incorporated and that more advanced psychometric principles, such as consistency in the length of all response options, are addressed.

Our psychometricians use traditional and modern testing theory to determine if examinations are structured so that valid decisions can be made based on test results. They analyze scoring data to help improve examination quality, and to determine if some items are too easy or too difficult. They determine whether any items reflect bias against a particular group and recommend rewriting or discarding such questions. And, they are trained to develop and validate assessment tools that measure whether or not a professional can perform his or her job-related duties with competence.