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A Factor Analysis of Intra-Task Performance on two Psychomotor Tests

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 January 2025

Edwin A. Fleishman
Edwin A. Fleishman*
Affiliation:
Usaf Air Training Command Human Resources Research Center
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Abstract

There are indications that even during the short time of administration of a single psychomotor test, the ability or abilities sampled may shift materially in importance. It then becomes important to know the stages in which these fluctuations occur, the stage at which the test is most complex, and the stage at which the test most nearly measures one ability at a time. This paper describes an application of factorial methods to this problem. Factor analysis of inter-trial correlations on two models of the Rudder Control Test revealed three factors, “Steadiness-Control,” “Precision of Movement,” and “Strength.” The same factor pattern was confirmed in a separate factor analysis on another sample in which the order of administration of the tests was reversed. Implications are pointed out for future psychomotor test development.

Information

Type
Original Paper
Information
Psychometrika , Volume 18 , Issue 1 , March 1953, pp. 45 - 55
Copyright
Copyright © 1953 The Psychometric Society

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Footnotes

*

Perceptual and Motor Skills Research Laboratory, Lackland Air Force Base, San Antonio, Texas. The opinions or conclusions contained in this report are those of the author. They are not to be construed as reflecting the views or indorsement of the Department of the Air Force.

†

There is an assumption here that it is possible to break down the variance in performance of complex psychomotor tasks into simpler, more fundamental psychomotor functions. Whether the introduction of complexity of function (e.g., tasks requiring coordination or integration of operations) introduces variance not reproducable by any number of more analytical tasks remains a problem for future research.

References

Fleishman, E. A., and Reynolds, B. Comparative data on the Standard Rudder Control Test and the Experimental Six-Target Rudder Control Test, Lackland Air Force Base, San Antonio, Texas: Human Resources Research Center, 1952.Google Scholar
Guilford, J. P. Printed classification tests, Washington: U. S. Govt. Printing Office, 1947.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Melton, A. W. Apparatus tests, Washington: U. S. Govt. Printing Office, 1947.Google Scholar
Perceptual and Motor Skills Research Laboratory. A six-target rudder control task, Lackland Air Force Base, San Antonio, Texas: Human Resources Research Center, 1950.Google Scholar