Response Criteria in Concept Development Research

BRAINERD, CHARLES J. Response Criteria in Concept Development Research. CHILD DEVELOPMENT, 1977, 48, 360-366. A psychometric analysis of the criterion problem in neo-Piagetian concept development research is conducted. It has previously been supposed that the effects of false negative and false positive criterion errors on the findings of concept development studies are different. But it is shown that, in fact, both forms of error have the same effect on the null hypotheses tested in such studies. It is concluded that the correct solution to the criterion problem is to select the criterion with the lowest error rate, regardless of whether the actual errors being committed are false positives or false negatives. Existing data are consistent with the assumption that error rates for judgments-only criteria are lower than corresponding error rates for judgments-plus-explanations criteria.