An Examination of Differential Item Functioning on the Vanderbilt Assessment of Leadership in Education

Abstract

The Vanderbilt Assessment of Leadership in Education is a 360-degree assessment of the effectiveness of principals’ learning-centered leadership behaviors. In this report, we present results from a differential item functioning (DIF) study of the assessment. Using data from a national field trial, we searched for evidence of DIF on school level, geographic region, and urbanicity. We found evidence of intercept DIF for urbanicity on four items and slope DIF for urbanicity on one item, although all magnitudes were small to moderate. We conclude that the Vanderbilt Assessment of Leadership in Education's items are not biased on the basis of these school characteristics, bolstering its use in schools around the country.