Formula Scores Research Articles

Readability analysis of ChatGPT's responses on lung cancer

For common diseases such as lung cancer, patients often use the internet to obtain medical information. As a result of advances in artificial intelligence and large language models such as ChatGPT, patients and health professionals use these tools to obtain medical information. The aim of this study was to evaluate the readability of ChatGPT-generated responses with different readability scales in the context of lung cancer. The most common questions in the lung cancer section of Medscape® were reviewed, and questions on the definition, etiology, risk factors, diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of lung cancer (both NSCLC and SCLC) were selected. A set of 80 questions were asked 10 times to ChatGPT via the OpenAI API. ChatGPT's responses were tested using various readability formulas. The mean Flesch Reading Ease, Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level, Gunning FOG Scale, SMOG Index, Automated Readability Index, Coleman-Liau Index, Linsear Write Formula, Dale-Chall Readability Score, and Spache Readability Formula scores are at a moderate level (mean and standard deviation: 40.52 ± 9.81, 12.56 ± 1.66, 13.63 ± 1.54, 14.61 ± 1.45, 15.04 ± 1.97, 14.24 ± 1.90, 11.96 ± 2.55, 10.03 ± 0.63 and 5.93 ± 0.50, respectively). The readability levels of the answers generated by ChatGPT are "collage" and above and are difficult to read. Perhaps in the near future, the ChatGPT can be programmed to produce responses that are appropriate for people of different educational and age groups.

Penerapan Model Discovery Learning untuk Meningkatkan Motivasi dan Hasil Belajar Siswa SDN 32 Bengkulu Selatan

The research aims to describe the application steps of the Discovery Learning model and analysis the student's motivations and learning outcomes thematic for third grade students in SDN 32 Bengkulu Selatan. This in tipe of research is third grade students conducted in two cycles. This research subject is a teacher and third grade students. The research instruments used were observation sheets, test sheets and questionnaire. Observation and questionnaire data analysis techniques use the average formula scores, the highest score, the lowest score, the scoring gap, and the value range for each criteria. Average formula score the students and acuity of learning. The average result of student cycle I 77% with category good increases in cycle II which is 87% with category excellent. Accordingly, the average result of student study increases from cycle I to category good increases to excellent on cycle II. Thus, it can be concluded that the application of the Discovery Learning model to thematic learning can improve the motivation and learning outcomes of third grade students in SDN 32 Bengkulu Selatan.

Predictors of progression from subjective cognitive decline to objective cognitive impairment: A systematic review and meta-analysis of longitudinal studies

BackgroundSubjective cognitive decline is one of the first symptoms of dementia. With increasing awareness of brain health and a rising prevalence of dementia, a growing number of individuals seek medical assistance for purely subjective cognitive decline. However, only individuals with specific characteristics tend to experience clinical progression. ObjectivesThis study aims to summarize the predictors of objective cognitive impairment in individuals with subjective cognitive decline and to identify those at higher risk of clinical progression. DesignSystematic review and meta-analysis. MethodsWe systematically searched 11 electronic databases from inception to February 1, 2023, for longitudinal studies investigating factors associated with the clinical progression of subjective cognitive decline. Effect sizes were pooled using fixed-effects and random-effects models. Leveraging the results of the meta-analysis, we developed two risk prediction models for objective cognitive impairment. ResultsForty-six cohort studies were included in the systematic review, of which 28 met the meta-analysis criteria. Fifteen predictors were identified, including 4 biomarkers (amyloid β deposition, lower Hulstaert Formula scores, apolipoprotein e4, and hippocampus atrophy), four epidemiological factors (older age at baseline, impaired instrumental activity of daily living, depression, and anxiety), and seven neuropsychological factors (participants in clinical settings, older age at onset, stable symptom, concerns, cognitive decline confirmed by informant, severe symptoms, and poor performance on Trail Making Test B). Based on the meta-analysis results, we developed two risk prediction models. The first model (Model1) incorporates epidemiological and neuropsychological factors, distinguishing individuals with low and medium risk. The second model (Model2) includes additional biomarkers to enhance predictive performance and identify individuals at high risk. ConclusionsThis study provides a comprehensive characterization of individuals undergoing clinical progression from subjective cognitive decline to mild cognitive impairment or dementia. The developed models support the prediction of progression risk in both memory clinic and community settings, aiding in the early identification of individuals at risk of disease conversion and facilitating the translation of evidence into clinical practice. RegistrationThe systematic review and meta-analysis have been registered in PROSPERO (CRD 42023392476). Tweetable abstractFactors for predicting progression from subjective cognitive decline to objective cognitive impairment: evidence from longitudinal studies.

A novel formula used for predicting hepatocellular carcinoma after the achievement of sustained virologic response by direct-acting antivirals in patients with chronic hepatitis C.

Although eliminating HCV can prevent hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), some patients develop HCC even after obtaining sustained virologic response (SVR). Previously, we developed a new formula to predict advanced liver fibrosis. This study aimed to clarify the usefulness of this formula for predicting HCC after achieving SVR. Among 351 consecutive patients who had been treated with direct-acting antivirals, 299 were included in this study. New formula scores were used as a marker for predicting liver fibrosis and as a predictive model for HCC incidence. The participants were 172 men and 127 women with a median age of 68 years. The median new formula score was -1.291. The cumulative HCC incidence rates were 4.3%, 9.7%, and 12.5% at 1, 3, and 5 years, respectively. The cumulative incidence of HCC was significantly higher in patients with a history of HCC than in those without treatment history of HCC (P = 2.52×10-26). Multivariate analysis revealed that male (HR = 6.584, 95% CI = 1.291-33.573, P = 0.023) and new formula score (HR = 1.741, 95% CI = 1.041-2.911, P = 0.035) were independent factors associated with the development of HCC in patients without a treatment history of HCC. The optimal cutoff value for predicting the development of HCC was -0.214. The cumulative incidence rates of HCC in patients with new formula scores ≥-0.214 were 5.4%, 15.3%, and 15.3% at 1, 3, and 5 years, respectively, whereas the incidence rates of HCC in patients with new formula scores <-0.214 were 0.0%, 0.6%, and 4.8%, respectively (P = 2.12×10-4). In conclusion, this study demonstrated the usefulness of new formula scores as a predictor of HCC after achieving SVR, especially in patients without past treatment history of treatment for HCC.

Improved predictability of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma diagnosis using a blood immune cell biomarker panel developed from bulk mRNA sequencing and single-cell RNA-sequencing

BackgroundPancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) remains a devastating cancer due to its poor survival rate, early detection, and resectability. This study aimed to determine the peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) immune biomarkers in patients with PDAC and investigate the PDAC-specific peripheral blood biomarker panel and validate its clinical performance.MethodsIn this prospective, blinded, case–control study, a biomarker panel formula was generated using a development cohort—including healthy controls, patients at high risk of PDAC, and patients with benign pancreatic disease, PDAC, or other gastrointestinal malignancies—and its diagnostic performance was verified using a validation cohort, including patients with ≥ 1 lesion suspected as PDAC on computed tomography (CT).ResultsRNA-sequencing of PBMCs from patients with PDAC identified three novel immune cell markers, IL-7R, PLD4, and ID3, as specific markers for PDAC. Regarding the diagnostic performance of the regression formula for the three biomarker panels, the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, and accuracy were 84.0%, 78.8%, 47.2%, 95.6%, and 79.8%, respectively. Based on the formula scores for the biomarker panel, the false-negative rate (FNR) of the biomarkers was 8% (95% confidence interval [CI] 3.0–13.0), which was significantly lower than that based on CT in the validation cohort (29.2%, 95% CI 20.8–37.6).ConclusionsThe regression formula constructed using three PBMC biomarkers is an inexpensive, rapid, and convenient method that shows clinically useful performance for the diagnosis of PDAC. It aids diagnoses and differential diagnoses of PDAC from pancreatic disease by lowering the FNR compared to CT.Clinical trial registration Clinical Research Information Service, KCT0004614 (08 January 2020).

Evaluation of accuracy, reliability, quality, and readability of online patient information materials on coccyx injury.

The aim of this research is to evaluate the websites containing "coccydynia, coccyx trauma or fracture" in terms of readability, reliability, accuracy, and quality. Searches for "coccydynia, coccyx trauma, coccyx fracture" were carried out in the 3 most used search engines in the USA: Google, Yahoo, and Bing in February 2022. A total of 141 websites were rated by 2 different neurosurgeons for the "Global Quality Score" and "Alexa Popularity Rank." 97.2% of the sites examined include the definition of the disease, 66% include the importance of the disease, 92.9% include the symptoms of the disease, 88.7% include the treatment of the disease, 78% include the signs of the disease, 77.3% include the mechanism of the disease It has been determined that the websites examined within the scope of the research have high global quality score (GQS) and APR and are enriched with images to a large extent.

A novel noninvasive formula for predicting cirrhosis in patients with chronic hepatitis C.

Evaluating liver fibrosis is crucial for disease severity assessment, treatment decisions, and hepatocarcinogenic risk prediction among patients with chronic hepatitis C. In this retrospective multicenter study, we aimed to construct a novel model formula to predict cirrhosis. A total of 749 patients were randomly allocated to training and validation sets at a ratio of 2:1. Liver stiffness measurement (LSM) was made via transient elastography using FibroScan. Patients with LSM ≥12.5 kPa were regarded as having cirrhosis. The best model formula for predicting cirrhosis was constructed based on factors significantly and independently associated with LSM (≥12.5 kPa) using multivariate regression analysis. Among the 749 patients, 198 (26.4%) had LSM ≥12.5 kPa. In the training set, multivariate analysis identified logarithm natural (ln) type IV collagen 7S, ln hyaluronic acid, and ln Wisteria floribunda agglutinin positive Mac-2-binding protein (WFA+-Mac-2 BP) as the factors that were significantly and independently associated with LSM ≥12.5 kPa. Thus, the formula was constructed as follows: score = −6.154 + 1.166 × ln type IV collagen 7S + 0.526 × ln hyaluronic acid + 1.069 × WFA+-Mac-2 BP. The novel formula yielded the highest area under the curve (0.882; optimal cutoff, −0.381), specificity (81.5%), positive predictive values (62.6%), and predictive accuracy (81.6%) for predicting LSM ≥12.5 kPa among fibrosis markers and indices. These results were almost similar to those in the validated set, indicating the reproducibility and validity of the novel formula. The novel formula scores were significantly, strongly, and positively correlated with LSM values in both the training and validation data sets (correlation coefficient, 0.721 and 0.762; p = 2.67 × 10−81 and 1.88 × 10−48, respectively). In conclusion, the novel formula was highly capable of diagnosing cirrhosis in patients with chronic hepatitis C and exhibited better diagnostic performance compared to conventional fibrosis markers and indices.

Combining Readability Formulas and Machine Learning for Reader-oriented Evaluation of Online Health Resources

Websites are rich resources for the public to access health information, and readability ensures whether the information can be comprehended. Apart from the linguistic features originated in traditional readability formulas, the reading ability of an individual is also influenced by other factors such as age, morbidities, cultural and linguistic background. This paper presents a reader-oriented readability assessment by combining readability formula scores with machine learning techniques, while considering reader background. Machine learning algorithms are trained by a dataset of 7 readability formula scores for 160 health articles in official health websites. Results show that the proposed assessment tool can provide a reader-oriented assessment to be more effective in proxy the health information readability. The key significance of the study includes its reader centeredness, which incorporates the diverse backgrounds of readers, and its clarification of the relative effectiveness and compatibility of different medical readability tools via machine learning.

Robotic-Assisted Total Knee Arthroplasty: An Assessment of Content, Quality, and Readability of Available Internet Resources

BackgroundThe use of robotic-assisted total knee arthroplasty (TKA) has significantly increased over the past decade. Internet content is largely unregulated and may contain inaccurate and/or misleading information about robotic TKA. Our goal was to assess the content, quality, and readability of online material regarding robotic-assisted TKA. MethodsWe conducted an internet search for the top 50 web sites from each of the 3 most popular search engines (Google, Yahoo, and Bing) using the search term robotic total knee replacement. Each web site was assessed for content, quality, and readability. Web site quality was assessed utilizing the QUality Evaluation Scoring Tool (QUEST). Readability was assessed utilizing the Simple Measure of Gobbledygook, Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level, and Flesch Reading Ease Formula scores. ResultsGeneral risks of TKA were discussed in 47.2%, while benefits were discussed in 98.6% of all web sites. Inaccurate claims occurred at a significantly higher rate in physician/community hospital sources compared to university/academic web sites (59% vs 28%, P = .045). Web sites from university/academic web sites had the highest QUEST scores, while physician/community hospital sources scored the lowest (16.1 vs 10.6, P = .01). Most web sites were written at a college reading level or higher. ConclusionPatients should be counseled on the largely unregulated nature of online information regarding robotic-assisted TKA. Physicians and hospitals should consider revising the readability of their online information to a more appropriate level in order to provide accurate, evidence-based information to allow the patient to make an informed consent decision.

Readability Formulas and User Perceptions of Electronic Health Records Difficulty: A Corpus Study.

BackgroundElectronic health records (EHRs) are a rich resource for developing applications to engage patients and foster patient activation, thus holding a strong potential to enhance patient-centered care. Studies have shown that providing patients with access to their own EHR notes may improve the understanding of their own clinical conditions and treatments, leading to improved health care outcomes. However, the highly technical language in EHR notes impedes patients’ comprehension. Numerous studies have evaluated the difficulty of health-related text using readability formulas such as Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL), Simple Measure of Gobbledygook (SMOG), and Gunning-Fog Index (GFI). They conclude that the materials are often written at a grade level higher than common recommendations.ObjectiveThe objective of our study was to explore the relationship between the aforementioned readability formulas and the laypeople’s perceived difficulty on 2 genres of text: general health information and EHR notes. We also validated the formulas’ appropriateness and generalizability on predicting difficulty levels of highly complex technical documents.MethodsWe collected 140 Wikipedia articles on diabetes and 242 EHR notes with diabetes International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision code. We recruited 15 Amazon Mechanical Turk (AMT) users to rate difficulty levels of the documents. Correlations between laypeople’s perceived difficulty levels and readability formula scores were measured, and their difference was tested. We also compared word usage and the impact of medical concepts of the 2 genres of text.ResultsThe distributions of both readability formulas’ scores (P<.001) and laypeople’s perceptions (P=.002) on the 2 genres were different. Correlations of readability predictions and laypeople’s perceptions were weak. Furthermore, despite being graded at similar levels, documents of different genres were still perceived with different difficulty (P<.001). Word usage in the 2 related genres still differed significantly (P<.001).ConclusionsOur findings suggested that the readability formulas’ predictions did not align with perceived difficulty in either text genre. The widely used readability formulas were highly correlated with each other but did not show adequate correlation with readers’ perceived difficulty. Therefore, they were not appropriate to assess the readability of EHR notes.

Rational versus empirical prediction of nursing student success.

Undergraduate and graduate nursing education programs can offer a very limited number of positions to a very large number of student applicants. Although practices vary widely across schools of nursing, it is common in many programs to use rational or holistic judgment when determining which student applicants to admit. The present applied study demonstrates a method and several examples of alternative selection models that can improve administrators' ability to efficiently and effectively identify student applicants with the highest probability of success. The example models are also tested within a sample of students (N = 283) from a very active bachelor of science in nursing program, and recommendations for use are provided. Results clearly support the use of admission formula scores generated from regression-based methods versus admission formula scores generated from a typical rational points-based method of weighting applicant admission criteria.

Systematic instruction of arthroscopic knot tying with the ArK Trainer: an objective evaluation tool

A Proficiency Formula was introduced as an objective self-evaluation method for evaluating basic arthroscopic knot tying in a laboratory setting. The correlation between the Proficiency Formula and gold standard pass/fail dichotomy was demonstrated, as well as with other popular evaluation tools--task-specific checklist (TSC) and global rating scale (GRS). A step-by-step video tutorial was used to instruct 35 medical students on how to tie an arthroscopic Samsung Medical Center (SMC) knot secured by three half hitches. Participants were video recorded performing arthroscopic knot tying and assessed on their success tying an SMC knot, pass or fail, and through three outcome tools: the Proficiency Formula, GRS and the TSC. Independent samples t test was used to compare the GRS, TSC and Proficiency Formula scores, between those who were passed or failed by the evaluators. Correlation between the measurement scales was tested using Spearman's rho correlation coefficient. Participants received a mean proficiency score of 195 (140-249). The mean Proficiency score for those that passed was 323 (95 % CI 272-374), for those that failed, 87 (95 % CI 26-148, p < 0.001). We found strong linear correlation between the Proficiency Formula and GRS and TSE (0.83 and 0.78, respectively). The Proficiency Formula has high correlation with gold standard GRS and TSC measurements when used to assess arthroscopic knot tying skills on a model. It has the added advantage of being able to be self-assessed.

LOCATING THE STRUCTURAL ZEROS FOR INTERNAL ANCHOR TESTS: INCLUDING THE CASE OF ROUNDED FORMULA SCORES

There are test-equating situations in which it may be appropriate to fit a loglinear or other type of probability model to the joint distribution of a total score on a test and a score on part of that test. For anchor test designs, this situation arises for internal anchor tests, which are embedded within the total test. Similarly, a part-whole relationship arises between two scores when a few test items are dropped from a test and a single group design is used to equate the scores of the full test to the part that remains after those items are deleted. In these part-whole situations, the resulting bivariate frequency distribution will exhibit structural zeros due to the fact that some scores on the total test are impossible for specific values on the partial test. Without knowing where the structural zeros are, it is impossible to distinguish them from zero frequencies that are simply due to size of the sample (i.e., sampling zeros). When probability models are estimated for these joint distributions, it is usual to require the models to assign positive probability to the sampling zeros but to avoid assigning positive probability to the structural zeros. To do this, it is important to be able to locate where the structural zeros are in the bivariate distribution. When the scores on the tests are consecutive integers, it is easy to determine the location of the structural zeros. This report gives a solution to the problem of locating the structural zeros that arise for a class of bivariate distributions that includes both number-right scores and formula scores that have been rounded to integer values. The result for rounded formula scores is a simple alteration of the case where all the scores are consecutive integers.

Does Guessing Really Help?

This study examines the claim that attempting, or guessing at, more items yields improved formula scores. Two samples of students who had taken a form of the SA T‐ Verbal consisting of three parallel half‐hour sections, were used to form the following scores on each of the three sections: the number of attempts, a guessing index, the formula score, and (indirectly) an approximation to an ability score. Correlations were obtained separately for the two samples between the attempts, and the guessing index, on one section, the formula score on a second section, and ability as measured by the third section. The partial correlations obtained hovered near zero, suggesting, contrary to conventional opinion, that, on average, attempting more items and guessing are not helpful in yielding higher formula scores, and that, therefore, formula scoring is not generally disadvantageous to the student who is less willing to guess and attempt an item that he or she is not sure of. On closer examination, however, it became clear that the advantages of guessing depend, at least in part, on the ability of the examinee. Although the relationship is generally quite weak, it is apparently the case that more able examinees do tend to profit somewhat from guessing, and would therefore be disadvantaged by their reluctance to guess. On the other hand, less able examinees may lower their scores i f they guess.

Psychometric Properties of Finite-State Scores Versus Number-Correct and Formula Scores: A Simulation Study

As developed by García-Pérez (1987), finite-state scores are nonlinear transformations of the proportions of conventional multiple-choice responses that are cor rect, incorrect, and omitted. They estimate the propor tions of item alternatives which the examinees had the knowledge needed to classify (as correct or incorrect) before seeing them together in the items. The present study used simulation techniques to generate conven tional test responses and to track the proportions of al ternatives the examinees could classify independently before taking the test and the proportions they could classify after taking the test. Then the finite-state scores were computed and compared with these actual values and with number-correct and formula scores based on the conventional responses. Highly favorable results were obtained leading to recommendations for the use of finite-state scores. These results were al most the same when the simulation proceeded accord ing to the model and when it was based on a natural istic process completely independent of the model. Hence the scoring procedures on which finite-state scores are based are both accurate and robust. Index terms: applied measurement models, examinee behav ior, finite-state scores, guessing, multiple-choice tests, test scoring.

The Effect of Inappropriate Omissions on Formula Scores: A Simulation Study

Responses to a 50‐item, four‐choice test were simulated for 1,000 examinees under conventional formula‐scoring instructions. One hundred ninety‐two simulation runs reflected variations in the average level o f item difficulty, the extent to which examinees tended to omit inappropriately (when the formulascoring directions recommended guessing), the extent to which they were misinformed (classified correct answers as distractors), the extent to which they guessed contrary to the formula‐scoring instructions, the extent to which examinee ability and tendency to omit inappropriately were correlated, the examinee ability level at which misinformation was most prevalent, and the extent to which item difficulty was related to the probability that an examinee would be misinformed. For each examinee, formula scores and expected formula scores were determined allowing and not allowing inappropriate omissions. Under certain conditions, failure to guess as recommended by the formula‐scoring instructions produced nontrivial proportions o f examinees with expected score losses o f one or more points. These conditions were a test o f at least moderate difficulty, a low level for the tendency to be misinformed, and at least a moderate level for the tendency to omit inappropriately.

Formula Scoring of Multiple‐Choice Tests (Correction for Guessing)

Formula scoring is a procedure designed to reduce multiple‐choice test score irregularities due to guessing. Typically, a formula score is obtained by subtracting a proportion of the number of wrong responses from the number correct. Examinees are instructed to omit items when their answers would be sheer guesses among all choices but otherwise to guess when unsure of an answer. Thus, formula scoring is not intended to discourage guessing when an examinee can rule out one or more of the options within a multiple‐choice item. Examinees who, contrary to the instructions, do guess blindly among all choices are not penalized by formula scoring on the average; depending on luck, they may obtain better or worse scores than if they had refrained from this guessing. In contrast, examinees with partial information who refrain from answering tend to obtain lower formula scores than if they had guessed among the remaining choices. (Examinees with misinformation may be exceptions.) Formula scoring is viewed as inappropriate for most classroom testing but may be desirable for speeded tests and for difficult tests with low passing scores. Formula scores do not approximate scores from comparable fill‐in‐the‐blank tests, nor can formula scoring preclude unrealistically high scores for examinees who are very lucky.

DOES GUESSING REALLY HELP?

ABSTRACTThis study examined the claim that attempting, or guessing at, more items yields improved formula scores. Two samples of students who had taken a form of the SAT‐verbal consisting of three parallel half‐hour sections were used to form the following scores on each of the three sections: the number of attempts, a guessing index, the formula score, and (indirectly) an approximation to an ability score. Correlations were obtained separately for the two samples between the attempts (and the guessing index) on one section and the formula score on a second section, partialling out ability as measured on the third section. The partial correlations so obtained hovered near zero, suggesting, contrary to conventional wisdom, that attempting more items and guessing are not helpful in yielding higher formula scores, and that, therefore, formula scoring is not disadvantageous to the student who is less willing to guess and attempt an item that he (she) is not sure of.

A REJOINDER TO ALBANESE, “THE CORRECTION FOR GUESSING: A FURTHER ANALYSIS OF ANGOFF AND SCHRADER”

Albanese is critical of the Angoff‐Schrader (1984) study for several reasons, mainly, the fact that it draws some of its data from volunteer student‐subjects. If this criticism is valid, and if we therefore decide to exclude all studies based on volunteer subjects, we necessarily discontinue virtually all experimentation. Albanese recognizes this, but offers no workable substitute for experimental studies. We find, on the other hand, no evidence that the use of volunteer subjects impaired the soundness of our conclusions.Albanese offers an index of his own construction for use in evaluating the Angoff‐Schrader data, and in applying it, comes to a different interpretation from that given by the authors. However, we find serious statistical flaws in his index when applied to our data. For example, we observe that when it is applied to small samples it yields uninterpretable results. After careful consideration of Albanese's reanalyses and interpretations, we stand firm in our original conclusion that formula scores are essentially invariant under different testing directions.

A STUDY OF ALTERNATIVE METHODS FOR EQUATING RIGHTS SCORES TO FORMULA SCORES

The principal purpose of this study was to determine whether it would be possible to eqtate Rights-scored tests to Formula-scored tests without causing a discontinuity in the meaning of the score scale. Several other subsidiary studies -of the characteristics of the two scoring methods, of nonresponse and guessing, and of reliability and pardilelism--were also indertaken. The study was conducted in two phases: 1) of two forms of the SAT-verbal and one form of the College Board Chemistry Achievement Test, based on data from a specia:t experimental test administration; and 2) of operational and experimental subtests of the Graduate Management Admission Test, based on data from the (regular) October 1980 administration of the GMAT to applicants for business school. Several outzomes of the study were observed that will be useful for the understanding of some of the issues of Rights and Formula scoring. In addition, it was found that the data of this study support the hypothesis that Formula scores for tests administered with Rig!its directions are directly comparable to Formula scores for the fme tests administered with Formula directions. Thus, the directions under which a test is administered can be,changed without serious concern that a discontinuity in the score scale will result.