The Validity of Multiple Choice Achievement Tests as Measures of Competence in Medicine

Abstract

Although the multiple-choice technique has been widely used in achievement testing for many years, these instruments have recently been subjected to mounting criticism. Most of this criticism is based on the assertion that multiple-choice exercises focus on the measurement of the recall of isolated bits of information which have little relevance to any meaningful behavioral objectives (Hoffman, 1962Lange, 1967). In 1964 the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery in collaboration with the Center for the Study of Medical Education at the University of Illinois College of Medicine, initiated a joint research project to investigate the reliability and validity of alternative techniques for assessing professional competence. This report is designed to summarize the findings of that study relevant to the multiple-choice