TAPAS TAPAS Research and Development 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which organization primarily developed and sponsors the TAPAS assessment?
- Department of Veterans Affairs
- U.S. Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences (Correct answer)
- National Institute of Mental Health
- Educational Testing Service
Correct answer: U.S. Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences
TAPAS was developed by the U.S. Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences (ARI) to support military accession and classification.
Question 2: Which personality framework primarily informed the development of TAPAS personality dimensions?
- Myers-Briggs Type Indicators (MBTI)
- Cattell's 16PF
- The Big Five / Five-Factor Model (Correct answer)
- Eysenck's Three-Factor Model
Correct answer: The Big Five / Five-Factor Model
TAPAS dimensions are grounded in the well-validated Big Five (Five-Factor Model) personality framework, which includes traits like conscientiousness, agreeableness, and emotional stability.
Question 3: TAPAS was specifically developed to overcome a key limitation of which type of personality measurement used in traditional assessments?
- Projective testing
- Structured behavioral interviews
- Likert-scale self-report measures susceptible to faking (Correct answer)
- Observational rating scales
Correct answer: Likert-scale self-report measures susceptible to faking
Traditional Likert-scale self-report measures are highly susceptible to socially desirable responding and deliberate faking, which TAPAS's forced-choice format was designed to reduce.
Question 4: Which primary criterion was used in early TAPAS validation research to demonstrate predictive validity?
- Civilian employment tenure
- Academic GPA in training programs
- Military job performance ratings (Correct answer)
- Physical fitness assessment scores
Correct answer: Military job performance ratings
Early TAPAS validation research used military supervisor ratings and job performance evaluations as the primary criterion to establish the assessment's predictive validity.
Question 5: The forced-choice format in TAPAS was specifically designed to reduce which measurement artifact?
- Halo effect in peer ratings
- Social desirability bias and faking (Correct answer)
- Regression to the mean across test retakes
- Selection ratio distortion effects
Correct answer: Social desirability bias and faking
By pairing items matched on social desirability, the forced-choice format in TAPAS makes it difficult for respondents to identify and endorse the most favorable option, thereby reducing faking and social desirability bias.
Question 6: TAPAS items are presented in which distinctive format compared to most traditional personality assessments?
- True/False dichotomous statements
- Open-ended written responses
- Paired forced-choice comparisons between statements (Correct answer)
- Seven-point rating scales
Correct answer: Paired forced-choice comparisons between statements
TAPAS uses a forced-choice format where respondents choose between paired personality statements that are matched on social desirability, distinguishing it from traditional rating-scale assessments.
Question 7: In what general era was TAPAS originally developed and first validated for military use?
- 1970s
- 1980s
- 1990s
- 2000s (Correct answer)
Correct answer: 2000s
TAPAS was developed in the 2000s as part of efforts to expand the military selection battery beyond cognitive ability testing measured by the ASVAB.
TAPAS TAPAS Research and Development 1
Which organization primarily developed and sponsors the TAPAS assessment?