History of Test Development
circa 1000 BC. : Chinese introduced written tests to help fill civil service positions Civil Laws, Military Affairs, Agriculture, Geography
1850 : The United States begins civil service examinations.
1885 : Germans tested people for brain damage
1890 : James Cattell develops a "mental test" to assess college students . Test includes measures of strength, resistance to pain, and reaction time.
1905 : Binet-Simon scale of mental development used to classify mentally retarded children in France.
1914 : World War I produces need in U.S. to quickly classify incoming recruits. Army Alpha test and Army Beta test developed. Looked at psychopathology.
1916 : Terman develops Stanford - Binet test and develops the idea of Intelligence Quotient
1920 - 1940 : factor analysis, projective tests, and personality inventories first appear.
1941-1960 : vocational interest measures developed
1961-1980 : item response theory and neuropsychological testing developed
1980 - Present : Wide spread adaptation of computerized testing. "Smart" Tests which can give each individual different test items develop