Development of a method for increasing the utility of multiple correlations by considering both testing time and test validity

A modification of the Wherry-Doolittle test selection method is presented by which tests are included in a multiple correlation (obtained for a given battery of tests) in the sequence in which the rate of return in validity per unit of testing time is greatest, rather than in the order of the size of their contribution to the multiple correlation. It is proposed that the modified method can be utilized profitably when there are economic or practical limits on the time available for test administration.The major portion of this article is based upon a thesis by W. F. Long directed by Dr. Joseph Tiffin with the counsel of Dr. Irving W. Burr. This thesis was submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Psychology, Purdue University, June, 1947.