Umeå University's logo

umu.sePublications
Change search
CiteExportLink to record
Permanent link

Direct link
Cite
Citation style
  • apa
  • ieee
  • vancouver
  • Other style
More styles
Language
  • de-DE
  • en-GB
  • en-US
  • fi-FI
  • nn-NO
  • nn-NB
  • sv-SE
  • Other locale
More languages
Output format
  • html
  • text
  • asciidoc
  • rtf
Propensity score methods for local test score equating: stratification and inverse probability weighting
Lancaster University, United Kingdom.
Umeå University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Umeå School of Business and Economics (USBE), Statistics.ORCID iD: 0000-0001-5549-8262
2026 (English)In: Journal of educational and behavioral statistics, ISSN 1076-9986, E-ISSN 1935-1054Article in journal (Refereed) Epub ahead of print
Abstract [en]

In test equating, ensuring score comparability across different test forms is crucial but particularly challenging when test groups are non-equivalent and no anchor test is available. Local test equating aims to satisfy Lord’s equity requirement by conditioning equating transformations on individual-level information, typically using anchor test scores as proxies for latent ability. However, anchor tests are not always available in practice. This paper introduces two novel propensity score-based methods for local equating: stratification and inverse probability weighting (IPW). These methods use covariates to account for group differences, with propensity scores serving as proxies for latent ability differences between test groups. The stratification method partitions examinees into comparable groups based on similar propensity scores, while IPW assigns weights inversely proportional to the probability of group membership. We evaluate these methods through empirical analysis and simulation studies. Results indicate both methods can effectively adjust for group differences, with their relative performance depending on the strength of covariate-ability correlations. The study extends local equating methodology to cases where only covariate information is available, providing testing programs with new tools for ensuring fair score comparability.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Sage Publications, 2026.
Keywords [en]
inverse probability weighting, local equating, propensity scores, stratification, test equating
National Category
Probability Theory and Statistics
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-248590DOI: 10.3102/10769986251397558ISI: 001654667800001Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-105026732163OAI: oai:DiVA.org:umu-248590DiVA, id: diva2:2030713
Funder
Marianne and Marcus Wallenberg Foundation, MMW 2019.0129Available from: 2026-01-21 Created: 2026-01-21 Last updated: 2026-01-21

Open Access in DiVA

fulltext(774 kB)16 downloads
File information
File name FULLTEXT01.pdfFile size 774 kBChecksum SHA-512
aac3b02d609562ba4d9299f1075f73766e891d6a857766bac1fcb9edd67b204e2a64c9bb9d5a67ccd680c98c25f986a6bb136b856ea7ec5401fd9c05e5670044
Type fulltextMimetype application/pdf

Other links

Publisher's full textScopus

Authority records

Wiberg, Marie

Search in DiVA

By author/editor
Wiberg, Marie
By organisation
Statistics
In the same journal
Journal of educational and behavioral statistics
Probability Theory and Statistics

Search outside of DiVA

GoogleGoogle Scholar
The number of downloads is the sum of all downloads of full texts. It may include eg previous versions that are now no longer available

doi
urn-nbn

Altmetric score

doi
urn-nbn
Total: 2178 hits
CiteExportLink to record
Permanent link

Direct link
Cite
Citation style
  • apa
  • ieee
  • vancouver
  • Other style
More styles
Language
  • de-DE
  • en-GB
  • en-US
  • fi-FI
  • nn-NO
  • nn-NB
  • sv-SE
  • Other locale
More languages
Output format
  • html
  • text
  • asciidoc
  • rtf