Assessment Center for Psychology Major

1. What outcomes will you focus on?

a. Outcomes important to assessment criteria for JMUs psychology major

1. Communication Skills
It is important for individuals, both in the JMU psychology program and post-graduation,
to be skilled in written, oral, and nonverbal communication in order to communicate effectively
with peers, subordinates, and seniors. Listening is the first step in being a great communicator.
Specifically, active listening conveys to others that one is engaged in conversation and respectful
of the conversational partner. Nonverbal communication and eye contact are important to help
convey a message and establish trust with someone. Being able to recognize and interpret
nonverbal communication is a sign of an effective communicator, and it will be advantageous to
know how someone is feeling without having them tell you directly. Being able to give feedback
is also an important aspect of communication; constructive criticism and praise are common
methods of communication in the workforce, so graduates should be able to accept and give
feedback successfully.

2. Sociocultural Awareness
By the time psychology students graduate, they should understand the complexity
different cultures and feel confident enough to discuss these differences without hesitation.
Individuals should be sensitive to how different groups perceive and respond to their
environment. Students should know how they view the world through the lens of their own
culture and be able to recognize similarities and differences between others views, practices, and
values. Further, individuals should consider ethnocentrism and cultural competition or conflict
between opposing cultures in order to reflect on ones level of cultural awareness and strive to be
nonjudgmental and open to learning more about others.

3. Well-being
Well-being is an outcome that encompasses many areas of life, including mental and
physical health. Mental health is necessary for an individual to be well suited and well adjusted
for certain careers, especially those that involve high stress and the involvement of an array of
cognitive processes. Higher levels of well-being are associated with decreased risk for disease
and injury as well as increased productivity at work. Students should be able to apply the
psychological concepts acquired during their time at JMU in order to increase their subjective
well-being.

4. Community Involvement
Involvement in the community exhibits extracurricular involvement from the student that
benefits someone or something other than themselves. Those involved in their communities build
relationships with others and work towards a common goal of helping the community thrive.
After leaving JMU, students should carry a sense of community wherever they go after
graduation.

5. Interpersonal Skills
Psychology students should have the interpersonal skills to be able to engage effectively
with others through verbal and nonverbal communication when they graduate. In order to work
effectively as a team, one must have good interpersonal skills to be able to resolve conflict and
make decisions as a group. Interpersonal skills also foster personal relationships.

6. Willingness to Learn New Skills

Being flexible and willing to acquire new skills allows the graduate to be a well-rounded
individual in multiple areas and to continue to increase their knowledge of many concepts. When
students graduate from the psychology program, they should be eager to learn more and to apply
their skill to any facet of life.

7. Problem Solving
Students should be able to utilize their critical thinking skills to problem solve in a work
situation or otherwise. Problem solving skills help individuals evaluate problems and determine a
logical and methodological decision. In life there is rarely a clear cut answer to a problem, so the
ability to consider all aspects of a situation is valuable in many areas of life.

8. Knowledge of Psychology
To be considered a successful psychology student, one should have a broad knowledge of
psychological concepts, theories, and findings. Students should be able to confidently convey
what they have learned and the skills they have gained while enrolled as a student in the
psychology department.

b. Outcomes important to predict for JMU graduates

1. Life Satisfaction
We want to be able to predict graduates life satisfaction to better aim the curriculum
towards benefitting students lives and futures. Our goal is for our JMU graduates to score high
on life satisfaction predictors to show that the field has prepared them for that area of life.

2. Work Satisfaction
We want graduates to enjoy the career they enter and have a passion for what they do.
The importance of predicting work satisfaction is determining if the JMU Psychology program
has prepared them well and given them opportunities to view a wide variety of professions to
choose the one they best fit into.

3. Work Engagement
 JMU wants its graduates to be involved and engaged in the workplace. We hope to
predict whether or not students will be engaged in their workplace by being motivated, driven,
and dedicated to their job.

4. Application of Psychology / Advocating for the Field

We want to predict if graduates are able to apply their knowledge of Psychology to their
life and career. Whether their career is in a psychological field or not, it is important to use much
of what the curriculum teaches. As a Psychology graduate, we hope they can use this information
in their daily life and career to better understand the world, others, and themselves.

5. Well-being (Mental, Physical, Emotional)

We want to be able to predict well-being in graduates. Higher levels of mental and
physical well-being are related to lower levels of the risk of certain diseases. We want to predict
if they will be able to cope with emotional trauma such as losing a job or the death of a close
friend or family member. Also, they should be able to apply aspects of the field of Psychology to
increase and maintain higher levels of mental and emotional well-being.

2. What KSAOs will you measure?

1.Critical Thinking
We want to measure students critical thinking abilities to determine if the Psychology
program has provided an opportunity for individuals to strengthen the ability to analyze and
evaluate information presented before them. Also, we want to know if students are able to take
this information and apply it to their life and their future career. Students should be able to make
observations, understand what they are experiencing, and reflect on it. Critical thinking is also a
major part of problem solving, so if an individual can think critically about details of a situation,
he or she will be more likely to solve a problem in an effective manner. Critical thinking is a
predictor for problem solving skills.

2. Knowledge of the Field of Psychology

Students should be able to confidently and successfully convey psychological concepts,
theories, historical trends, and empirical findings in the real world to educate others and to apply
psychological principles to their own lives. In order to advocate for the field of psychology and
be able to recognize pseudoscience, individuals must retain the concepts that have been studied
within the department. Knowledge of the psychology field is a predictor for applying
psychological principles later in life.

3. Interpersonal Skills:
In order to successfully communicate and interact with others, psychology students
should have the interpersonal skills to be able to engage effectively with others through verbal
and nonverbal communication. Teamwork is typically a large part of any career, so to be able to
negotiate, resolve conflict, and make decisions as part of a group is paramount. Further, good
interpersonal skills will aid in establishing relationships, which in turn will improve emotional
well-being and life satisfaction. Interpersonal skills are predictors and criteria for successful
teamwork and to assess the departments ability to foster group work and cohesion.

4. Reading Comprehension
Many jobs require that employees read and understand written sentences, especially if
there are legal or work related documents. Psychology students should be able to synthesize
written information and be able to comprehend the overall meaning and specific details within
text. In order to be an engaged employee in any profession, one must be able to recognize themes
in writing and colloquial terms. In the field of psychology specifically, reading comprehension is
vital to understand empirical findings and research procedures. If one can successfully
comprehend a research journal, for example, he or she will be able to communicate the findings
to others, advocating for the field of psychology. Reading comprehension is both a predictor of
job success and a criterion for communication skills.

5.Written Communication
Written communication is the basis of many careers. Good written communication skills
are critical in the workplace. Testing a Psychology students writing skills at the conclusion of
their college career can predict how well they will communicate in a written format in their
career. Written communication is a predictor for job success and a criterion for communication
skills.

6. Application of Psychological Principles

To comprehend psychological principles is only one component of learning psychology.
Application of psychological principles are a critical step in fully understanding concepts in the
major. Additionally, assessing a student's application of psychological principles predicts how
well a student can apply learned information in their future endeavors. The hopeful outcome is
that students have learned how to apply principles they have learned to different contexts.
Application of psychological principles is a criterion for knowledge of psychological principles.

7. Organizational Skills/Time Management

Time management and organizational skills are imperative for being a productive
member of society. Goal setting, prioritization, and planning are crucial abilities for any
employee or student. The hectic life of a student can easily overwhelm an individual if they do
not possess organizational skills. Time management will allow anyone to attain a successful
work-life balance, increasing productivity at work and building relationships outside of the
office. Further, individuals will be able to focus on what needs to get done before anything else,
which will improve job performance. Time management can also have great health benefits,
leading to an increased sense of physical well-being. Successful time management can help one
set aside time to take care of his or her mind and body. On the contrary, poor time management
 can lead to stress and poor work quality. In sum, effective organizational skills lead to a healthy
balance of work and personal life, which enhances relationships and increases work productivity
and satisfaction. Organizational and time management skills are predictors for job engagement.

8. Listening Skills
Listening skills are crucial to success in almost any career field. Whether it is listening to
clients, parents, or coworkers, processing their message rather than just hearing it makes a
difference in your interaction with them. To fully understand the message an individual is
sending, attention and comprehension are required. To be an effective communicator, one must
first learn to listen and really attend to a message. A successful listener will be a better team
member and likely a better friend. In turn, ones listening skills can have a huge impact on the
relationships one builds. Listening skills are predictors for work engagement and criteria for
communication skills.

3. What data would you collect to measure student attainment of each of these KSAOs?

Situational Exercise:
Students will be split into groups of five based on the first letter of their last name. Groups will
be presented with a prompt, describing five problems that could arise while working in a group.
As a team, students will determine which problems require most attention and will list them
accordingly. Students will also describe, in writing, why they determined which problems or
issues are more/less important than others. Finally, students will write about some possible
solutions to the problems. Students will have 30 minutes to complete this exercise. The
situational exercise will be employed in order to assess interpersonal skills, including the ability
to work as a team. By describing how they would solve each problem, students demonstrate their
written communication skills. Finally, by listing each problem as more or less crucial and a
description of how they came to that conclusion, students will use their critical thinking skills.
1. Interpersonal skills
2. Critical thinking
3. Written communication

Listening Comprehension:
During assessments, the proctor will read a short passage from a peer-reviewed psychological
journal article so that students are aware of the background research, methods, and results of the
study. Students are instructed to sit quietly and listen as they will be tested on the material
presented afterwards. Immediately after the material is presented, students will be tested on
multiple aspects of the study. For example, multiple choice questions will test students
recognition of the variables, research questions, and results of the study. Open-ended questions
will assess students abilities to make inferences about the studys implications.
1. Listening skills
2. Critical thinking
3. Knowledge of the field of psychology
4. Application of psychological principles

Formal Assessment:
Students would be presented with a 50-question multiple choice exam. They would have 45
minutes to respond to all questions as best as they can given the knowledge they have obtained
during their time in the major. Types of questions include statistics, developmental, learning,
biopsychology, social, abnormal, sensation and perception, personality, cognitive, comparative
animal behavior, and socio-cultural awareness.
1. Critical Thinking
2. Knowledge of the field of psychology
3. Reading comprehension skills

4. What criterion measures would you use to evaluate the effectiveness of the Assessment
Center?

Purpose of your assessment center

This assessment is used to determine who has obtained knowledge in different areas of
psychology, as well as other useful skills for post-undergraduate endeavors, and successfully
exhibited knowledge of this information. A second use of the assessment is to evaluate the
Psychology major as a whole. Information gathered from the assessment will be valuable to
faculty in the psychology major as well as the College of Health and Behavioral Studies.

Describe the criteria measures

Number of promotions achieved: when a person receives a promotion, it is typically an
indication of success at ones job. If a person was promoted in their career it could be attributed
to one of the various forms JMUs Psychology major has prepared them.
Average yearly salary compared to national average for that job (Adjusted for gender and
ethnicity): Having a higher than average salary for a job can indicate persistent quality of work
and specialized skills that give reason for raises or competitive salaries.
Average years spent at each job: The number of years spent at each job indicates
continuous strength in the profession. This would demonstrate that the individual has obtained
the correct skills necessary to continue working at the job.
Years unemployed after graduation: After graduation, a student who is fully prepared to
enter the workforce and is wanting to obtain a job, should be able to find adequate employment.
The number of years of unemployment after graduation could indicate not having the right skill
set to have fully prepared them.

Validity of assessment center

The present assessment center would analyze predictive validity because we are
interested in the future performance of JMU psychology graduates. In order to analyze the
validity of our assessment, we will conduct correlational analyses to establish associations
between the KSAOs of interest and our criteria measures.

5. What decision-making strategy would you use to determine which students are successful?

Decision-making process
When applying to the psychology major, KSAOs will be listed as part of the application
process for the applicant to rate the KSAOs importance on a scale of one to ten. Scores will be
averaged, and the average score will be set as the cutoff score to be considered successful in
that KSAO. For example, if the average score for one KSAO was an eight, students will be
considered successful in that KSAO if they scored in the 80th percentile. A minimum of an 80%
is required to be considered successful in each assessment of the KSAOs. The Psychology
Major receives multiple applications each semester; multiple raters from those applications
increases interrater reliability.

6. How should we motivate students to perform at their best on this assessment center?
In order to encourage students to perform their best during assessment day, we will
implement a few strategies to prepare students for what they will experience, keep morale high,
and remind students that their voice matters. Weeks before the assessment, students will be
informed by their professors in class, as well as in an email, that assessments are coming up so
students can plan accordingly that day. Further, professors will also mention during lectures
some topics that students may be tested on during assessments. This will encourage students to
pay attention to the material and continuously reminded of assessments. If students are able to
discuss assessments with professors, people they respect, they may be more likely to try to
perform well.
On assessment day, a light breakfast will be provided for students for a variety of reasons.
First, providing complementary food will boost student morale, so they might not feel as inclined
to try to rush through assessments. Also, breakfast provides sharper focus and an energy boost.
Lastly, the law of reciprocity may be present here; by giving students breakfast, they may feel
inclined to give something back to the department in the form of performing their best on
assessments.
Between individual assessments, students will be allowed a short break where they can
get up and stretch, go to the restroom, use their phone, etc. Importantly, before students are
permitted to leave the room, proctors will ask them how they feel about the assessment in a
conversational manner to gather helpful feedback on the process. Further, asking for feedback
will hopefully allow students to feel like their opinion matters and that they are a crucial part of
the assessment process, which they are.

7. How should we use the information from the assessment center?

Information from the assessments results will be used in analyzing the current
Psychology Major as well as instructive on how to improve the Psychology Major in the future.
Results will be shared with the Psychology Major department head, Psychology professors, and
the Dean of the College of Health and Behavioral Studies. Assessing the Psychology major
yearly indicates areas of growth within the last year and areas for improvement in the next year. I
think results should be viewed with solely the next year in mind. By doing this we are able to
improve on a yearly basis and alter our goals on a yearly basis. Specific to the professor's, data in
their subject area should be given to them to help evaluate their performance from that year.
Information in other areas assessed should also be provided to professors so they can incorporate
necessary changes in their courses. Finally, information given to the Dean of the College of
Health and Behavioral Studies informs them on the progress of the major in the past year and
ways to improve within the next year.
 References

Curriculum Objectives. (n.d.). Retrieved February 28, 2017, from

http://www.psyc.jmu.edu/ug/curriculumobjectives.html

Well-Being Concepts. (2016, May 31). Retrieved February 28, 2017, from
https://www.cdc.gov/hrqol/wellbeing.htm