Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 18, 2026

Operant Procedures for Assessing Behavioral Flexibility in Rats
Published on: February 15, 2015
Do you see what I see? Mitigating rater effects on direct behavior ratings-multi-item scales (DBR-MIS) through
Abigail E Pruitt1, Kara M Styck1, Annika L Hodges1
1Department of Psychology, Northern Illinois University.
Abstract:
The purpose of our study was to compare the effectiveness of rater training and statistical adjustment at mitigating rater effects and improving the accuracy of direct behavior ratings-multi-item scales (DBR-MIS) scores targeting academic engagement and disruptive behavior. Results from a many-facet Rasch measurement analysis with a sample of video clips of 15 middle school students rated by 10 graduate students indicated that raters significantly differed in their tendencies toward severity/leniency and that rater training was only successful at reducing between-rater differences on disruptive behavior. Unfortunately, neither rater training nor statistical adjustment improved DBR-MIS score accuracy when compared to direct observation, though improved accuracy was noted for ratings on a single DBR-MIS disruptive behavior item (i.e., "noisy"). School personnel may wish to consider rater training when using DBR-MIS to assess disruptive behavior, and future research should explore the use of statistical modeling to develop customized rater training that incorporates the idiosyncrasies of individual raters. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
Related Concept Videos
Halo Effect
Response Surface Methodology
The process of RSM involves several key steps:

