Reflections on Advancements in Assessment

Abstract In the last several decades, there have been four major advancements in assessment: item response theory, structural equation modeling and confirmatory factor analysis, multilevel modeling, and big data analytics. In personality assessment, ideal point models and ipsative measures reflect novel approaches. The dimensionality of personality is also being requestioned, and the relationship of new ideas in this area to the Big Five is not clear and deserves attention. big data analytics allow for the measurement of new constructs using existing data from multiple sources. Of most concern in this area is the nature of the constructs assessed. Finally, while cognitive assessments are perhaps the most accepted of our tools, attention to their reconceptualization in light of advancements in other areas of psychology is likely overdue.