Validity of a Scale Designed to Measure Beliefs in Free Will and Determinism
- 1 June 1984
- journal article
- research article
- Published by SAGE Publications in Psychological Reports
- Vol. 54 (3) , 867-872
- https://doi.org/10.2466/pr0.1984.54.3.867
Abstract
After hearing a lecture on free will and determinism, 58 junior and senior students volunteered to respond to a scale designed to assess an individual's position on the issue. 11 days following the administration of the scale, students were given an essay examination which asked them to specify and defend their views on free will and determinism. Two judges graded the essays independently and provided assessments of students' positions on free will and determinism as well as students' knowledge of the issue. Statistically significant correlations between position scores on the essays and responses to the Free Will-Determinism Scale provided convergent evidence for the construct validity of the scale. Students' knowledge scores were not significantly correlated with scale scores.This publication has 1 reference indexed in Scilit:
- Attitudes Toward Punishment in Relation to Beliefs in Free Will and DeterminismHuman Relations, 1982