Construct Validity of Instruments Assessing Clinical Competence

There is a need to evaluate the evidence for §construct validity of high stake assessment tools §used for assessing clinical competence of §physicians. The focus has been on reliability which §is a necessary but not sufficient condition for §validity. This monograph will discuss psychometric §evaluation of assessment instruments focussing on §validity. The research addressed in this monograph §has utilized the multitrait multimethod matrix §(MTMM) approach introduced by Campbell and Fisk and §deliberated on its historical background and §usefulness. Three traits, doctor-patient §relationship, clinical competence, and communication §skills were assessed in OSCEs, ITERs and clinical §assessments. There was evidence for both §convergent and divergent validity for clinical §competence, doctor-patient relationships, and §communications. There is evidence for the construct §validity of all three traits across three methods. §The MTMM approach,currently underutilized, could be §profitably employed to estimate the degree of §evidence for validating complex constructs like, §clinical competence.