Performance tests have the following Advantages and Disadvantages:
Advantages:
(i) These are generally useful for measuring specific abilities, but particularly useful for testing some category of persons. These include deaf persons, those who are at a disadvantage in verbal tests due to language difficulties, those who are educationally backward, and those who are discouraged in verbal talks due to school failures.
(ii) These are highly useful in vocational and educational guidance. Persons of practical and mechanical ability can be discovered by these tests alone. Alexander, therefore, suggested that verbal tests only should not be given.
ADVERTISEMENTS:
(iii) For the study of pre-school children, who have not begun reading and writing these are only suitable tests.
(iv) These are useful for clinical purposes, for testing neurotics and mentally defective (or feeble-minded).
(v) These are useful for adults over 30, who have lost interest in numbers and words.
Image Source: civilengineeringbasic.com
ADVERTISEMENTS:
(vi) Performance tests are culture-free. No verbal test can boast of having no relation with linguistic cultural background of the nation. That is why verbal test in English prepared in U.K. will not suit Indian children. The mention of tennis, spoon, fork, omnibus and such other words in the verbal tests may not evoke proper response from Indian students, because they may not be familiar with these things.
Disadvantages:
Performance tests have also been criticised on the following grounds:-
(i) Some test items do not have connection with life situations. Some call for speed rather the solution of problems. Slight differences in speed affect the scores. Enough of emphasis is not given to item difficulty.
(ii) Performance tests do not measure exactly what Binet’s tests measure-reasoning, judgment and imagination.
ADVERTISEMENTS:
(iii) Most of these tests do not require above- average thinking, so these are not suitable for higher levels.
(iv) There are variations in the utility of different tests. Picture completion tests may suffer from poor material. Maze tests require continual adaptation and planning. Form-board tests tend to depend upon speed.
(v) Most of these tests need to be administered individually, in small a group, which entails expense. Again single performance tests are not so reliable. A battery of tests is needed, which makes the task, mere complex.
On the whole performance tests have to stay for measuring general ability. But these can simply supplement verbal tests rather than give independent results. These can, however, be used independently when some special practical ability is to be measured.