Improving IRT item bias detection with iterative linking and ability scale purification

The effectiveness of several iterative methods of item response theory (IRT) item bias detection was examined in a simulation study. The situations em-ployed were based on biased items created using a two-dimensional IRT model. Previous research demonstrated that the non-iterative application of some IRT parameter linking procedures produced unsatisfactory results in a simulation study involv-ing unidirectional item bias. A modified form of Drasgow’s iterative item parameter linking method and an adaptation of Lord’s test purification procedure were examined in conditions that simu-lated unidirectional and mixed-directional forms of item bias. The results illustrate that iterative link-ing holds promise for differentiating biased from unbiased items under several item bias conditions. In addition, a combination of methods, involving cycles of iterative linking followed by ability scale purification, was found to be even more effective than iterative linking alone. This combination of procedures totally eliminated false positive misiden-tifications for the most pervasive item bias condi-tion, and false negative misidentifications were also reduced. Combining iterative linking with ability scale purification appears to be a viable method for analyzing multidimensional IRT data with unidimensional IRT item-bias methods. Index terms: ability scale purification, item bias, item response theory, iterative linking, iterative methods, metric linking, multidimensional IRT model. Research related to the detection of item bias has proliferated in the psychometric and applied psychological literature (Rudner, Getson, & Knight, 1980; Shepard, Camilli, & Williams, 1985). Among item bias methods, the theoreti-cally-preferred method is based on item response theory (IRT). It is preferred because of its sam