Sequential Generalized Likelihood Ratio Tests for Online Item Monitoring

The study presents statistical procedures that monitor functioning of items over time. We propose generalized likelihood ratio tests that surveil multiple item parameters and implement with various sampling techniques to perform continuous or intermittent monitoring. The procedures examine stability of item parameters across time and inform compromise as soon as they identify significant parameter shift. The performance of the monitoring procedures was validated using simulated and real assessment data. The empirical evaluation suggests that the proposed procedures perform adequately well in identifying the parameter drift. They showed satisfactory detection power and gave timely signals while regulating the error rates reasonably low. The procedures also showed superior performance when compared with the existent methods. The empirical findings suggest that multivariate parametric monitoring can provide an efficient and powerful control tool for maintaining the quality of items. The procedures allow joint monitoring of multiple item parameters and achieve sufficient power by dint of likelihood-ratio tests. Based on the findings from the empirical experimentation, we suggest some practical strategies for performing online item monitoring.