Description of Test
This is an adapted version of the Figurative Language web test used in the 12 Year study. The test has been extended by adding four harder items at the end, increasing the number of items from 11 to 15. The test introduction was changed, and a new voice-over was added, but no other changes were made.
In this test of language ability, twins are asked to match expressions (or figures of speech) having similar meanings. There are 15 items in the test. The items, together with the responses and correct answers, are shown in detail in the table of test items at the bottom of this page. Each item is presented in the following way:
- The situation (context in which the expression is said) is played from an audio recording.
- The expression (a figure of speech) is played from an audio recording.
- The situation and expression are presented in text on the screen.
- An audio recording now says "now listen to four expressions"; the four new expressions (A, B, C, D), which are the response options, immediately appear as text on the screen. (The situation and the original expression remain on screen as well.)
- Each of the four new expressions in turn is played from an audio recording; while it is being played, the letter next to it (A/B/C/D) is highlighted on the screen.
- An audio recording now says "now click on the choice which could be used instead of ...", and the original expression is repeated.
- The twin selects a response by clicking on it.
A twin may respond, by clicking on one of the four options, as soon as they appear as text on the screen. It is not necessary for twins to wait until the audio recordings of the four expressions have been played. The answer time for each item is measured from the moment when the four options appear on screen until the moment when the twin clicks on an option.
A test tutorial (including a practice item) is played before the test starts. The tutorial is used partly to establish whether the computer's sound is turned on, in order to discourage twins from attempting the test without sound.
Each item has a time limit of 60 seconds in which a twin must answer. There are no branching or discontinue rules: each twin is presented with all 11 items, in numerical order.
Test Rules
- Scoring
For each question, the correct response is given a score of 1, and any of the three incorrect responses (or a timeout) is given a score of 0.
The total test score is the sum of the item scores. The maximum total score for the test is 15. - Timeout rule
Each item has a time limit of 60 seconds within which a response must be given; timing starts as soon as twins are able to respond, which is after the four response expressions have all been played (in audio). If 60 seconds pass without the twin giving a response, the item is forfeited (with score zero) and removed from the screen, to be replaced with a "next item" link to allow the twin to continue the test.
Item Variables
The item variables relating to the Figurative Language test, as listed in the table below, were generated automatically by programs on the web server during the course of the test. Note that the dataset only includes data for successfully completed tests. If a twin started the test but left it unfinished, then the data for the test were not used. For twins identified as random responders in this test, all test data were deleted.
In most cases the values of these variables have been left unaltered, although some have been recoded during data cleaning as follows. See the web data cleaning page for further details.
- For timed out items, the item response variable is recoded from missing to -1, and the item answer time is recoded from 60 to missing (item scores are 0)
- For items that crashed or malfunctioned in any way, the item response variable is recoded from missing to -4, and the item score is recoded from missing to 0.
- For twins identified as random responders in this test, the status flag is recoded from 2 to 4, the data flag is recoded from 1 to 0, and all item variables are recoded to missing (test data deleted)
The test start and end dates and times, and item answer and download times, have not been retained in the dataset.
| Variables | Explanation | Values |
|---|---|---|
| pcflstat1/2 | Status flag: outcome of test | 0=not started, 1=started but not finished, 2=successfully completed, 4=random responses |
| pcfldata1/2 | Data flag: is test data present? | 0=no, 1=yes |
| pcfltot1/2 | Total score for this test, out of 15. | 0 to 15 (integer values) |
| pcflquan1/2 | Number of questions answered in the test | integer values up to 15 |
| pcflstdt1/2 | Start date of the test [not in dataset] | Date values |
| pcflsttm1/2 | Start time of the test [not in dataset] | Time values |
| pcflendt1/2 | End date of the test [not in dataset] | Date values |
| pcflentm1/2 | End time of the test [not in dataset] | Time values |
| pcflsess1/2 | Number of sessions (at the computer) used by the twin to complete the test. | Integer values of 1 or above |
| pcfltmel1/2 | Total time elapsed during the test, in seconds | Integer values (number of seconds) |
| pcflXXan1/2 (XX is the item number 01 to 15) |
Item response | 1=A, 2=B, 3=C, 4=D, -1=timeout, -4=item crashed |
| pcflXXsc1/2 (XX is the item number 01 to 15) |
Item score | 0=incorrect, 1=correct |
| pcflXXat1/2 (XX is the item number 01 to 15) |
Answer time: length of time (in seconds) taken by the twin to respond to this item [not in dataset] | Integer values (number of seconds, between 0 and 60) |
| pcflXXdt1/2 (XX is the item number 01 to 15) |
Download time: length of time (in seconds) between the end of the previous item and the start of this item; time needed to download files for this item [not in dataset] | Integer values (number of seconds) |
Test Items
The numbering of the items, shown in the table below, equates to the numbering used in the item variables. This is the same as the order in which items were presented to twins in the test.
| item | Situation | Expression | response A | response B | response C | response D | correct response |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | A boy talking about a girl at a school dance. | “She casts a spell over me.” | In her life, every day is Halloween. | She spells much better than I. | I am out from under her spell. | She is totally bewitching to me. | D |
| 2 | Two students moving to a new town. | “There is rough sailing ahead for us.” | The waves are going to make it hard to sail. | The rough times are behind us now. | It took the wind out of our sails. | We will be facing a hard road. | D |
| 3 | Two girls talking about a friend running for class president. | “She seems to be holding all the aces.” | She has four aces in her hand. | The odds certainly favour her. | She is a real card shark. | The chips seem to be down for her. | B |
| 4 | Two students talking about a teacher. | “It’s hard to zero in on his ideas.” | He is getting his ideas across. | It is difficult to number his ideas. | His ideas do not come through. | Some ideas are better than others. | C |
| 5 | Two friends talking about a class project. | “Maybe we should stew over that.” | Maybe we a shouldn’t chew on it any longer. | We are really in a stew now. | Let’s toss that around some more. | Let’s make sure to cook the food long enough. | C |
| 6 | A student after listening to her friend. | “I just can’t swallow that.” | I don’t want to chew on it. | That is not fun to eat. | That really smells fishy. | That is easy to digest. | C |
| 7 | Two players talking about another team. | “That team couldn’t win, even with new blood.” | Even some new faces couldn’t make that team win. | The team isn’t broken-hearted that it lost. | That team couldn’t win even with a blood transfusion. | That team could win with some fast feet. | A |
| 8 | A student talking to his friend about a trip. | “It’s still up in the air.” | The plane has not landed yet. | That a lot of hot air. | It’s up for grabs yet. | It’s actually settled. | C |
| 9 | A boy talking about his girlfriend. | “She is easily crushed.” | Her bones break quite easily. | She must be handled with care. | She can handle anything. | She has a crush on me. | B |
| 10 | Two students talking about their new school guidance counsellor. | “He is as transparent as we thought.” | He is a visible man. | We can easily see through him. | We can see the sun through him. | His character isn’t easily visible to us. | B |
| 11 | Two friends talking about their exams. | “It’s all behind us now.” | It is water under the bridge. | We always look behind us. | It’s all uphill from here. | No one knows where the river flows. | A |
| 12 | Two friends talking about a girl at school. | “She cut off her nose to spite her face”. | She scored an own goal | She gave herself a leg up | She hurt herself with a knife. | She really put her foot in it. | A |
| 13 | A boy describing a band he saw in concert. | “They slayed them in the aisles.” | The music was painful to listen to. | The audience gripped their seats in suspense. | The audience fell off their seats with admiration. | They massacred the audience. | C |
| 14 | A king talking about a time gone by/ an important decision. | “My salad days, when I was green in judgement.” | My youthful vigour had already wilted. | I used to be green with envy. | I used to care about the environment. | I was a spring chicken then. | D |
| 15 | A courtier, talking about his king. | “He has strangled his language in his tears.” | He was crying so much he could not breathe. | He could hardly choke out the words. | His words rose above the sobs. | His tears flowed like a river. | B |