Student Derogation of the Scholastic Aptitude Test: Biases in Perceptions and Presentations of College Board Scores

Abstract

A consistent finding in laboratory research is that individuals are quite adept at dismissing and disavowing unfavorable feedback. Three studies extend this research to a nonlaboratory setting by examining how students who receive relatively low scores on the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) respond to this "failure" feedback. Studies 1 and 2 revealed biases in both perceptions and presentations of test scores. Students with lower SAT scores regarded their score as invalid and also believed that a higher score would be more accurate. This was true even though actual SAT scores significantly predicted current college grade-point average (GPA), whereas the scores subjects estimated would be accurate did not. In addition, when reporting their SAT scores, students systematically inflated them, reporting scores higher than those they actually received. Study 3 suggests that the misreporting of SAT scores is attributable partly, but not entirely, to impression management.