PRACTICE ANALYSIS

Practice analysis (also called job analysis) describes the job responsibilities of people employed at the entry level of the profession. That information helps identify the knowledge and skills required to effectively carry out the responsibilities of a particular position.

ARRT uses the results of practice analyses to make decisions regarding educational and clinical requirements for each discipline. We also use the analyses to develop content specifications for our examinations. Other organizations might use practice analyses to create training materials, educational curricula, job descriptions, and performance-rating instruments.

ARRT has conducted practice analyses since 1980, and we regularly complete them for all of our certification and registration programs. Practice analysis is widely recognized as an essential component of a certification and registration program. The Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing (published jointly by the American Educational Research Association, American Psychological Association, and National Council on Measurement in Education) recommends the practice. Organizations such as ARRT must conduct practice analyses if they want the National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA) or the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) to recognize a certification and registration program.

In most cases, ARRT administers a comprehensive survey to a national sample of professionals in the radiologic sciences. The sample size ranges from several hundred to more than 1,000. Our psychometricians and a panel of subject-matter experts who represent the discipline being studied oversee each practice analysis. The projects require 12 to 36 months, culminating in a final report, a task inventory, clinical competency requirements, clinical experience requirements, and content specifications.