Explain whether you can have reliability if you do not have validity, or validity without having reliability.

What will be an ideal response?


Ans: Reliability refers to consistency whereas validity refers to accuracy. You can have a measurement tool that is consistently inaccurate, which means you can have reliability without having validity. However, you cannot have accuracy without consistency--the bullet has to hit the bull’s-eye consistently or else you do not have accuracy. Therefore, you can have reliability without validity but you cannot have validity without reliability.
Learning Objective: 6-5: Explain the functions of sampling and measurement in descriptive research with a special focus on the generalization of study results.
Cognitive Domain: Comprehension
Answer Location: Reliability and Validity in Measurement
Difficulty Level: Hard

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