Nancy W. Burton

Sex differences in predictions of college grades from Scholastic Aptitude Test scores

In this study we appraised 2 explanations for sex differences in over- and underprediction of college grades by the Scholastic Aptitude Test: sex-related differences in (a) the nature of the grade criterion and (b) the variables associated with academic performance. An entire freshman class at a large state university was studied. Womens grade point average (GPA) was underpredicted (and mens GPA was overpredicted), but only by a small amount. When we adjusted the GPA for differences in grading standards for individual courses, over- and underprediction were not affected, but when we controlled for sex differences in individual-differences variables concerned with academic preparation, studiousness, and attitudes about mathematics, over- and underprediction were reduced