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What is a Job Analysis?

Job analysis refers to procedures designed to obtain descriptive information about the tasks performed on a job and/or the knowledge, skills, or abilities thought necessary to adequately perform those tasks. The specific type of job information collected for a job analysis is determined by the purpose for which the information will be used.

For purposes of developing licensure and certification examinations, a job analysis should identify important activities, knowledge, skills, and/or abilities.

The use of a job analysis (also known as practice analysis, role delineation, role and function study) to define the content domain is a critical component in establishing the content validity of licensure and certification examinations. Content validity refers to the extent to which the content covered by an examination overlaps with the important components of a job (tasks, knowledge, skills, or abilities).

A well-designed job analysis should include the participation of a representative group of subjectmatter experts who reflect the diversity within the job. Diversity refers to regional or job context factors and to subject-matter expert factors such as experience, gender, and race/ethnicity. Demonstration of content validity is accomplished through the judgments of subject-matter experts. The process is enhanced by the inclusion of large numbers of subject-matter experts who represent the diversity of the relevant areas of expertise.

The Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing1 (1999) (The Standards) is a comprehensive technical guide that provides criteria for the evaluation of tests, testing practices, and the effects of test use. It was developed jointly by the American Psychological Association (APA), the American Educational Research Association (AERA), and the National Council on Measurement in Education (NCME). The guidelines presented in The Standards, by professional consensus, have come to define the necessary components of quality testing. As a consequence, a testing program that adheres to The Standards is more likely to be judged to be valid and defensible than one that does not.

As stated in Standard 14.14, “The content domain to be covered by a credentialing test should be defined clearly and justified in terms of the importance of the content for credentialworthy performance in an occupation or profession. A rationale should be provided to support a claim that the knowledge or skills being assessed are required for credential-worthy performance in an occupation and are consistent with the purpose for which the licensing or certification program was instituted…Some form of job or job analysis provides the primary basis for defining the content domain… (p.161)

Job analyses conducted on behalf of AHIMA are designed to follow the guidelines presented in The Standards and to adhere to accepted professional practice.

1 American Educational Research Association, American Psychological Association, National Council on Measurement in Education. (1999). The standards for educational and psychological testing. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

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