On Eigen Values Greater Than Unity and the True Structure of Tests
Steven B. Robbins · Educational and Psychological Measurement · 1980
A 32 item inventory was computer-generated to have a clearly de fined factor structure. N observations were sampled from this struc ture, factor-analyzed and examined for eigen values exceeding unity. Only in the robust N condition (N = 320) was the prescribed structure correctly identified. It was concluded that the use of this procedure for uncovering the internal structure of tests is a special case of sample quantity not quality.