A COMPENDIUM OF SCALES for use in the SCHOLARSHIP OF TEACHING AND LEARNING

it comes to understanding some specific and fundamental scientific phenomenon, such as that
living organisms evolve. This theory was found to be supported with some preliminary empirical
evidence in a study of Ku and colleagues (2014), in which sophistication of epistemological
beliefs were made salient in predicting students’ argumentation thinking only under an
experimental condition where the students were prompted to consider the ambiguous
information. Likewise, Bromme, Pieschl and Stahl (2010) revealed in their research that a
person’s sophisticated beliefs were activated in “reflective” task contexts and not in others. In
other words, a learner might approach a task in a “naïve” manner if that enhances effectiveness
in task completion, despite his or her ability to adopt a more sophisticated approach. In
addition, Hofer (2001) has added metacognitive processes in the multi-facet model by
emphasizing beliefs about knowledge as a function of metacognitive knowledge, and
metacognitive monitoring and judgments. More empirical testing of these models will enrich
general understanding of personal epistemology.
The chapter discussed the developmental and multi-facet approach in theorizing
epistemological understanding. The scope, strength, and limitation of self-reports instruments
measuring beliefs about knowledge, as well as objective assessments of epistemological
development were reviewed. The previous section also highlighted what is not adequately
captured by existing measurements. More attention should be paid to the interplay of beliefs
about knowledge and other contextual factors in future studies. Lastly, it is suggested to
consider using more than one form of instrument to triangulate results, and when applicable,
more sophisticated statistical analyses to enhance reliability of findings.
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