Face validity

Whether an assessment appears, on the surface, to measure what it claims to — based on inspection rather than statistical evidence.

Face validity is the most informal kind of validity: whether an assessment looks, on the surface, like it measures what it claims to. A depression questionnaire that asks about mood, sleep, and energy has obvious face validity; one that asks about your favorite color does not.

Face validity is not a statistical property and on its own is weak evidence. Many psychometrically sound tests have low face validity by design (to reduce social desirability or faking), and many tests with high face validity have poor reliability. It still matters for respondent engagement, though — people are more likely to answer honestly when items feel relevant to what's being measured.

Validity — The extent to which a psychological assessment measures what it claims to measure.
Content validity — Whether the items on an assessment cover the full content domain of the construct being measured.
Construct validity — Evidence that an assessment actually measures the abstract concept (construct) it claims to measure.
Social desirability bias — The tendency of respondents to answer in ways that present themselves favorably rather than accurately.

Face validity

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