consensual validity

n. Consensual validity is agreement between at least two observers on the existence or quantity of some thing or characteristic. Agreement among observers is one of the fundamental tests of the reality of a phenomenon. In dealing with abstract psychological characteristics, consensual validity is a matter of degree. When judgments are made about a series of individuals by two or more judges, it is possible to quantify consensual validity as cross-observer agreement expressed by an intraclass correlation. In studies of personality traits, these correlations suggest that there is moderate, but far from perfect agreement. Consensual validity of any degree is not definitive proof of reality, because observers can agree without being correct; it is thus an important but not sufficient condition for accepting the scientific reality of an object or characteristic.

- RRM