REGULAR ARTICLE Development and Validation of an Instrument to Measure Indonesian Pre-service Teachers’ Conceptions of Statistics Khairiani Idris 1,2 • Kai-Lin Yang 1 Published online: 8 August 2017 Ó De La Salle University 2017 Abstract This article reports the results of a mixed- methods approach to develop and validate an instrument to measure Indonesian pre-service teachers’ conceptions of statistics. First, a phenomenographic study involving a sample of 44 participants uncovered six categories of conceptions of statistics. Second, an instrument of con- ceptions of statistics was developed on the basis of findings from the phenomenographic study. The instrument was initially piloted with 63 participants. Subsequently, an exploratory factor analysis involving 116 participants, followed by a confirmatory factor analysis involving 232 participants, was executed, suggesting a three-factor structure. In addition, three different types of conceptions of statistical data were identified from the integration of qualitative and quantitative studies. Contributions of the study and implications of the findings for further research and statistics education are discussed. Keywords Conceptions of statistics Á Introductory statistics Á Instrument development Á Phenomenographic Á Pre-service teachers Introduction It has been acknowledged that students’ conceptions of statistics relate to the different ways they experience learning statistics and approach to learning statistics (Gordon 2004; Petocz and Reid 2005). The importance of measuring students’ conceptions of statistics has also been suggested, including that for testing the efficacy of a teaching design and that with regard to its relation to other constructs such as attitudes toward statistics (e.g., Gal et al. 1997). Nonetheless, instruments for measuring conceptions of statistics have not been found until recently. Some studies have used a phenomenographic approach to derive conception categories (e.g., Gordon 2004; Petocz and Reid 2005; Yang 2014), but the lengthy process of analysis involved in this approach makes its use impractical where large numbers of participants are involved. Yet, the cate- gories found from these studies are beneficial for devel- oping an instrument. This study aimed at developing and validating an instrument for measuring students’ concep- tions of statistics on the basis of findings from a phe- nomenographic study. Theoretical Framework The theory of constructivism, which has been widely accepted in the education literature, suggests that students learn by constructing their own knowledge and bringing their own ideas to the classroom (Glasersfeld 1983). Accordingly, students’ understanding about the nature of the knowledge develops through their educational experi- ences (Perry and Chickering 1997). Students may come to statistics courses with great variations in ideas and beliefs about statistics, which might be derived from their school & Kai-Lin Yang kailin@ntnu.edu.tw 1 Department of Mathematics, National Taiwan Normal University, No. 88 Sec 4 Ting-Chou Rd., Taipei 11677, Taiwan, ROC 2 Mathematics Education Department, State Institute for Islamic Studies of Malikussaleh Lhokseumawe, Jln Banda Aceh-Medan KM. 275 No. 1, Lhokseumawe 24351, Aceh Province, Indonesia 123 Asia-Pacific Edu Res (2017) 26(5):281–290 DOI 10.1007/s40299-017-0348-z