Abstract
<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title> <jats:p>This entry defines high‐stakes language testing as the development and use of language tests that have major consequences for individuals, institutions, and educational or social systems. The entry delves into why high‐stakes language tests are developed and used, as well as the characteristics and research considerations of high‐stakes language testing. Following an introduction, the entry examines the rationale for high‐stakes language testing. The primary driving force is identified as the competition for resources and opportunities and the pursuit of fair competition. When decisions such as admissions, employment, and immigration are made, meritocracy is often practiced so that high‐performing candidates are rewarded with opportunities based on their achievements, rather than patronage. The entry then outlines the defining characteristics of high‐stakes language testing. First, tests with high stakes tend to be highly institutionalized and industrialized. Second, to avoid potential biases and minimize measurement errors, special attention is given to test standardization and objectivity. Third, high‐stakes testing has the capacity to shape teaching and learning through its washback effects. To demonstrate the features, two examples are provided: the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) in the United States and the College English Test (CET) in China. In the final part, important considerations in research of high‐stakes language testing are discussed. Attention is drawn to the interdisciplinary and contextualized nature of high‐stakes language testing and the need for a broader validity agenda that goes beyond the measurement aspect of language testing and considers test consequences from a wider and more multifaceted social perspective.</jats:p>