Industrial Organizational prpjet Quizes Flashcards
\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ is occurring when ratings on a measure of job performance are affected by non-performance factors. A. Criterion contamination B. Criterion deficiency C. The contrast error D. The halo effect
Answer A is correct. Criterion contamination occurs when a performance (criterion) measure is affected by factors unrelated to job performance – for example, when a supervisor’s performance ratings of employees are affected by an employee’s gender or race or by the supervisor’s knowledge of how well an employee did on the predictors that were used to hire him or her.
The “forced distribution” is a(n): A. absolute measure of job performance. B. relative measure of job performance. C. worker-oriented method of job analysis. D. work-oriented method of job analysis.
Answer B is correct. The forced distribution is a relative rating scale that requires the rater to assign a certain percent of employees to prespecified performance categories for each performance dimension.
Which of the following is used to help establish comparable worth? A. job specification B. needs analysis C. organizational analysis D. job evaluation
Answer D is correct. A job evaluation is conducted to facilitate decisions related to compensation. It’s often used to establish comparable worth, which is the principle that workers who perform jobs that require the same skills and responsibilities or that are of comparable value to the employer should be paid the same.
A positive halo error occurs when:
A. a rater gives all employees high ratings on a measure of job performance, regardless of their actual performance.
B. a rater who just rated a below-average employee gives a subsequent employee higher performance ratings than she deserves.
C. a rater consistently rates employees who seem similar to him more favorably than employees who seem dissimilar.
D. a rater who views one performance dimension as being most important rates employees who score high on that dimension high on all other dimensions.
Answer D is correct. The halo error occurs when a rater’s rating of an employee on one dimension of job performance affects how the rater rates the employee on all other dimensions, even when they’re unrelated to that dimension. The halo error can be positive or negative.
To identify the knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics (KSAOs) that workers must have to perform a job successfully, you would conduct a: A. job evaluation. B. job analysis. C. needs analysis. D. task analysis.
Answer B is correct. A job analysis is a systematic procedure for identifying the tasks required to perform the job successfully and/or the knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics of workers that are required to perform those tasks.
An advantage of behaviorally anchored rating scales (BARS) is that they:
A. are easy to develop.
B. are aligned with organizational values and goals.
C. provide an objective (versus subjective) measure of job performance.
D. provide information that’s useful for performance feedback.
Answer D is correct. Advantages of BARS are that the behavioral anchors help reduce rater biases and provide useful information for employee feedback. Disadvantages are that they’re time-consuming to develop and they’re job specific, which means that different scales must be developed for different jobs.
Frame-of-reference training is useful for which of the following?
A. improving the accuracy of job performance ratings
B. improving the accuracy of job selection techniques
C. ensuring that trainees apply newly acquired skills to job tasks
D. ensuring the accuracy of job analysis results
Answer A is correct. Frame-of-reference (FOR) training is a type of rater training that involves ensuring that trainees understand the multidimensional nature of job performance and the organization’s definition of successful and unsuccessful performance and giving trainees opportunities to practice assigning ratings and receive feedback about their rating accuracy.
One problem with empirically developed biographical information blanks (BIBs) is that:
A. they often provide inaccurate information because supervisors are not adequately trained in their scoring and interpretation.
B. they often provide inaccurate information because of the ambiguity of many of the questions.
C. applicants often have a negative reaction to them because some of the questions seem to be irrelevant to job performance.
D. supervisors dislike them because they resent having to compare job applicants to each other.
Answer C is correct. A disadvantage of BIBs is that, while questions address issues that have been found to be job-related, some questions may lack face validity – i.e., they don’t “look like” they’re related to job performance. As a result, applicants may consider those questions to be irrelevant and an invasion of privacy and refuse to answer them.
An organizational psychologist was hired by a large mental health clinic to develop a structured interview that will be used to hire clinical psychologists. Questions included in the interview ask job applicants to describe how they would respond to hypothetical job-related situations that are similar to those they’re likely to encounter on-the-job. The psychologist has developed which of the following? : A. a situational interview B. a behavioral interview C. a case interview D. an informational interview
Answer A is correct. Situational interviews are future-oriented and consist of questions that ask interviewees how they would respond to hypothetical job-related situations.
Which of the following techniques is being used when job applicants must obtain a score above the cutoff score on one selection technique in order for the next selection technique to be administered to them? A. multiple regression B. multiple hurdles C. multiple cutoff D. multiple baseline
Answer B is correct. Multiple cutoff and multiple hurdles are used when a selection procedure involves administering two or more predictors to job applicants and a high score on one or more predictors cannot compensate for a low score on another predictor. When using multiple cutoff, all predictors are administered to all applicants. When using multiple hurdles, predictors are administered sequentially and applicants must score above the cutoff on a predictor in order for the next predictor to be administered to them.
A psychologist is hired to assist with the development of an assessment center that will be used to hire and promote managerial level employees. The psychologist will most likely recommend including which of the following in the assessment center?
A. leaderless group discussion and in-basket exercise
B. in-basket exercise and vestibule training
C. cross-training and business games
D. realistic job preview and job rotation
Answer A is correct. Assessment centers are used most often to evaluate candidates for managerial-level jobs and involve having multiple raters rate candidates on several performance dimensions using multiple methods. The leaderless group discussion and in-basket exercise are two of the most frequently used simulation exercises in assessment centers.
Research evaluating the validity of general mental ability tests as predictors of job performance has generally found that they are:
A. valid only when used in conjunction with other selection techniques.
B. valid only when the performance measure is quantitative (versus qualitative).
C. about equally valid for members of all racial/ethnic groups.
D. the most valid predictors across different jobs and job performance measures.
Answer D is correct. General mental ability tests are among the most frequently used selection techniques and have been found to be the most valid predictors of job performance across a variety of jobs and measures of job performance. A disadvantage of these tests is that they’re associated with a greater risk than other valid predictors of job performance for adverse impact for members of some racial/ethnic minority groups.
Minority group members tend to obtain lower scores than majority group members on a selection test, even though both groups do equally well in terms of job performance. The difference in selection test scores results in a smaller proportion of minority group members being hired. As described in the Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection, this is an example of: A. criterion deficiency. B. test unfairness. C. differential selection. D. predictor contamination.
Answer B is correct. Test unfairness occurs when members of one group consistently obtain lower scores on a selection test or other employment procedure but the score difference is not reflected in differences in scores on a measure of job performance. Unfairness is a potential cause of adverse impact.
When evaluating the adequacy of a newly developed selection test, a test developer would use the 80% (four-fifths) rule to determine:
A. the test’s positive hit rate.
B. the appropriate cutoff score for the test.
C. if the test is likely to have an adverse impact.
D. if the test has adequate criterion-related validity.
Answer C is correct. The Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection Procedures describes the 80% (four-fifths) rule as a method for determining if a selection test or other employment procedure is having an adverse impact.
The Taylor-Russell Tables provide an estimate of a predictor’s incremental validity for various combinations of which of the following?
A. the number of applicants, number of job openings, and positive hit rate
B. the number of applicants, number of job openings, and predictor cutoff score
C. the base rate, selection ratio, and predictor’s criterion-related validity coefficient
D. the base rate, positive hit rate, and predictor’s criterion-related validity coefficient
Answer C is correct. The Taylor-Russell tables are used to obtain an estimate of a predictor’s incremental validity based on the predictor’s criterion-related validity coefficient, the base rate, and the selection ratio.
A new selection test will most likely increase decision-making accuracy when the base rate is: A. 0. B. .20. C. .50. D. .90.
Answer C is correct. The base rate is the percent of employees who are considered successful and were hired using the current selection procedure. Adding a new selection technique to the existing procedure is likely to have the greatest impact on decision-making accuracy (incremental validity) when the base rate is moderate (around .50).
The research has found that general mental ability tests are good predictors of job performance and that administering a structured interview, integrity test, or work sample in conjunction with a general mental ability test increases the accuracy of prediction. In other words, adding a second selection technique to a general mental ability test has an effect on which of the following? A. incremental validity B. construct validity C. differential validity D. discriminant validity
Answer A is correct. Incremental validity refers to the increase in decision-making accuracy that occurs by adding a new selection technique to the existing selection procedure.
Which of the following is NOT one of Kirkpatrick’s (1998) four levels of training program evaluation? A. results B. reaction C. application D. learning
Answer C is correct. Kirkpatrick’s (1998) evaluation model distinguishes between four levels of training program evaluation that are arranged in order from least to most informative: reaction, learning, behavior, and results.
As described by the full-scope evaluation model (Dessinger & Moseley, 2010), which of the following is true about summative evaluation?
A. It’s conducted during training program development to determine if any changes are needed to meet the program’s goals.
B. It’s conducted immediately after a training program is delivered to determine if the program has achieved its goals.
C. It’s conducted several months after a training program is delivered to evaluate its long-term effects on the trainees and the organization.
D. It’s conducted during training program development and after the program is delivered to evaluate the adequacy of the evaluation process.
Answer B is correct. The Dessinger-Moseley full-scope evaluation model distinguishes between four types of training program evaluation – formative, summative, confirmative, and meta. A summative evaluation is conducted soon after a training program is delivered to assess its immediate effects.
Which of the following is useful for ensuring that trainees will learn and retain newly acquired behaviors and be able to perform them successfully with little conscious effort? A. distributed practice B. massed practice C. overtraining D. overlearning
Answer D is correct. Overlearning refers to practicing a new behavior beyond the point of mastery. It results in automaticity, which occurs when the behavior can be performed with little conscious effort or awareness.
Which of the following best describes mentoring and coaching?
A. Both focus primarily on the acquisition of skills and knowledge but mentoring is more formal and task-oriented.
B. Both focus primarily on career development but coaching is more informal and relationship-oriented.
C. Mentoring focuses primarily on the acquisition of skills and knowledge, while coaching focuses primarily on career development.
D. Mentoring focuses primarily on career development, while coaching focuses primarily on the acquisition of skills and knowledge
Answer D is correct. In contrast to mentoring, coaching is more performance (versus career) focused and more formal and task (versus relationship) oriented.
A summative evaluation report is least likely to include information on the results of which of the following? A. evaluability evaluation B. economic evaluation C. impact evaluation D. outcome evaluation
Answer A is correct. Economic evaluation, impact evaluation, and outcome evaluation are components of a summative evaluation, while an evaluability evaluation is part of a formative evaluation. Consequently, information obtained from an evaluability evaluation is least likely to be included in a summative evaluation report.
