EPPP I/O PSYCHOLOGY EXAM
Job Analysis - ANSWER - a systematic method for collecting the information needed
to identify the nature of the job, knowledge and abilities an employee must have for
the job, and how the job performance can be evaluated
- clarifies the requirements of the job
Position Analysis Questionnaire (PAQ) - ANSWER - worker-oriented job analysis
- provides information on six dimensions of worker activity
- helpful in designing training programs and deriving criterion measures
Job Evaluation - ANSWER - determines the relative worth of jobs in order to set
salaries and wages
- identifies demands of the job in terms of skills and effort, previous experience and
education, and degree of autonomy and responsibility
Comparable Worth - ANSWER - attempts to overcome gender differences in wages
that are due to discrimination
- looks at job's inherent value rther than on the job title or who usually performs the
job
Rater Biases: Leniency/Strictness Bias - ANSWER - rater tends to avoid the middle
range of the rating scal and rate all employees as low or high
Rater Biases: Central Tendency Bias - ANSWER - rater consistently uses only the
middle range of the rating scale
Rater Biases: Halo Effect - ANSWER - raters evaluation of an employee on one
dimension of job performance affects her evaluation of that employee on other
unrelated dimensions
- can be positive or negative
Frame of Reference Training - ANSWER - helps allevaite problems with subjective
measures
- defines what constitutes effective and ineffective
- has rater rate specific behaviors rather than global behaviors or traits
Critical Incidents - ANSWER - descriptions of specific job behaviors that lead to
either successful or unsuccessful job performance
- ex. make suggestions to employees on how to improve their performance or
publicly insult employees who make mistakes
Rating Scales:
Relative (Comparative) Technique - ANSWER - compare the performance of two or
more employees
- can help alleviate central tendency, leniency, and strictness bias
- can be illegal and less useful in providing specific feedback
- paired comparison and forced distribution
,Rating Scales:
Paired Comparison - ANSWER - rater compares each ratee with every other ratee in
pairs on one or several dimensions of job performance
Rating Scales:
Forced Distribution - ANSWER - similar to "grading on the curve"
- assign ratees to a limited number of categories based on a predefined normal
distribution
Rating Scales:
Critical Incident Technique - ANSWER - derive a checklist of incidents through
observing employees and recording specific behaviors associated with outstanding
and poor performance
Rating Scales:
Forced Choice - ANSWER - rating scale consists of two to four alterantives that are
considered about equal in terms of desirability
- rater selects the alternative that best or least describes the ratee
Rating Scales:
Graphic Rating Scale - ANSWER - indicate on a Likert-type scale the ratee's level of
performance
- anchoring the scale with critical incidents helps improve accuracy
Rating Scales:
Behaviorally Ancored Rating Scale (BARS) - ANSWER - identify several
independent dimensions of job behaviors, identify several behavioral anchors for
each, order the number of anchors from least to most positive
- raters choose one behavior in each dimension that best describes the employee
Ultimate (Conceptual) Criterion - ANSWER - theoretical and refers to an accurate
and complete measure of performance
Actual Criterion - ANSWER - the measure of performance
Criterion Relevance - ANSWER - the extent to with the measure assesses the
ultimate criterion
- synonym for construct validity
Criterion Deficiency - ANSWER - degree that the measure does not measure all of
the elements of the ultimate criterion
Criterion Contamination - ANSWER - when a rating of an employee's performance is
affected by irrelevant factors
- ex. knowledge of employee's predictor performance
Criterion-Related Validity - ANSWER - used to predict or estimate performance of
the employee on a criterion measure
- (helps with choosing applicants who will do well at the job)
, Incremental Validity - ANSWER - referts to the increase in decision-making accuracy
and employer will achieve by using the predictor to make selection decisions
- based on validity coefficent - sometimes a coefficient as low as .20 or .30 can still
be helpful
Selection Ratio - ANSWER - number comparing job openings to job applicants
- a lower number results in many applicants for few jobs and allows the employer to
be more selective
Base Rate - ANSWER - the percent of employees who are performing satisfactorily
without use of the proposed predictor
- ranges from 0 to 1.0 (with moderate levels being associated with best incremental
validity)
Taylor-Russell Tables - ANSWER - used to estimat ehte percent of new hires who
will be successful as employees given various combinations of validity coefficients,
selection ratios, and base rates
Adverse Impact - ANSWER - occurs when a procedure used as a basis for
employment decisions results in substantially different selection, placement, or
promortion rate for members of a subgroup
- 80% (4/5ths) Rule - determines this
Differential Validity - ANSWER - occurs when a measure is valid for one group but
not valid for another group
- characteristics (e.g., age, gender, race) that distinguish the groups are called
moderator variables
- can lead to adverse impact
Unfairness - ANSWER - members of one group consistently obtain lower scores on
a predictor than members of another group and the differences are not reflected by
true differences in job performance
- can lead to adverse impact
Bona Fide Occupational Qualification (BFOQ) - ANSWER - employer can prove that
the characteristic in question is an essential characteristic for the job
- ex. male actor for male role in play; female for women's restroom attendant
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1991 - ANSWER - requires companies with 25+
employees to avoid using procedures that discriminate agains people with physical
or mental disabilities
- when a disabled person is able to perform the essential functions of the job, he is
considered qualified and the employer is expected to make reasonable
accommodations
- prohibits use of medical exam prior to employment offer (except drug testing)
General Mental (Cognitive) Ability Tests - ANSWER - produce highest validity
coefficients, especially when the criterion is performance on a work sample rather
than ratings
Job Analysis - ANSWER - a systematic method for collecting the information needed
to identify the nature of the job, knowledge and abilities an employee must have for
the job, and how the job performance can be evaluated
- clarifies the requirements of the job
Position Analysis Questionnaire (PAQ) - ANSWER - worker-oriented job analysis
- provides information on six dimensions of worker activity
- helpful in designing training programs and deriving criterion measures
Job Evaluation - ANSWER - determines the relative worth of jobs in order to set
salaries and wages
- identifies demands of the job in terms of skills and effort, previous experience and
education, and degree of autonomy and responsibility
Comparable Worth - ANSWER - attempts to overcome gender differences in wages
that are due to discrimination
- looks at job's inherent value rther than on the job title or who usually performs the
job
Rater Biases: Leniency/Strictness Bias - ANSWER - rater tends to avoid the middle
range of the rating scal and rate all employees as low or high
Rater Biases: Central Tendency Bias - ANSWER - rater consistently uses only the
middle range of the rating scale
Rater Biases: Halo Effect - ANSWER - raters evaluation of an employee on one
dimension of job performance affects her evaluation of that employee on other
unrelated dimensions
- can be positive or negative
Frame of Reference Training - ANSWER - helps allevaite problems with subjective
measures
- defines what constitutes effective and ineffective
- has rater rate specific behaviors rather than global behaviors or traits
Critical Incidents - ANSWER - descriptions of specific job behaviors that lead to
either successful or unsuccessful job performance
- ex. make suggestions to employees on how to improve their performance or
publicly insult employees who make mistakes
Rating Scales:
Relative (Comparative) Technique - ANSWER - compare the performance of two or
more employees
- can help alleviate central tendency, leniency, and strictness bias
- can be illegal and less useful in providing specific feedback
- paired comparison and forced distribution
,Rating Scales:
Paired Comparison - ANSWER - rater compares each ratee with every other ratee in
pairs on one or several dimensions of job performance
Rating Scales:
Forced Distribution - ANSWER - similar to "grading on the curve"
- assign ratees to a limited number of categories based on a predefined normal
distribution
Rating Scales:
Critical Incident Technique - ANSWER - derive a checklist of incidents through
observing employees and recording specific behaviors associated with outstanding
and poor performance
Rating Scales:
Forced Choice - ANSWER - rating scale consists of two to four alterantives that are
considered about equal in terms of desirability
- rater selects the alternative that best or least describes the ratee
Rating Scales:
Graphic Rating Scale - ANSWER - indicate on a Likert-type scale the ratee's level of
performance
- anchoring the scale with critical incidents helps improve accuracy
Rating Scales:
Behaviorally Ancored Rating Scale (BARS) - ANSWER - identify several
independent dimensions of job behaviors, identify several behavioral anchors for
each, order the number of anchors from least to most positive
- raters choose one behavior in each dimension that best describes the employee
Ultimate (Conceptual) Criterion - ANSWER - theoretical and refers to an accurate
and complete measure of performance
Actual Criterion - ANSWER - the measure of performance
Criterion Relevance - ANSWER - the extent to with the measure assesses the
ultimate criterion
- synonym for construct validity
Criterion Deficiency - ANSWER - degree that the measure does not measure all of
the elements of the ultimate criterion
Criterion Contamination - ANSWER - when a rating of an employee's performance is
affected by irrelevant factors
- ex. knowledge of employee's predictor performance
Criterion-Related Validity - ANSWER - used to predict or estimate performance of
the employee on a criterion measure
- (helps with choosing applicants who will do well at the job)
, Incremental Validity - ANSWER - referts to the increase in decision-making accuracy
and employer will achieve by using the predictor to make selection decisions
- based on validity coefficent - sometimes a coefficient as low as .20 or .30 can still
be helpful
Selection Ratio - ANSWER - number comparing job openings to job applicants
- a lower number results in many applicants for few jobs and allows the employer to
be more selective
Base Rate - ANSWER - the percent of employees who are performing satisfactorily
without use of the proposed predictor
- ranges from 0 to 1.0 (with moderate levels being associated with best incremental
validity)
Taylor-Russell Tables - ANSWER - used to estimat ehte percent of new hires who
will be successful as employees given various combinations of validity coefficients,
selection ratios, and base rates
Adverse Impact - ANSWER - occurs when a procedure used as a basis for
employment decisions results in substantially different selection, placement, or
promortion rate for members of a subgroup
- 80% (4/5ths) Rule - determines this
Differential Validity - ANSWER - occurs when a measure is valid for one group but
not valid for another group
- characteristics (e.g., age, gender, race) that distinguish the groups are called
moderator variables
- can lead to adverse impact
Unfairness - ANSWER - members of one group consistently obtain lower scores on
a predictor than members of another group and the differences are not reflected by
true differences in job performance
- can lead to adverse impact
Bona Fide Occupational Qualification (BFOQ) - ANSWER - employer can prove that
the characteristic in question is an essential characteristic for the job
- ex. male actor for male role in play; female for women's restroom attendant
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1991 - ANSWER - requires companies with 25+
employees to avoid using procedures that discriminate agains people with physical
or mental disabilities
- when a disabled person is able to perform the essential functions of the job, he is
considered qualified and the employer is expected to make reasonable
accommodations
- prohibits use of medical exam prior to employment offer (except drug testing)
General Mental (Cognitive) Ability Tests - ANSWER - produce highest validity
coefficients, especially when the criterion is performance on a work sample rather
than ratings
