IN SUPPORT OF PERSONALITY ASSESSMENT IN ORGANIZATIONAL SETTINGS

Less Evaluative Measures of Personality in Job Applicant Contexts: The Effect on Socially Desirable Responding and Criterion Validity

Researchers have long sought to mitigate the detrimental effects of socially desirable responding on personality assessments in high-stakes contexts. This study investigated the effect of reducing the social desirability of personality items on response distortion and criterion validity in a job applicant context. Using a 2 × 2 repeated measures design, participants (n = 584) completed standard (International Personality Item Pool) and less evaluative (Less Evaluative Five Factor Inventory) measures of Big Five personality in a low-stakes context and then several weeks later in a simulated job applicant context. Self-report criteria with objective answers, including university grades, were also obtained. In general, the less evaluative measure showed less response distortion than the standard measure on some metrics, but not on others. Declines in criterion validity in the applicant context were smaller for the less evaluative measure. In the applicant context, however, validities were similar across the two measures. Correlations across contexts for corresponding traits (e.g., low-stakes extraversion with high-stakes extraversion) were also similar for both measures. In summary, reducing socially desirable item content might slightly reduce the substantive content required to predict criteria in low-stakes contexts, but this effect appears to be partly offset by reduced response distortion for less evaluative measures in applicant contexts.

An Integrated Cognitive-Motivational Model of Ikigai (Purpose in Life) in the Workplace

In the Japanese philosophy of life, 'ikigai' broadly refers to having a 'reason for living', or a purpose in life. From a phenomenological and empirical viewpoint, ikigai is reported to increase human well-being and even life expectancy. However, it remains difficult to translate, define and formalize with regard to contemporary psychological theories. In this respect, the aim of this paper is twofold: to capture as accurately as possible what ikigai is, and to examine whether the concept applies to a professional context. We first offer a comprehensive overview of ikigai, bridge the gap between this specific body of literature and related psychological theoretical frameworks, such as those addressing motivation, well-being, and attention. On this basis, we conceptualize an integrated cognitive-motivational model of ikigai using an IPO (Input-Process-Output) framework: we organize dispositional or situational factors supposedly supporting ikigai as inputs, fueling the core process of ikigai (mainly built from motivational and attentional mechanisms), which produce outcomes (including well-being). A feedback loop completes the model and allows the process to maintain over time. This conceptual proposal is a first step towards applying and testing the model in professional contexts, in order to renew our approach of engagement, well-being, and performance at work as well as inspire workplace evolution.

Big Five personality traits in the workplace: Investigating personality differences between employees, supervisors, managers, and entrepreneurs

Personality relates to employment status. Previous studies have mainly compared the difference between entrepreneurs and managers. It remains unknown how personalities differ in entrepreneurs, managers, supervisors, and employees. In this research, we answer the questions by analyzing data from Understanding Society: the UK Household Longitudinal Study (UKHLS) that consisted of 2,415 entrepreneurs, 3,822 managers, 2,446 supervisors, and 10,897 employees. By using a multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) and ANOVA, we found that employment status has a significant multivariate effect on personality traits (F(5, 17,159) = 172.51, p < 0.001) after taking account into demographics. Moreover, there were also significant univariate effects for Neuroticism (F(3,19502) = 16.61, P < 0.001), Openness (F(3,19502) = 3.53, P < 0.05), Agreeableness (F(3,19502) = 66.57, P < 0.001), Conscientiousness (F(3,19502) = 16.39, P < 0.001), and Extraversion (F(3,19502) = 31.61, P < 0.001) after controlling for demographics. Multiple comparisons revealed that entrepreneurs are characterized by low Neuroticism, high Openness, high Conscientiousness, and high Extraversion while managers had low Neuroticism, low Agreeableness, high Openness, high Conscientiousness, and high Extraversion. Finally, supervisors are associated with high Conscientiousness. Implications and limitations are discussed.

Explainable Personality Prediction Using Answers to Open-Ended Interview Questions

In this work, we demonstrate how textual content from answers to interview questions related to past behavior and situational judgement can be used to infer personality traits. We analyzed responses from over 58,000 job applicants who completed an online text-based interview that also included a personality questionnaire based on the HEXACO personality model to self-rate their personality. The inference model training utilizes a fine-tuned version of InterviewBERT, a pre-trained Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers (BERT) model extended with a large interview answer corpus of over 3 million answers (over 330 million words). InterviewBERT is able to better contextualize interview responses based on the interview specific knowledge learnt from the answer corpus in addition to the general language knowledge already encoded in the initial pre-trained BERT. Further, the "Attention-based" learning approaches in InterviewBERT enable the development of explainable personality inference models that can address concerns of model explainability, a frequently raised issue when using machine learning models. We obtained an average correlation of r = 0.37 (p < 0.001) across the six HEXACO dimensions between the self-rated and the language-inferred trait scores with the highest correlation of r = 0.45 for Openness and the lowest of r = 0.28 for Agreeableness. We also show that the mean differences in inferred trait scores between male and female groups are similar to that reported by others using standard self-rated item inventories. Our results show the potential of using InterviewBERT to infer personality in an explainable manner using only the textual content of interview responses, making personality assessments more accessible and removing the subjective biases involved in human interviewer judgement of candidate personality.

Heterogeneity in firms’ recruitment practices: New evidence from representative employer data

The hiring and recruitment process is one of the main challenges to the success of companies and a significant driver of total labor costs. We use representative employer data for German private-sector establishments with at least 50 employees to explore recent developments in employer search, selection, and screening activities over the years of 2012–2018. We document changes in hiring policies over time and address heterogeneity across establishments related to size, ownership, and industry sector. Our results show that although establishment characteristics are correlated with different facets of hiring behavior, there is no homogeneous pattern for employer search and selection instruments. We highlight differences of hiring practices targeted at managerial versus non-managerial new hires. Finally, we outline potential mechanisms and research gaps for future work and discuss managerial implications.

JEL Codes: J21, J63, M51

Revisiting the influence of cultural novelty and emotional stability on general adjustment of expatriates hosted in emerging economies

Purpose

The relationship between cultural novelty and cross-cultural adjustment of expatriates is often assumed to be negative and linear, while the empirical results for the relationship has been demonstrated by researchers as either negative, positive or absent.

Design/methodology/approach

The current research challenges the negative and linear assumption conceptually and empirically and tests a curvilinear relation between cultural novelty and general adjustment. The authors specifically propose and test a theoretical model whereby emotional stability moderates the curvilinear cultural novelty–general adjustment relationship such that the negative effect of cultural novelty on general adjustment is mitigated by emotional stability. Survey data are collected from expatriates recruited from two different host countries, India (N = 151) and China (N = 157).

Findings

The findings provide support for the curvilinear relationship between cultural novelty and general adjustment and the moderating effect of expatriates' emotional stability on this relationship.

Originality/value

This present study makes unique contributions to the expatriate management literature in at least two major ways: first, this study consolidates the otherwise contradictory findings and furthers the understanding on the nature of the effect of cultural novelty on expatriate adjustment. In addition, this research tests a cultural novelty–expatriate adjustment model using expatriate samples drawn from China and India, the two largest emerging markets that capture the demographic-profile changes pertaining to the newly emerging expatriation trends.

The Trait of Extraversion as an Energy-Based Determinant of Entrepreneur’s Success—The Case of Poland

The fact that personality traits play an important role when it comes to predicting people’s entrepreneurial behavior is currently indisputable. However, so far, the majority of subject literature has focused on employee characteristics in developed countries. To address this gap, research was conducted, including 188 entrepreneurs of small and medium enterprises (SME) and 21 highest-level employees in Poland—one of the countries with the most hostile and turbulent environment for entrepreneurial operations in the world. The five personality traits (Big Five) were evaluated using the 60-item scale. There were three objectives of this study: to identify the differences between entrepreneurs and the most effective, highest-level employees, in the context of personality trait intensities, to determine the level of specific trait(s) intensities (OCEAN) of an effective entrepreneur. Finally, to determine whether it is possible to construct a model based on BIG5 to estimate the probability of success as an entrepreneur. The research results imply there are significant differences between successful entrepreneurs and highly effective employees and their personality trait intensities, described in the BIG5 model. Moreover, it is possible to distinguish trait intensity ranges, determining the success as an entrepreneur. Finally, we constructed the empirically based model, which allows us to estimate the chances of an individual succeeding as an entrepreneur with only a 5% error rate. The main factor and common denominator of entrepreneurial effectiveness is the trait of extraversion. The findings of our study are particularly important for the renewable energy sector in Poland, as the last part of green energy implementing blockchain (e.g., the installation and maintenance of wind turbines and solar panels) is being undertaken, in vast majority, by independent contractors and SME owners (entrepreneurs).

The validity of five broad generic dimensions of performance in South Africa

Orientation: Disconnected scholarly work on the theoretical and empirical structure of individual work performance negatively impacts predictive studies in human resource management. Greater standardisation in the conceptualisation and measurement of performance is required to enhance the scientific rigour with which research is conducted in human resource management in South Africa.Research purpose: The present study aimed to conceptualise and empirically validate the structural validity of five broad generic dimensions of individual work performance, based on 20 narrow dimensions of performance.Motivation for the study: A generic model and standardised measurement of individual work performance, measuring performance at the appropriate level of breadth and depth, may help human resource professionals to make accurate decisions about important work-based criteria and their related predictors. A validated generic model of performance could further increase the replicability of science around performance measurement in South Africa.Research approach/design and method: A cross-sectional design was implemented by asking 448 managers across several organisations to rate the performance of their subordinates on the Individual Work Performance Review (IWPR). The quantitative data were analysed by means of hierarchical confirmatory factor analyses.Main findings: An inspection of the discriminant validity of the 20 narrow performance dimensions supported the multidimensionality of performance to a fair degree. The bifactor statistical indices, in turn, suggested that the five broad factors explained a significant amount of common variance amongst the manifest variables and could therefore be interpreted as more unidimensional.Practical/managerial implications: Practitioners can interpret the broader performance dimensions in the IWPR as total scores, especially when high-stakes decisions are made about promoting or rewarding employees. The interpretation of the narrow performance dimensions might be more useful in low-stakes development situations. Cross-scale interpretations are encouraged to enable a holistic understanding of employees’ performance, as the narrow performance dimensions covary.

Validitätsbefunde zum Bochumer Inventar zur berufsbezogenen Persönlichkeitsbeschreibung (BIP)

Zusammenfassung. Das Bochumer Inventar zur berufsbezogenen Persönlichkeitsbeschreibung (BIP) erfasst berufsbezogene Persönlichkeitsmerkmale und kann in linearen Regressionen verschiedene Maße subjektiven und objektiven Berufserfolgs aufklären. Um zusätzliche Nachweise für die Kriteriumsvalidität zu erbringen, werden in der vorliegenden Arbeit Cluster- und Klassifikationsverfahren verwendet. Mithilfe von k-Means-Clusteranalysen können typische Persönlichkeitsstrukturen identifiziert werden: Personen, die sich durch Flexibilität und Gestaltungsmotivation auszeichnen, weisen einen bedeutsamen Zusammenhang zu höheren beruflichen Entgelten auf, während solche, die durch emotionale Instabilität und geringe Durchsetzungsstärke geprägt sind, häufig ein niedriges Entgelt erzielen. Klassische und neuere Klassifikationsverfahren (logistische Regressionen bzw. Random Forests) besitzen substantielle Trefferquoten in der Identifikation von Mitarbeitenden als Fach- oder Führungskraft. Die Ergebnisse sind als mittlere bis große Effekte einzustufen und liefern damit einen Nachweis über die Relevanz der Persönlichkeit für beruflichen Erfolg.

Qualitative Assessment of Collaborative Behavior Based on Self-Perception Personality Tests for BIM Staff

Collaboration, such as communication and coordination, using BIM is the key to a successful BIM-based construction project. In spite of existing studies on BIM competency and the optimal arrangement of BIM staff, there have not been many studies on the tendencies of BIM staff in the humanities aspect. The purpose of this study is to qualitatively evaluate the collaborative behavior of BIM staff through a cognitive survey targeting BIM staff. For this, 13 tasks essential for collaboration were defined. The frequency of tasks performed by the BIM staff differed according to the role they are in charge of, and the frequency of tasks considered important to support the collaboration of project participants also appeared to be different. In addition, the personal behavior of the BIM staff, which is the core outcome of this study, was investigated by dividing it into two types: the importance level of personality traits and the required level of personality traits. A survey on the perception of BIM staff was conducted through three categories (leadership, communication, job performance) and a total of 17 personality traits. The research findings, visualized through a correspondence analysis, strongly suggest that it is necessary to consider the personality traits of the BIM staff to improve collaboration performance.

Agreeableness and Its Consequences: A Quantitative Review of Meta-Analytic Findings

Agreeableness impacts people and real-world outcomes. In the most comprehensive quantitative review to date, we summarize results from 142 meta-analyses reporting effects for 275 variables, which represent N > 1.9 million participants from k > 3,900 studies. Arranging variables by their content and type, we use an organizational framework of 16 conceptual categories that presents a detailed account of Agreeableness’ external relations. Overall, the trait has effects in a desirable direction for 93% of variables (grand mean [Formula: see text]). We also review lower order trait evidence for 42 variables from 20 meta-analyses. Using these empirical findings, in tandem with existing theory, we synthesize eight general themes that describe Agreeableness’ characteristic functioning across variables: self-transcendence, contentment, relational investment, teamworking, work investment, lower results emphasis, social norm orientation, and social integration. We conclude by discussing potential boundary conditions of findings, contributions and limitations of our review, and future research directions.

Assessment of Personality in Basque Public Sector Employees and Its Role in Predicting Organizational Citizenship Behaviors in Selection Processes

Organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs) are an important aspect of job performance as they enhance the effectiveness of organizations. Research has shown that personality is a moderate predictor of job performance. This study, involving a sample of 678 public sector employees in the Basque Country (northern Spain), pursued two aims: First, to develop and validate a Basque-language version of the Overall Personality Assessment Scale (OPERAS), a scale designed to assess the Big Five personality factors in a wide range of settings; and second, to examine whether person-organization fit (PO fit) and adaptive performance improve the capacity of personality to predict OCBs. The results indicated that the adapted scale was a suitable instrument for assessing personality in the Basque-speaking population. Furthermore, PO fit and adaptive performance improved the capacity of personality to predict OCBs. Based on these results, we propose a new predictive model that may enhance the efficiency of personnel selection processes.

Core self-evaluations and project managers' competencies: the moderating role of cultural intelligence

Purpose

The study investigates the effects of core self-evaluations on project managers' competencies. The study further examines the moderating effect of cultural intelligence between core self-evaluations and competencies.

Design/methodology/approach

In this study, with a descriptive-survey approach, necessary data were collected from a sample of project managers of Iran's Ministry of Communication and Information Technology through questionnaires. The conceptual framework of the study was tested according to structural equation modeling by PLS software.

Findings

Findings show that core self-evaluations have positive and significant effects on project managers' competencies among which psychological stability has the greatest effect. Furthermore, the moderating role of cultural intelligence in the relationship between core self-evaluations and project managers' competencies was confirmed. According to the calculated coefficient, motivational cultural intelligence had the greatest role.

Research limitations/implications

The data were collected using a questionnaire at a single point in time, and thus, not allowing cause–effect inferences. Also, the demographic variables were not controlled.

Practical implications

The results of this study provide some implications for HRM professionals and project managers interested in promoting a system of HR practices that contributes to enhancing project managers' competencies and effectiveness.

Originality/value

This study advances our understanding of the factors that have an effect on project managers' competencies, specifically on a list of main competencies necessary for project managers' performance. Moreover, it suggests that project managers' competencies will benefit from cultural intelligence, which will display a greater effect when embedded in highly diverse cultural contexts.

The Use of Personality Assessment in Mentoring and to Aid in Self-reflection in Orthopaedic Surgery Residency Programs

Personality plays an important role in performance in medical education and mentorship. Personality assessment can aid in the ability to identify strengths and areas for development by understanding how one's personality influences their learning and interpersonal relationships. We sought to evaluate personality assessment as an effective tool in mentoring during orthopaedic residency in this prospective, cross-sectional study from two orthopaedic surgery residency programs using the Hogan Personality Inventory (HPI). Participants completed a survey regarding their experience with the assessment. Descriptive statistics were calculated, and two-sample t-tests were used to examine differences between groups. In total, thirty-four individuals completed the survey. Our results showed 82.4% reported that the HPI very accurately represented them and 58.8% reported better understanding potentially perceived strengths and weaknesses. In total, 75.7% and 72.7% were satisfied with their mentorship about development as a clinician and researcher, respectively. Significant differences were seen between participants who did and did not re-review their results, and participants who did and did-not believe their results profile was accurate. We conclude that personality assessments can be valuable in promoting introspection and strengthening relationships within orthopaedic surgery, particularly when they are valued and emphasized by the user. Our results suggest that use of the HPI provided participants with a better understanding of their perceived strengths and weaknesses as they progress through their orthopaedic residency training.

Predictive Value of Credit Score on Surgery Resident and Fellow Academic and Professional Performance

Introduction

Surgical specialties consistently remain among the most competitive residency and fellowship programs with some of the highest rates of unmatched applicants. Attrition in surgical specialties is as high as 30% and particularly problematic given the extended duration of training and limited number of positions. Applicants are traditionally evaluated using a streamlined set of objective metrics, such as board scores, class rank, leadership, letters of recommendation, research productivity, and volunteerism. Consumer credit scores have been shown to be predictors of personality and work performance, however, the literature has yet to explore consumer credit histories in the context of surgical resident and fellow performance. This study aims to determine whether consumer credit scores of surgery residents and fellows are predictive of academic and professional performance.

Methods

This is a multi-institutional observational survey study across all American Council of Graduate Medical Education and Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons accredited surgical residency and fellowship programs in the United States and Canada. Ninety-nine surgical residents and fellows with educational status of post-graduate year two or higher participated in this study. Dichotomous (yes or no) survey items were formulated to assess performance indicators in the domains of notable achievements and awards, research output, written examination performance, professionalism, and surgical/technical skills. Three-digit Fair Isaac Corporation (FICO) credit scores, a widely accepted consumer reporting score, were collected to avoid calculation variability between algorithms. 

Results

Surgical residents and fellows reported credit scores between 611( fair) and 853 (exceptional) with a median (interquartile range) of 774 (715-833). The majority of participants 51.5%(51) reported very good credit scores. Those with higher credit scores (very good/exceptional) were 377% more likely to have one or more positive performance indicators OR (95% CI) = 3.77 (1.43-9.97). Similarly, residents with lower credit scores (fair/good) were only 40% more likely to have one or more negative performance indicators. The credit score has a moderate ability to distinguish between the presence and absence of positive performance indicators (area under the curve {AUC} = 0.70, p = 0.001). The use of 753 as a credit score cutoff is 78.9% sensitive and 52.4% specific for discerning surgery residents and fellows with one or more positive performance indicators. The credit score did not significantly discern those with negative performance indicators.

Conclusions

While credit score was significantly functional in discerning those with and without positive performance indicators, sensitivity and specificity rates leave much to be desired. Although our data may have indicated that higher credit scores may be associated with increased residency academic performance on examinations and research productivity we are not recommending any implementation of using credit scores as a metric for selecting individual surgical candidates for a position in residency or fellowship due to extensive socioeconomic variables and historical context of credit scores, which must be taken into consideration. Additional studies are needed to assess this utility on a larger scale.

Personality, learning styles and handedness: The use of the non-dominant hand in pre-clinical operative dentistry training

AIM

This research was undertaken with the aim of using personality traits, learning styles and handedness to develop and evaluate a scale to measure a new concept in operative dentistry, symmetrisation. An initial hypothesis was proposed, stating that handedness, personality trait and learning style could be used to predict symmetrisation potential in the domain of operative dentistry.

METHODS

Participants completed three questionnaires: the Edinburgh handedness inventory assessment; the Keirsey Temperament Sorter-II (KTS-II); and the learning style assessment (VARK). Then, participants prepared a cavity on an artificial third molar tooth in the traditional phantom head using their non-dominant hand. For evaluation and comparison purposes, Standard Tessellation Language images were obtained from prepared teeth using a CAD/CAM scanner and then aligned against a reference "unprepared" tooth image using a custom software developed by the authors based on the Iterative Closest Point algorithm.

RESULTS

Extroverts, intuitive and participants characterised as relying on their feelings were more accurate compared to introverts, sensory and toughminded participants, respectively. Extroverts were faster to complete the task compared to introverts. Participants with a preference for read/writing learning style produced more errors than any of the other groups. Handedness, however, did not show any significant association with performance.

CONCLUSIONS

It was concluded that both the KTS-II and the learning style assessment (VARK) questionnaires possess potential as useful measures of symmetrisation potential and the ability to use the non-dominant hand in operative dentistry, as well as platform for continuing research.

The psychometric properties and norm data of the Norwegian military personality inventory (NMPI)

The five-factor structure is a well-established model for personality. The five traits covary with job-performance and work-relevant outcomes. The practical administration of existing big-five measurement scales is, however, somewhat limited, in a Norwegian setting, as existing scales are impractically large or have unknown psychometric properties. Because of this, a new brief Norwegian personality assessment tool has been developed by the Norwegian Armed Forces. This study aims to uncover the psychometric properties of the 50-item Norwegian military personality inventory (NMPI-50) and establish norm data for practical use. The inventory was administered to the 2002 cohort of Norwegian 17-year olds (N = 54,355), and analyzed with factor analysis, graded response models and tests of gender invariance. The five scales of the NMPI-50 showed satisfactory internal consistency, yielded high information across a broad range of the five traits, and conformed to a bi-factor structure with one general factor and five specific factors. The general factor was positively associated with motivation for military service, indicating some measurement bias. The openness scale is less clearly psychometrically defined, compared to the other scales, and both extroversion and openness show some evidence of multidimensionality. The scales also showed scalar invariance between genders except for the openness scale. Overall, the results support the use of NMPI-50 in personnel assessment and research.

A person-situation perspective of informal learning: the role of supervisor feedback environment

Purpose

Based on trait activation theory, the purpose of the present study is to explore the relationship between the antecedents and outcomes of informal learning with the moderating effect of supervisor feedback environment (SFE) in small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Design/methodology/approach

Data (n = 388) were gathered from middle managers of Pakistan’s SME sector by following the purposive sampling technique. The proposed model was examined by means of structural equation modeling analysis with AMOS 24.

Findings

The study results delineate that middle managers with high-level self-efficacy and motivation to learn more actively participate in informal learning activities. The study also found that the SFE is a strong contextual moderator between the nexus of personal factors and informal learning. In addition, informal learning also has significant and positive effect on work engagement.

Practical implications

Human resource practitioners and organizational leaders of small businesses can use informal learning to improve employees’ skills and knowledge with less cost. For instance, management should use different strategies to enhance the effectiveness of informal learning by providing SFE.

Originality/value

There are numerous recent calls for research to ascertain the interaction of individual, contextual factors and outcomes of informal learning. The study addresses these voids by empirically examining antecedents and outcomes of informal learning simultaneously through the person–situation interaction perspective. It demonstrates that informal learning at the workplace becomes more effective in SFE.

A scoping review of admission criteria and selection methods in nursing education

BACKGROUND

Nursing education institutions are required to select and train applicants who have appropriate characteristics for delivering effective healthcare. Unlike other healthcare professions and despite the need to attract and select a competent workforce, there has been no comprehensive analysis of the selection criteria and methods used to recruit nursing students. As there is relatively limited prior research available, we conducted a scoping review to explore and synthesise the existing evidence regarding admission criteria and selection methods of nursing students and for the purpose of identifying an agenda for future research in this field.

METHODS

Our scoping review follows the Arksey and O'Malley five-step proposition including identifying the research question and relevant studies, study selection, tabulation of data, and summarizing and reporting the results. Seven databases (PubMed, CINAHL, Scopus, ERIC, SID, Irandoc and PsycINFO) were searched systematically using relevant keywords. Articles on admission of undergraduate nursing students published in both English and/or Persian from 2006 to 2019 were retrieved.

RESULTS

Existing research evidence suggests that nursing students are largely selected on the basis of two criteria - "cognitive-academic abilities" and "non-cognitive abilities." Cognitive-academic abilities were assessed in four main dimensions of mathematics, language, natural sciences and reasoning skills mainly through standardized tests and academic records. Our review shows a wide range of non-cognitive characteristics are evaluated in nursing applicants including: morality, interpersonal communication skills and psychological strength. The selection method most commonly used to assess characteristics was through interviews (panel interviews or multiple mini interviews). Other methods included references, personal statements and personality assessment tools.

CONCLUSIONS

This is the first scoping review of literature regarding nursing education selection and recruitment. Results can be used to inform nursing education policymakers and institutions in the design of their selection practices. Future research should concentrate on the evaluation and improvement methods of student selection including content and predictive validity analysis of multiple mini interview and standardized tests, development of cost-effective selection methods and job analysis studies to identify specific non-cognitive characteristics for nursing.

Assessing personality at risk in personnel selection and development

This paper demonstrates the validity and usefulness of a count technique to screen for potential personality dysfunctioning in NEO‐PI‐R ratings obtained in selection and professional development assessments. The usefulness of this screening technique for Industrial, Work and Organizational (IWO) psychologists is demonstrated in five different samples that were administered the NEO‐PI‐R for selection or development purposes. Three additional samples served as normative data to compute FFM PD count cut‐offs that can be used for selection and career development decisions. Evidence for the construct validity of 6 out of 10 FFM PD counts was provided, and all FFM PD compound scales were significantly related to important criteria, including the final selection decision, the results of a behaviourally oriented selection interview and self‐rated work competencies. The practical utility and limitations of this count technique for personnel selection and development are discussed. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

How Impactful Is Presentation in Email? The Effect of Avatars and Signatures

A primary well-controlled study of 900 participants found that personal presentation choices in professional emails (non-content changes like Profile Avatar 8 Signature) impact the recipient’s perception of the sender’s personality and the quality of the email itself. By understanding the role these choices play, employees can gain better control over how they influence the recipient of their messages. Results further indicate that although some variations can positively impact the recipient’s view of the sender, these same variations often also have negative side effects. This implies that many seemingly innocuous presentation decisions should be made in the context of who is receiving the email, and if these effects negatively impact the content of the message. For example, although statements in a Signature about the email having been written on a phone are included to preemptively apologize for typing mistakes, this causes the sender to appear less agreeable, less conscientious, and less open, and the email itself appears less well written and more poorly formatted. This is surprising given that the email itself was not changed in the study.

Who will go the extra mile? Selecting organizational citizens with a personality-based structured job interview

Employees' organizational citizenship behaviors (OCB) are important drivers of organizational effectiveness. Yet, there exist no established tools for selecting employees with a propensity to engage in OCB. Given that personality traits describe typical behavioral tendencies and are established OCB predictors, we propose that personality assessment is a useful approach for selecting employees who are likely to exhibit OCB. To test this proposition, we developed a structured job interview measuring the Big Five traits and then compared this interview to a personality self-report measure to determine which method of personality assessment works best for selecting organizational citizens. Employees (N = 223) from various occupations participated in the structured job interview and completed the personality self-report in a simulated selection setting. We then obtained supervisor ratings of employees' OCB. Results supported the assumption that structured job interviews can be specifically designed to assess the Big Five personality traits and, most importantly, to predict OCB. Interview ratings of specific personality traits differentially predicted different types of OCB (i.e., OCB-compliance, OCB-helping, and OCB-initiative) and explained incremental variance in OCB over and above personality self-reports and verbal cognitive ability. Taken together, these findings expand our knowledge about dispositional predictors of OCBs, personality assessment in selection, and the design of job interviews.

Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain: The overlooked issue of rater selection in psychotherapy observer ratings

Objective: Psychotherapy process research relies heavily upon trained raters to identify and code therapist and client behaviors. Raters are often selected out of convenience or availability with little research to inform what qualities are desirable for this role. In this study, we evaluated several rater characteristics as potential predictors of raters' performance. Method: We provided training to 39 undergraduate students to serve as raters in a psychotherapy process study. We assessed baseline characteristics, personality characteristics, executive functioning, and interviewers' assessment of students' rating potential as predictors of rater agreement with gold standard ratings (i.e., consensus judgements from a panel of CBT-trained clinicians). We also assessed these variables as predictors of the risk of raters dropping out prior to completing assigned ratings. Results: Higher conscientiousness, higher neuroticism, and a lower year in college predicted greater agreement with the gold standard ratings. Lower year in college also predicted lower risk of dropout. Conclusion: These findings provide empirical support for key characteristics as predictors of rater performance. Such evidence raises the possibility of using these characteristics to select raters and thereby enhance the psychometric properties of psychotherapy ratings.

Why is it so hard to consider personal qualities when selecting medical students?

Having 'good' doctors is important to everybody. How to select medical students better has been discussed repeatedly for more than seventy years, implying that prevailing methods could be improved. A significant body of research exists about selection methods and their application in medicine. Yet most medical schools world-wide continue to use prior academic performance and cognitive ability as their major criteria for selection, with minor or no consideration of personal qualities and interpersonal skills (possibly assuming they will develop naturally during training and practice). We describe the main methods available for assessing personal qualities of applicants to medical school and have attempted to identify some reasons and systemic disincentives working against their adoption.

Adapting Learning Activity Selection to Emotional Stability and Competence

This paper investigates how humans adapt next learning activity selection (in particular the knowledge it assumes and the knowledge it teaches) to learner personality and competence to inspire an adaptive learning activity selection algorithm. First, the paper describes the investigation to produce validated materials for the main study, namely the creation and validation of learner competence statements. Next, through an empirical study, we investigate the impact on learning activity selection of learners' emotional stability and competence. Participants considered a fictional learner with a certain competence, emotional stability, recent and prior learning activities engaged in, and selected the next learning activity in terms of the knowledge it used and the knowledge it taught. Three algorithms were created to adapt the selection of learning activities' knowledge complexity to learners' personality and competence. Finally, we evaluated the algorithms through a study with teachers, resulting in an algorithm that selects learning activities with varying assumed and taught knowledge adapted to learner characteristics.

“Sweet Little Lies”

Abstract. Two laboratory studies examined the potential differences in the susceptibility to faking between a construct-oriented Situational Judgment Test (SJT) that measured conscientiousness and a traditional self-report measure of personality (NEO-FFI). In both studies, the mean differences between the honest and faked conscientiousness scores indicated that the NEO-FFI was more susceptible to faking than the SJT. In Study 1, we applied a within-subjects design ( N = 137) and analyzed these differences in light of selected predictor variables derived from models of faking behavior. As a result, faking on the SJT was explained by cognitive ability alone, whereas faking on the NEO-FFI was also dependent on other personality traits that are associated with the ability to fake. In Study 2 ( N = 602), the susceptibility to faking was predicted by differences in faking styles. The results of the mixed Rasch model analyses indicated profound differences in the measures in terms of the way the response scale was used.

Use of a Novel Measure of Nontechnical Skills in Surgical Trainees: Is There an Association With Technical Skills Performance?

OBJECTIVE

To investigate whether scores on a psychological measure of concentration and interpersonal characteristics, The Attentional and Interpersonal Style Inventory (TAIS), are associated with performance of surgical skills.

DESIGN

Postgraduate surgical trainees completed an operative surgical skills assessment in the simulation laboratory and the psychological measure (TAIS). The surgical skills assessment consisted of 6 tasks (3 per trainee): laceration suturing; lipoma excision; incision and closure of a laparotomy wound; bowel anastomosis; saphenofemoral junction ligation and basic laparoscopic skills. The association between operative surgical skill performance and TAIS factors was investigated.

SETTING

The TAIS assessments and surgical skills assessments were conducted at the National Surgical Training Centre at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI).

PARTICIPANTS

One hundred and two surgical trainees in years one and two (PGY 2-3 equivalent) participated in the study.

RESULTS

Performance on 2 of the 6 tasks assessed (bowel anastomosis and lipoma excision) were positively associated with multiple TAIS factors (energy, confidence, competitiveness, extroversion, self-criticism and performing under pressure). Another factor, focus over time, was significantly associated with scores on the lipoma excision task.

CONCLUSIONS

Trainees with high levels of energy, confidence, competitiveness, extroversion, and focus over time and low levels of self-criticism demonstrated better performance on specific technical skills tasks.

Core Self-Evaluations, Perceived Job Characteristics and Job Satisfaction: Evidence from Two Independent Samples of Highly Skilled Argentinian Workers

This study examined the mediating role of perceived job characteristics in the relationship between core self-evaluations (CSEs) and job satisfaction. Data were collected from two independent samples of highly skilled workers in Argentina (190 scholars and 116 managers). The results from the structural equation modeling analysis revealed that perceived job characteristics partly mediated the relationship between CSEs and job satisfaction in both samples (32% in sample 1 and 65% in sample 2), suggesting that those individuals with higher CSEs tended to perceive their jobs as more resourceful (i.e., more rewarding, secure, and supportive), which increased their levels of job satisfaction. ese findings were consistent with those reported in North-American and European organizational settings, which provided further support to the universality and cross-cultural generalizability of the CSE construct.