A 75-item, Likert-type employee attitude survey was completed by a sample of 670 hourly and salaried employees of a Southwestern company engaged in computerized tax-form processing. The survey contained items relating to attitude dimensions roughly analogous to those subsumed under the two-factor theory of job satisfaction as defined in the relevant literature. Factor analysis, using the principle axes solution, followed by both orthogonal (varimax) and oblique (direct oblimin) rotations was performed. The oblique rotation derived 11 factors which accounted for 87.3% of the common variance. These lent statistical support to 10 of 16 a priori, hypothesized attitudinal dimensions. The six remaining hypothesized dimensions were not empirically supported.

With the EEOC requiring empirical criterion-related validity for selection procedures, predictor variables of physical characteristics, biographical data, and personality traits were related to both on-the-job performance and training performance. In the correlational analysis of the variables, a total of 455 flight attendants from a single airline were used, with half of the subjects serving as a cross-validation sample. The results showed slight relationships between biographical data and physical characteristics to training performance but no relationship between any predictor variable and job performance. The impact of race being a significant predictor of training performance was reviewed. The lack of practical information was discussed, and implications made for future research to include proper design and reliability of screening procedures before attempting criterion-related validation.

A pre- and postexperimental design with a control group was used to evaluate the effectiveness of a management development program. Subjects were 48 first line staff supervisors employed by a major manufacturing company. The training group subjects (n = 24) attended the company's 1-week training program. Subjects in the control group (n= 24) were similar with respect to plant location, job assignment, etc. A 42-item employee-opinion questionnaire was constructed to measure supervisory style and work.-group climate. The subjects' subordinates (n = 313) completed the questionnaire before and after training. Eleven items identified by content analysis as most relevant to the training content comprised the measure of training effectiveness. An analysis of covariance was performed using the pretest as the covariate. Results indicated no significant training effects.

An "in-basket" test (representative sample of work usually found in the incoming mail basket of a person in a specific desk job) was designed to be used under limitations imposed by Civil Service Statute 1269m concerning merit examinations for the position of police sergeant. This test was used in conjunction with the traditional cognitive skills. test and performance evaluations. Subjects were 20 white male police officers. Peer and supervisory evaluations and predictions of who would make the best sergeant were correlated with total scores on the three-part test. Results indicate that the in-basket test contributes a unique and viable dimension to the traditional merit examination, and aids in the selection of those considered most qualified. Use of the in-basket test under Code 1269m was subsequently approved by the Civil Service Commission.

Subjects were 32 computer programmers employed in a large computerized tax-processing company in the Southwest. Ratings of each programmer's job performance by his/her immediate supervisor and scores on the Aptitude Test for Programmer Personnel (ATPP) were obtained. Relationships between test scores and criteria were examined to identify significant (p < .05) correlations. Statistical treatment of data included zero-order Pearson product-moment correlation, multiple linear regression, and first-order semi-partial correlation analyses. Results indicated that the ATPP did not successfully predict (2 >.05) the rated performance of the programmers.

A replication of an original study of managerial assessment centers performed by Sackett and Dreher (1982) is presented. Their major finding, indicating that assessment centers lack key tenets of internal construct validity, was corroborated in this study of a hotel managers' assessment center. This hotel managers' assessment center is also found to be externally valid using criterion-related validity. The argument is posed that assessment centers, as standardized tests of complex behavioral traits, appear to be operating outside the bounds of normal test construction principles. Five key explanations for this paradox are offered to guide much needed future research in this area. Additionally, a description of commonly utilized assessment center activities is offered the reader.

Five learning measures used in a skills training program were related to three types of job performance measures for a sample of 163 oil field employees. Statistical analyses resulted in only modest correlations between learning and job performance criteria. Factor analyses of learning measures followed by multiple regression on factors yielded a significant R with only one criterion measure. It was concluded from these data that the training program was of minimal value. The discussion centered on strategies for better training, training research, job engineering, and correcting the two limitations of this study.

A job satisfaction questionnaire measuring satisfaction with various job aspects was administered to 458 male equipment operators in 30 district offices of a North Texas based petroleum services company to determine whether mean district scores on any of nine sub-scales developed through factor analysis or on the composite overall satisfaction scale were predictive of subsequent district turnover rate. Eight of the nine sub-scales were correlated with district turnover rate at the .05 level or better. Overall satisfaction was also significantly related to district turnover rate (r = .57, p < .001). It was concluded that the instrument is a valid indicator of subsequent employee turnover rate in the population studied. However, a cross-validation was suggested to determine whether the relationships can be generalized to other populations.

A biodata based personnel selection measure was created to improve the retention rate of Catalog Telemarketing Representatives at a major U.S. retail company. Five separate empirical biodata scoring methods were compared to examine their usefulness in predicting retention and reducing adverse impact. The Mean Standardized Criterion Method, the Option Criterion Correlation Method, Horizontal Percentage Method, Vertical Percentage Method, and Weighted Application Blank Method using England's (1971) Assigned Weights were employed. The study showed that when using generalizable biodata items, all methods, except the Weighted Application Blank Method, were similar in their ability to discriminate between low and high retention employees and produced similar low adverse impact effects. The Weighted Application Blank Method did not discriminate between the low and high retention employees.

Effects of selection risk on sex discrimination in hiring were investigated. Ninety-six male and female educational administration graduate students rated ficticious resumes on suitability for hiring for the female-oriented position of secondary school teacher. Sex and selection risk level were varied, with sex of rater as an assigned factor. Analysis of variance yielded significant main effects for sex (p < .01) and selection risk level (p < .05). All ratings were lower in high selection-risk situations, with males preferred over females across both levels of risk. Results suggested that ratings were based on a stereotype of female inferiority in work efficiency, overriding job sex-orientation as a decision factor.

Traditional personality research on accident behavior has produced conflicting opinions as to the traits that describe the "accident-prone" personality type. Other research has shown that psychosocial life stress, while partially determining the temporal onset of a variety of illnesses, may also be a factor contributing to increased accident liability. This study examined the role of temporary and stress-producing life changes in groups of accident-free and accident-involved industrial employees. The accident sample was found to have significantly higher stress over baseline during the period of accident involvement, but generally lower pre-accident levels than the non-accident sample. A cause-effect analysis of the data from within the accident-involved sample proved inconclusive. Several implications for future research and managerial actions to alleviate stress were also discussed.

This study examined the validity of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) as a predictor for police officer selection. The MMPI profiles of 212 police officer applicants selected to enter the training academy were compared to the standardized MMPI norms. Significant differences between the police officers and the normative population were found on all but two scales. When the average profile of officers still on the police force was compared with the average profile of terminated officers, two scales were significantly different. Significant correlations were obtained between four MMPI scales and the academy score criterion and two scales each for the commendation and supervisory rating criteria. A prediction equation was developed for academy score using multiple regression analysis.