An independent pilot study suggested that the Retail Employment Inventory (REI) might be predictive of subjectively and objectively measured Over the Road (OTR) truck driver performance. The present validation study consisted of three parts. First, an examination of the relationship between REI scores and 11 objective, performance criteria revealed weak and non-significant correlations. Second, a comparison of subjective ratings and REI scores failed to replicate the findings of the pilot study. And third, to confirm that the task components of the OTR job were correctly identified in the pilot study, a second job analysis was performed. Possible reasons for the failure of the REI to predict OTR performance and directions for future research are discussed.

Subjects, 432 convenience store cashiers, were divided into long-tenure and short-tenure groups. Chi-square analysis of application blank information for a weighting sample drawn from both groups revealed two items which significantly (p < .05) differentiated between the long tenure and short-tenure groups: number of previous jobs and full-time/part-time preference. Response weights were computed for these two items and used to calculate composite scores for the remaining holdout sample. A significant reduction in turnover would have occurred at the highest composite score level, if used as a hiring cut off. Results were tempered by several considerations, including a high percentage of false negatives and an insignificant linear relationship between composite scores and tenure.