The anatomy of free recall

The relative importance of various covert cues used in free recall is inferred on the basis of conditional probabilities of free recall given success vs failure of cued recall of the same material. Thirty-six names associated with pictures arranged in a 6 by 6 matrix were learned. A free recall test of names was followed by cued recall of names, with pictures, positions, or joint pictures and positions used as cues. Matching tests based on these cues were also administered. The tests were given at one of two stages of training, immediately or after 2 days. Pictorial and position cues are equally well encoded, but pictorial cues are less accessible and, therefore, relatively more useful in cued recall than in free recall. Position and pictorial information related to the names appears to be encoded and forgotten independently, and there is no evidence for summation of subthreshold encoding effect.     

The effects of irrelevant relations on the processing of sequential patterns

Letter series completion problems varying along location of irrelevant relations (beginning, end, none) were presented to 24 Ss. A repeated-measures analysis of solution times and errors revealed that irrelevant relations at the beginning of series produced the longest latencies and the most errors. Using a pattern induction/sequence production model of serial processing, an error analysis showed production error rate remained constant across treatments, while pattern induction errors varied with confusion location. The results indicate that the difficulty of sequential processing varies with irrelevant relations only during the pattern induction phase. The findings also support a left-right generate-and-test model of pattern induction for the task.     

Extensions of factorial solutions

A method is developed for extending any type of factor solution to new tests. The theoretical basis for this approximating scheme is thoroughly investigated, and then a simplification in the technique is introduced for practical purposes. An example is presented which illustrates the procedure of extending a factor solution to three new tests simultaneously.     

State work engagement and state affect: Similar yet distinct concepts

State work engagement (SWE), a multidimensional construct of work-related well-being, was originally conceptualized as a trait, but diary studies have revealed substantial within-person fluctuations. Given that SWE is conceptualized as a work-related affective-motivational construct, the question arises as to whether SWE can be differentiated from other affective constructs. Thus, the goal of the present study was to compare SWE and state affect with respect to their degree of within-person variability and to examine their distinct relationships with health and performance variables (i.e., sleep quality and job performance). Fifty-two employees (44% female) participated in the study, which included 3 assessments per day over the course of 2 weeks. Our results revealed that energetic arousal and tense arousal fluctuated more strongly within days than vigor and absorption. Multilevel analyses demonstrated that high sleep quality predicted higher state affect but not higher SWE. In addition, vigor exhibited an inverted U-shaped relation with performance. In sum, SWE as a time-varying construct showed some overlap with state affect but also demonstrated discriminant validity.     

Cumulative Advantage: Conductors and Insulators of Heavy‐Tailed Productivity Distributions and Productivity Stars

We use the metatheoretical principle of cumulative advantage as a framework to understand the presence of heavy‐tailed productivity distributions and productivity stars. We relied on 229 datasets including 633,876 productivity observations collected from approximately 625,000 individuals in occupations including research, entertainment, politics, sports, sales, and manufacturing, among others. We implemented a novel methodological approach developed in the field of physics to assess the precise shape of the productivity distribution rather than relying on a normal versus nonnormal artificial dichotomy. Results indicate that higher levels of multiplicity of productivity, monopolistic productivity, job autonomy, and job complexity (i.e., conductors of cumulative advantage) are associated with a higher probability of an underlying power law distribution, whereas lower productivity ceilings (i.e., insulator of cumulative advantage) are associated with a lower probability. In addition, higher levels of multiplicity of productivity, monopolistic productivity, and job autonomy were associated with a greater proportion of productivity stars (i.e., productivity distributions with heavier tails), whereas lower productivity ceilings were associated with a smaller proportion of productivity stars (i.e., productivity distributions with lighter tails). Results serve as a building block for future theory development and testing efforts aimed at understanding why, when, and how the distribution of individual productivity may follow a nonnormal curve—and to what extent. We also discuss implications for organizations and management in terms of the design and implementation of human resource systems (e.g., selection, training, compensation), as well as for individuals interested in becoming productivity stars themselves.