An Evaluation of the Validity and Fairness of the Graduate Management Admissions Test (GMAT) Used for MBA Selection in a UK Business School

The Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) has been shown to be a valid predictor of Masters of Business Administration (MBA) performance in the USA, but no UK validity studies have been published. This study uses a large sample of UK MBA students to examine the validity and fairness of GMAT. It is found that GMAT-Verbal is a good predictor of MBA examination performance but GMAT-Quantitative is not. It is also found that both components are unfair to native English speakers. The reasons for these findings are to be found in the nature of the criterion employed. Some observations are made regarding the consequences for best practice of the competitive and political context of MBA selection.     

SOCIAL VALIDATION: THE EVOLUTION OF STANDARDS OF COMPETENCY FOR TARGET BEHAVIORS

The use of social validation procedures has become widespread in recent years. Although most researchers have used social validation procedures to select target behaviors and to evaluate whether the changes produced by a treatment program should be considered socially useful, little attention has been focused upon using the social validation process to determine the optimal levels for target behaviors. This paper suggests several ways in which social validation procedures can be employed in order to select when and how much to change target behaviors.     

TEACHING RETARDED WOMEN A CLOTHING SELECTION SKILL USING COMMUNITY NORMS

Five institutionalized retarded women were taught a clothing selection skill to coincide with popular fashion. Normative data concerning popular styles of color-coordinated clothing were collected through observations of women's apparel in a local community. Using a puzzle simulation of a woman with alternative pieces of colored clothing, color coordination training was conducted using modelling, instructions, practice, praise, and feedback to teach popular selections of color combinations. A generalization training component with actual clothing was also included. Training was accompanied by large increases in percentage of popular color selections with the puzzle and actual clothing. The increases maintained over a seven- to 14-week followup period. Time efficiency measures supported the use of the simulation procedure as opposed to total reliance on actual clothing. The results underscore the utility of local norms in community preparation programs and the efficacy of instructional procedures for severely and profoundly retarded persons as part of their participation in the deinstitutionalization movement.     

A lower bound to the probability of choosing the optimal passing score for a mastery test when there is an external criterion

Recently there has been interest in the problem of determining an optimal passing score for a mastery test when the purpose of the test is to predict success or failure on an external criterion. For the case of constant losses for the two error types, a method of determining an optimal passing score is readily derived using standard techniques. The purpose of this note is to describe a lower bound to the probability of identifying an optimal passing score based on a random sample ofN examinees.The work upon which this publication is based was performed pursuant to a grant [contract] with the National Institute of Education, Department of Health, Education and Welfare. Points of view or opinions stated do not necessarily represent official NIE position or policy.     

CREATING NEW REALITIES: PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT AND DISSEMINATION

Program development and dissemination in human services present challenges and opportunities for social scientists. Over the past 27 years the Teaching-Family Model of group home treatment has moved from prototype development to widespread dissemination across North America. Reviewing concepts in industry related to product development and dissemination, the application of these concepts to a human services delivery system, and program replication and dissemination data offer information about how innovative human services can be widely adapted and adopted.     

Fisher transformations for correlations corrected for selection and missing data

The validity of a test is often estimated in a nonrandom sample of selected individuals. To accurately estimate the relation between the predictor and the criterion we correct this correlation for range restriction. Unfortunately, this corrected correlation cannot be transformed using Fisher'sZ transformation, and asymptotic tests of hypotheses based on small or moderate samples are not accurate. We developed a Fisherr toZ transformation for the corrected correlation for each of two conditions: (a) the criterion data were missing due to selection on the predictor (the missing data were MAR); and (b) the criterion was missing at random, not due to selection (the missing data were MCAR). The twoZ transformations were evaluated in a computer simulation. The transformations were accurate, and tests of hypotheses and confidence intervals based on the transformations were superior to those that were not based on the transformations.     

Measurement invariance,factor analysis and factorial invariance

Several concepts are introduced and defined: measurement invariance, structural bias, weak measurement invariance, strong factorial invariance, and strict factorial invariance. It is shown that factorial invariance has implications for (weak) measurement invariance. Definitions of fairness in employment/admissions testing and salary equity are provided and it is argued that strict factorial invariance is required for fairness/equity to exist. Implications for item and test bias are developed and it is argued that item or test bias probably depends on the existence of latent variables that are irrelevant to the primary goal of test constructers.Presidential address delivered at the Annual Meeting of the Psychometric Society in Berkeley, California, June 18–20, 1993.     

The impact of using forced decision-making strategies on post-decisional confidence

The impact of motivational and cognitive factors on post-decisional confidence (PDC) level was tested in two experiments. In the first experiment, subjects were first identified as having an intuitive preference toward using either a compensatory or a noncompensatory decision strategy and later on were forced to use either a compatible or a non-compatible strategy. PDC level decreased after using a noncompensatory strategy, and the decrease was higher when it was a noncompatible strategy. In a second experiment, subjects received feedback about their preferred strategy but were not later forced to use any specific strategy. Most subjects continued to utilize their preferred strategy and PDC level was not changed. Overall, intuitive PDC was not found to be sensitive to differences between compensatory and noncompensatory strategies. The result suggested that PDC is a function of an internal cost-benefit analysis which includes both cognitive and motivational factors.     

Selecting entrepreneurial employees using a person-group fit perspective

As jobs become unstructured and collective endeavor oriented, it is increasingly being realized that work groups must become more autonomous and entrepreneurial. The selection literature is however silent on the predictive mechanisms that may be leveraged to select group members with the desired competencies. The person-group fit perspective enables us to hypothesize and demonstrate that selection instruments geared toward gauging an individual's fit within a group are likely to manifest entrepreneurial competencies and behaviors in the individual. Further, the nature of the job, in terms of the structuredness of work (task formalization) and the repetitiveness of work activities (task routinization), has a moderating impact on the relationship between overall entrepreneurial competence and selection practices. The study has implications for incorporating the principles of person-group fit into the design of job profiles.     

: Applicants' experiences with discrimination explain their reactions to algorithms in personnel selection

Algorithms might prevent prejudices and increase objectivity in personnel selection decisions, but they have also been accused of being biased. We question whether algorithm-based decision-making or providing justifying information about the decision-maker (here: to prevent biases and prejudices and to make more objective decisions) helps organizations to attract a diverse workforce. In two experimental studies in which participants go through a digital interview, we find support for the overall negative effects of algorithms on fairness perceptions and organizational attractiveness. However, applicants with discrimination experiences tend to view algorithm-based decisions more positively than applicants without such experiences. We do not find evidence that providing justifying information affects applicants—regardless of whether they have experienced discrimination or not.