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.     

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.     

Champions of innovation: A moderated mediation model of job crafting and discretionary effort

IntroductionResearch on the behavioral antecedents of employee championing behavior lacks scholarly investigation. The current study aims to fill this gap by studying behavioral interventions as the antecedents of championing behavior.ObjectiveThe current study has proposed and tested a moderated mediation model that states that perceived opportunity to craft cultivates championing behavior among employees. This relation is mediated by job crafting, whereas employee willingness to exert extra effort invigorates this relationship.MethodThe current study is based on survey-based data collected in three-time lags from employees working in the IT sector organizations.ResultsThe results supported the proposed model leading to the revelation that perceived opportunity to craft enhances championing behavior among employees through job crafting, and employee discretionary efforts moderate this indirect relationship.ConclusionThe results prove that behavioral interventions play a significant role in predicting championing behavior, whereas discretionary effort acts as a boundary condition. The results of the current study offer several theoretical and practical insights, but it also has a few limitations. This study opens several future research avenues that are discussed in the end.     

Evaluating the desirability of meals: an illustrative multiattribute decision analysis procedure to assess portfolios with interdependent items

This paper presents an exploratory study designed to address complex scaling problems in applying value/utility theory to measuring preferences over alternative combinations (or portfolios) of multiattributed items. This application considers meals served to nursing home residents as portfolios of food items and seeks to maximize meal appeal. We consider food interrelation and link single food measurements to overall meal measurements in the process of constructing meal desirability scales. We test the resulting scales to capture one expert's professional judgments and discuss issues raised in this specific application in the context of general portfolio evaluation problems. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Unemployment and Health: Selection Effects

A large number of studies have shown that the unemployed are less healthy, both physically and psychologically, than the employed. The explanation may be that unemployment has negative health effects. An alternative, or additional, explanation is that healthy persons are less likely to become unemployed or more likely to find new employment if they become unemployed. Such effects of health on employment status are generally referred to as selection effects. The present paper analyses to what extent such selection effects are present in the Norwegian labour market. Panel data with observations made in 1989 and 1993 are used. The analyses show that people with psychological problems are more likely to be laid off, and there is also some evidence that psychological or physical health problems may reduce the chances of finding a new job if one has become unemployed. It is of particular interest that these selection effects can be documented for a country like Norway, which has strong legislation supporting worker rights and a quite high degree of unionization.