A Review of Scale Development Practices in the Study of Organizations

A justice model of applicants' reactions to employment-selection systems is proposed as a basis for organizing previous findings and guiding future research. Organizational justice literature is briefly reviewed, and key findings are used to provide a framework for the proposed model and to support hypotheses. The procedural justice of selection systems is examined in terms of 10 procedural rules, wherein the satisfaction and violation of these rules provide the basis for fairness reactions. Distributive justice of hiring decisions is examined with respect to equity, equality, and needs. The model also includes the interaction of procedural and distributive justice and the relationship of fairness reactions to individual and organizational outcomes.

https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdfplus/258595.pdf

The Perceived Fairness of Selection Systems: An Organizational Justice Perspective

In every cross-cultural study, the question as to whether test scores obtained in different cultural populations can be interpreted in the same way across these populations has to be dealt with. Bias and equivalence have become the common terms to refer to the issue. Taxonomy of both bias and equivalence is presented. Bias can be engendered by the theoretical construct (construct bias), the method such as the form of test administration (method bias), and the item content (item bias). Equivalence refers to the measurement level at which scores can be compared across cultures. Three levels of equivalence are possible: the same construct is measured in each cultural group but the functional form of the relationship between scores obtained in various groups is unknown (structural equivalence), scores have the same measurement unit across populations but have different origins (measurement unit equivalence), and scores have the same measurement unit and origin in all populations (full scale equivalence). The most frequently encountered sources of bias and their remedies are described.

/pdf/bias-and-equivalence-in-cross-cultural-assessment-an-daaiohv0os.pdf

Bias and equivalence in cross-cultural assessment: an overview

An updated theoretical model of applicant reactions to selection procedures is proposed and tested using meta-analysis. Results from 86 independent samples (N= 48,750) indicated that applicants who hold positive perceptions about selection are more likely to view the organization favorably and report stronger intentions to accept job offers and recommend the employer to others. Applicant perceptions were positively correlated with actual and perceived performance on selection tools and with self-perceptions. The average correlation between applicant perceptions and gender, age, and ethnic background was near zero. Face validity and perceived predictive validity were strong predictors of many applicant perceptions including procedural justice, distributive justice, attitudes towards tests, and attitudes towards selection. Interviews and work samples were perceived more favorably than cognitive ability tests, which were perceived more favorably than personality inventories, honesty tests, biodata, and graphology. The discussion identifies remaining theoretical and methodological issues as well as directions for future research.

/pdf/applicant-reactions-to-selection-procedures-an-updated-model-1op3l3dprz.pdf

Applicant Reactions to Selection Procedures: An Updated Model and Meta-Analysis

We note that applicant reactions to selection procedures may be of practical importance to employers because of influences on organizations’attractiveness to candidates, ethical and legal issues, and possible effects on selection procedure validity and utility. In Study 1, after reviewing sample items or brief descriptions of 14 selection tools, newly hired entry-level managers (n= 110) and recruiting/employment managers (n= 44) judged simulations, interviews, and cognitive tests with relatively concrete item-types (e.g., vocabulary, standard written English, mathematical word problems) to be significantly more job related than personality, biodata, and cognitive tests with relatively abstract item-types (e.g., quantitative comparisons, letter sets). A measure of new managers’cognitive abilities was positively correlated with their perceptions of the job relatedness of selection procedures. In Study 2, applicant reactions to a range of entry-level to professional civil service examinations (assessed immediately after tasting the exam) were positively related to (procedural and distributive) justice perceptions and willingness to recommend the employer to others (assessed one month after the exam, n= 460).

Applicant reactions to selection procedures

The first phase of this research effort describes an effort to directly measure the attitudes and opinions of employment test takers toward the tests they just took; the instrument is called the Test Attitude Survey (TAS). Nine factors were developed which reflect test takers' expressed effort and motivation on the test, the degree of concentration, perceived test ease, and the like. Several studies were conducted showing that TAS factors were significantly sensitive to differences in test types and administration permitting the inference that the TAS possessed construct validity. The second phase of this study tested several propositions and hypotheses. In one study, it is shown that the applicants report significantly higher effort and motivation on the employment tests compared to incumbents, even when ability is held constant. A second study showed that a small but significant relationship exists between TAS factor scores, test performances, and the person factors. Moreover, some of the racial differences on test performances can be accounted for via the TAS factor scores; it is observed that after holding these TAS factors constant, racial differences on the employment tests scores diminished. In a third study, very limited evidence was found for the incremental and moderating effects of these attitudes, but there were several limitations to the study associated with small sample sizes, unknown reliabilities in the criterion scales, and so forth. Discussion focussed on the potential practical applications of the TAS instrument and factor scores. It is suggested that further research could have some utility in this domain.

William Strickland

Papers

Motivational components of test taking