Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Analysis Of The Effects Of Goal And Feedback Specificity On Subsequent Task Performance, Gregory Mark Van Dahm

Masters Theses

The effects of goal and feedback specifically on subsequent task performance were examined to text the hypothesis that specific goals and feedback facilitate performance to a greater degree than general goals and feedback (Ilgen, Fisher, & Taylor, 1979). Ten subjects, in each of the four conditions, were assigned one of two levels of goal specificity and feedback specificity and were then required to perform a simple assembly and sorting task utilizing multiple size and color fasteners. No significance was discovered between correctly assembled and sorted products of the four groups although there was a general trend in the hypothesized direction. …

An Investigation Of The Effects Of An Applied Behavior Management Program On Selected Measures Of Worker Performance In A Financial Institution, Daniel A. Schroeder

Masters Theses

Twenty CRT operators from an operations department at a financial institution were used to evaluate whether a behavior management program utilizing feedback and incentives would improve their work performance on real job tasks. In accordance with predictions, results revealed that the group performed significantly better (p<.05) under the behavior management program than they did during a baseline period. Behavior management was significantly effective for most, but not all, work areas. The program also produced some unexpected, but positive, side-effects.

Detection Of Deception In The Laboratory As A Function Of Motivation And Set Size, Daniel Mark Tuckett

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to determine the validity of the polygraph in a controlled laboratory setting. The Guilty Knowledge Test (GKT) was the procedure employed in conjunction with the galvanic skin subjects over the two trial each. Overall the polygrapher was correct 44 times, out of 80 trials. This number of detections exceeded chance (p<.001) levels. The manipulation of subject motivation with a monetary reward increased detection rates significantly (p<.05) in comparison to those offered money. With each subject being tested over two trials, there appears to be a habituation effect as indicated by a decrease in detection from trial one to trial two. The relationship fell slightly short of significance at the (p< .05) level. In general the level of the subject motivation may play a major role in the detection of subjects who attempt deceit.

The Development Of A Paper-And-Pencil Measure Of Complex Cognitive-Perceptual Aptitude, Don Michael Mcanulty

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

The primary purpose of the present research was a develop a complex aptitude test to assess individual differences in multiple cognitive and perceptual abilities that are required for helicopter pilot training. The paper-and-pencil test was designed to provide measures of both static and dynamic (i.e., learning) ability under different levels of complexity. The secondary research purpose was to develop a battery of eight psychometric tests to assess other abilities that are required for helicopter pilot training. Test prototypes were produced and administered to small samples of subjects. The tests were then revised into an experimental battery that required approximately 7 …

The Effect Of Job Involvement And Organizational Commitment On The Psychometric Characteristics Of Job Performance Ratings, Steven Ronald Gordon

Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine a theoretical model developed to predict the influence of rater job involvement and organizational commitment on the process of appraising employee job performance . The model is based upon Fishbein ' s (1967) theory relating attitudes to behavioral intentions and specific behaviors . Organizational commitment is incorporated as an indication of the subjective norm and the performance -- self-esteem definition of job involvement represents the attitudinal component . Hypotheses proposed to test the model addressed the psychometric characteristics of ratings assigned by individuals with varying levels of a composite measure of job …

Increasing Key “Sales Related” Behaviors Through The Use Of A Self-Monitoring Checklist, Susan M. O'Brien

Masters Theses

The present study investigated the effects of self-monitoring alone to increase targeted key sales related behaviors with an outside sales representative. The data collected over a five-month period of time revealed a temporary increase in the overall percent of targeted behaviors performed on each sales call when self-monitoring was implemented. Performance dropped to baseline levels near the end of the first treatment phase prior to the reversal phase. The data were inconsistent across behaviors as to whether implementing self-monitoring caused them to change in the desired direction or not. Additional measures which were not directly influenced by the self-monitoring technique …

The Effects Of Environmental Stress On Financial Planning For Retirement, Gerald Lee Gamache

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

During the past several decades vast changes have occurred in the labor market. Unusually high unemployment rates, changes in labor force composition and the migration of workers to new industries, are typical topics of concern. This study deals with the development of a model to explain the consequences of environmental stress and psychological strain on retirement financial planning behaviors, an area of investigation which has received little or no attention in the literature, but in which as much importance portends as the traditional topics of concern. Several measures of environmental stress, psychological strain and measures of coping behaviors are developed …

Job Analysis And Job Evaluation Method Choice: User Qualifications And Implications For Applications And Research, James S. Herndon

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Research interest in the areas of job analysis and job evaluation has been increased recently as a result of attention being given to the comparable worth issue. The purpose of the present study was to assess the effects of job analysis and job evaluation method choice on the outcome of the salary determination process, and to investigate how user qualifications interact with methods.

Within the context of the JAMES Matrix, two job analysis methods (CIT and FJA) were systematically paired with two job evaluation methods (ranking and point). Three groups of participants, representing distinctly different levels of expertise (method experts, …

Estimating The Utility Of Job Performance The Influence Of The Delphi Technique And Behavioral Examples On Supervisors' Estimates, Scott I. Tannenbaum

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Methods for estimating the standard deviation of performance in dollars (SDy) proposed by Schmidt, Hunter, McKenzie, and Muldrow (1979) (referred to as S & H) and by Burke and Frederick (1984) (referred to as B & F) were compared with a modified procedure which incorporated the Delphi and critical incident methodologies (referred to as Delphi). Sixty-four nursing managers were randomly assigned to one of the three methods. They provided estimates for the jobs of registered nurse and licensed practical nurse. The three methods yielded similar estimates, were equally sensitive to differences between the jobs, and conformed to the assumptions of …

Preparation And Preparedness: A Study Of Curriculum Design In Terminal Master's Programs In Industrial/Organizational Psychology, Cynthia K. Rubin

Retrospective Theses and Dissertations

Graduate programs in Industrial/Organizational Psychology vary throughout the country with regard to curriculum design and content, raising the issue of preparation and its relationship to preparedness on the job. It was hypothesized that: (1) students with a greater amount of prior field experience would perceive themselves to be better prepared for the workplace than those with a lesser amount of such experience; (2) employers would perceive students who had received a greater amount of prior field experience as better preared than those with a lesser amount of such experience; and (3) students with previous work experience or job training in …

The Informal Performance Feedback Process: A Partial Test Of Larson's Predictive Model, David E. Hyatt

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

No abstract provided.