Prediction of managerial success by peer and training-staff ratings.

Examined the predictive validity of peer and training-staff ratings made under "real" conditions in an industrial situation. Ratings were obtained for 156 middle-level managers and 83 higher level executives attending a 4-wk training course. Analysis of 13 peer-related characteristics yielded 2 factors: Impact and Tactfulness. Follow-up showed that later success (promotion and performance appraisal) was predicted by most peer ratings mainly from the Impact factor. Training staff ratings were much weaker predictors and added little to the peer ratings. Broader use of peer ratings for executive selection is discussed. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

An industrial use of peer ratings.

Can peer ratings identify managers who later are promoted rapidly in a large corporation? A representative sample of 56 graduates was selected from 4-week middle manager training classes where a lengthy 13 item peer rating was administered. When the mean peer ratings of 21 managers who received 2 or more promotions after graduation were compared with the mean peer ratings of 19 managers who received no promotions, differences were significant at the .01 level for all but 3 of the rating items. The results suggest that a large body of predictive data for industry exists in the judgments contemporary managers are able to make about each other. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Teacher ratings predict peer ratings of aggression at 3-year follow-up in boys with attention deficit disorder with hyperactivity.

Compared initial and 3-yr follow-up peer ratings of 19 boys, who were in Grades 1–3 at the beginning of the study, who had attention deficit disorder with hyperactivity (ADDH). When the entire group was considered, nominations on the Aggression and Likability factors of a pupil evaluation inventory improved. Subgroups were created using teacher ratings on an aggression scale. Peer ratings of Aggression improved for Ss whom teachers rated below the median on the aggression scale but not for Ss rated above the median. Subgroups reflecting other teacher and peer ratings were less effective in predicting differential change in peer ratings of ADDH Ss. (8 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Validity in personality trait attribution.

Compared peer ratings, self-ratings, and ratings by outside judges of the aggressiveness of 8 male graduates from each of 2 fraternities. Pairs of Ss, each pair consisting of 1 high-aggressive and 1 low-aggressive member, engaged in discussion and a competitive game. Peer ratings and self-ratings converged only slightly. Judges' ratings based on observation of verbal and nonverbal behavior of the Ss, had a high degree of concordance with peer ratings, but judges' ratings based on tape recordings of the discussions were not significantly associated with peer ratings. These results provide strong evidence that peer ratings of aggressiveness describe an identifiable characteristic of an individual's behavior which is consistent in different settings. The findings do not, however, demonstrate the general validity of the trait approach to personality. Needed is a more economical method for assigning aggressiveness scores that approach peer ratings, determination of observable behavioral cues denoting aggressiveness, development of the predictive utility of aggressiveness scores, and establishing the validity of other personality traits. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Predicting army leadership ability by modified leaderless group discussion.

"Basic training graduates… (n = 459)… assigned to the Fort Knox, Kentucky, leadership school participated in a leaderless group discussion experiment (designed to substitute peer ratings for observer ratings). The status in the leaderless discussion group… (a forced distribution peer rating)… for each subject correlated… (.44)… with final leadership performance in the school… prior acquaintance with LGD members… was found to be influential in improving the predictive ability of the LGD method." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The moderating influence of job performance dimensions on convergence of supervisory and peer ratings of job performance: Unconfounding construct-level convergence and rating difficulty.

Meta-analysis was used to cumulate the correlations between supervisor and peer ratings for different dimensions of job performance. The general pattern in the data suggested that raters from the same organizational level disagree as much as raters from different levels. Methods were used to separate the effects of rating difficulty and lack of construct-level convergence on the correlation between supervisor and peer ratings. The authors found complete construct-level convergence for ratings of overall job performance, productivity, effort, job knowledge, quality, and leadership but not for ratings of administrative competence, interpersonal competence, and compliance or acceptance of authority. Higher rating difficulty was more strongly associated with lower mean observed peer-supervisor correlations than were construct-level disagreements between peers and supervisors. Implications for research and practice are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Are cultural characteristics associated with the relationship between self and others’ ratings of leadership?

This study examined the relationship between self and subordinate ratings of leadership and the relationship between self and peer ratings of leadership for 964 managers from 21 countries. Using multilevel modeling, the authors found that cultural characteristics moderated the relationship between self and others’ ratings of leadership. Specifically, the relationship between self and subordinate ratings, as well as between self and peer ratings, was more positive in countries that are characterized by high assertiveness. The relationship between self and subordinate ratings, as well as between self and peer ratings, was also more positive in countries characterized by high power distance. The authors also found a leniency bias in individualistic cultures for self, peer, and subordinate ratings. In sum, cultural characteristics should be considered in attempts to understand relationships between self and other ratings. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The roles of rater goals and ratee performance levels in the distortion of performance ratings.

The goal-directed perspective of performance appraisal suggests that raters with different goals will give different ratings. Considering the performance level as an important contextual factor, we conducted 2 studies in a peer rating context and in a nonpeer rating context and found that raters do use different rating tactics to achieve specific goals. Raters inflated their peer ratings under the harmony, fairness, and motivating goal conditions (Study 1, N = 103). More important, raters inflated their ratings more for low performers than for high and medium performers. In a nonpeer rating context, raters deflated ratings for high performers to achieve the fairness goal, and they inflated ratings for low performers to motivate them (Study 2, N = 120). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Age-related differences in children's perceptions of social deviance: Changes in behavior or in perspective?

Previous research by the present authors (see record 1985-14217-001) revealed grade-related changes in children's ratings of aggression and withdrawal in peers. The contributions to such changes of age-related differences in the perspective of the raters and in the behavior of the children rated were investigated. Study 1 examined 120 teachers' ratings of aggression and withdrawal in 1st-, 4th-, and 7th-grade children to assess effects of age of children rated. In contrast to earlier findings with peer raters, no differences were found across grade level in the organization of teacher ratings. Study 2 examined age of rater differences in 436 1st-, 4th-, and 7th-grade Ss' beliefs about behavior that might be displayed by hypothetical peers. Differences paralleled those observed earlier in children's actual peer ratings. Study 3 examined 351 1st- and 7th-grade Ss' ratings of peers who were older or younger than the raters to assess the influence of age of rater on Ss' ratings. Age of rater effects emerged even when Ss rated peers who were not their age mates. These findings suggest that differences across grade level reported in children's peer ratings largely reflect differences in the child raters' view of behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Comparison of peer assessment methods: Reliability, validity, friendship bias, and user reaction.

Compared peer nominations, peer rankings, and peer ratings as to reliability, validity, friendship bias, and user reaction. 145 police officers provided each type of peer assessment. Criterion rankings and ratings were provided by 33 squad supervisors. All peer-based methods showed significant reliability and validity, and the validity coefficients were not significantly biased by the friendship between peer assessor and assessee. Peer rankings and peer nominations displayed significantly greater reliability and validity than did peer ratings. User reactions were negative for all methods. Recommendations are made for collection of peer assessment data in nonpolice organizations for comparative purposes and for investigation of techniques to reduce negative reactions to peer assessment. (18 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

An examination of the relationship between the accuracy and favorability of ratings.

Administered a scale to 68 senior marketing students, who rated the prospecting ability of a life insurance agent on 7 videotaped telephone approaches. 3 randomly selected subgroups were given different background information about the agent. It was found that induced mental sets varied significantly in terms of favorability. A differential accuracy phenomenon (dap) was the only significant source of variance. However, neither the dap nor the overall accuracy of ratings was related to the favorability of s's general impression of the ratee. Findings make suspect the current practice of operationalizing leniency error by means of the average level of favorability of global ratings. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Construct validity of multiple measures in teaching, research, and service and reliability of peer ratings.

The construct validity measures in teaching, research, and service were determined using a multitrait–multimethod matrix. The measures in research (research publications, research grants, research awards, and peer ratings in research) and three of the measures in teaching (student evaluations, teaching awards, and peer ratings in teaching) supported convergent and divergent validity. However, the three-pronged model in academia was not validated, and exploratory factor analysis identified 5 and possibly 6 domains of behavior (research, classroom teaching, writing about teaching, community service, writing about service, and internal service). For one measure, peer ratings, reliability varied across academic areas and was moderately high for only high-confident ratings. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Predicting preschoolers' peer behavior and status from their interpersonal strategies: A comparison of verbal and enactive responses to hypothetical social dilemmas.

The purposes of this study were (a) to compare a verbal and an enactive procedure for assessing preschool children's social strategies in hypothetical situations in terms of their ability to predict social behavior with peers and peer acceptance and (b) to examine some of the psychometric properties of the two assessment methods. Children's responses to a set of hypothetical social situations were elicited both with puppets and props (enactive assessment) and with a set of pictures (verbal assessment). The responses were rated in terms of their friendliness and assertiveness. Enactive friendliness ratings contributed significantly to regression equations predicting teacher and observer ratings of prosocial and aggressive behavior but not to peer group acceptance, whereas the verbal method contributed little predictive power beyond that provided by the enactive ratings. Implications for social skill assessment and intervention with children are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Comparing the effectiveness of two directive styles in the academic counseling of foreign students.

Asian foreign students (34 male and 16 female 19–44 yr olds) participated in a comparative study on the effectiveness of 2 directive academic counseling styles (authoritative vs collaborative) on foreign students' ratings of peer counselor effectivenss. A within-group variable, acculturation level, was also examined. High-acculturated foreign students rated authoritative peer counselors higher in overall effectiveness, whereas low-acculturated foreign students rated collaborative peer counselors higher. Results support the importance of taking into account within-group differences among culturally diverse clients when conducting research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Relation between types of aggression and sociometric status: Peer and teacher perceptions.

Examined the relation between aggressive behavior and sociometric status (the extent to which a child is liked by his or her peers) in third and fourth graders. 47 boys and 51 girls from a northern New England elementary school were given a group-administered peer rating of social status and a peer nomination measure assessing five types of aggressive behavior. Teachers of the same children were given modified versions of these measures. Significant negative correlations were found between social status and all categories of aggressive behavior for both sexes except provoked physical aggression in boys for which the correlation was not significant. Indirect aggression (tattling, stealing, or breaking others' property) was the type of aggressive behavior that correlated most highly with low peer ratings. There were significant differences between boys and girls on all five categories of aggressive behavior. Teachers' ratings of peer social status correlated more highly with boys' ratings than with girls' ratings, and teacher perceptions of aggressive behavior correlated significantly and positively with peers' ratings on only two categories, unprovoked physical aggression and indirect aggression. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Correlates of victimization in Chinese children's peer groups.

This study reports a cross-sectional investigation of the behavioral and academic correlates of victimization in Chinese children's peer groups. The participants were 296 children (161 boys and 135 girls; mean age?=?11.5 years) from Tianjin, China. Multi-informant assessments (peer nominations, teacher ratings, and self-reports) of peer victimization, aggression, submissiveness-withdrawal, assertiveness-prosociability, and academic functioning were obtained. Structural equation models indicated that peer victimization was associated with poor academic functioning, submissive-withdrawn behavior, aggression, and low levels of assertive-prosocial behavior. These findings suggest that there is considerable similarity in the social processes underlying peer group victimization across Chinese and Western cultural settings. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychological, family, and peer predictors of academic outcomes in first- through fifth-grade children.

This study tested a model that posited that 3 diverse sets of academic outcomes (memory, verbal, and nonverbal aptitudes [N?=?521]; passing proficiency tests in reading and mathematics [N?=?122]; and end-of-year ratings of verbal and mathematical skills by teachers [N?=?159]) for 1st- through 5th-grade children were uniquely determined by psychological (verbal and visual-motor "school readiness" skills at kindergarten, cognitive self-control, and academic self-competence), family (behavioral involvement of an adult family member in the child's schooling), and peer (the average academic performance of members of one's peer group) factors. Verbal readiness skills were uniquely linked to 5 of the 7 academic outcomes. An outcome-specific view of what sets of factors are linked to academic performance was favored in that, of the 5 predictors, only school readiness accounted for unique portions of the variance in aptitudes; only school readiness and cognitive self-control accounted for unique portions of the variance in whether proficiency tests were passed; and only school readiness, cognitive self-control, and the academic performance of one's peer group accounted for unique portions of the variance in end-of-year ratings. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of ratee task performance and interpersonal factors on supervisor and peer performance ratings.

The study examines the effects of a wide array of rater–ratee relationship and ratee-characteristic variables on supervisor and peer job-performance ratings. Interpersonal ratings, job performance ratings, and ratee scores on ability, job knowledge, and technical proficiency were available for 493 to 631 first-tour US Army soldiers. Results of supervisor and peer ratings-path models showed ratee ability, knowledge, and proficiency accounted for 13% of the variance in supervisor performance ratings and 7% for the peer ratings. Among the interpersonal variables, ratee dependability had the strongest effect for both models. Ratee friendliness and likability had little effect on the performance ratings. Inclusion of the interpersonal factors increased the variance accounted for in the ratings to 28% and 19%, respectively. Discussion focuses on the relative contribution of ratee technical and contextual performance to raters' judgments. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Using the assessment center method to predict senior management potential.

Investigated the extent to which advancement to senior management (SM) levels can be predicted from assessment center (AC) results and whether people with different assessment profiles have different probabilities of advancement. A study of 115 people who attended the AT&T Advanced Management Potential Assessment Program between 1982 and 1985 indicates that AC ratings can also be used to identify people with SM potential. Among all Ss, those who received ratings of excellent potential were more likely to advance to SM positions than those seen as having less potential. Ss with different assessment dimension profiles had different chances for success. Suggestions for establishing a senior level assessment program are provided. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Face-to-face interaction in the peer-nomination process.

Tested the importance of face-to-face interaction in the peer-rating process. Peer ratings were obtained from 95 interacting group members participating in a management game and were compared with ratings obtained from os who viewed 15-min videotapes of these groups participating in a game decision-making session. There was no difference between the 2 sets of peer ratings, leading to the conclusion that face-to-face interaction is not a critical variable in this judgmental process. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)