Managerial selection decision models: Examination of configural cue processing.

Evaluation of applicants for middle- and upper-level managerial positions and recommended starting salaries were examined in a sample of 44 male and 24 female line and staff managers. We postulated hypotheses that (a) managers would use job-relevant and job-irrelevant variables in evaluation of applicants, (b) the managers' selection decision models would involve configural cue processing, (c) managers' demographic characteristics would affect their evaluations of applicants for managerial positions, and (d) applicant sex and race would affect starting salary recommendations, after controlling for human capital variables. Subjects viewed videotaped presentations by 16 applicants and evaluated them for the job for which they were applying. Variables of applicant age, sex, race, experience, education, and level of job for which applying were manipulated. The results supported four of the five hypotheses. Job-irrelevant variables were used heavily in selection decisions, and decision models were complex, with multiple interactions among the decision cues. Subject demographic characteristics were the strongest predictors of starting salary recommendations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sexism and Beautyism Effects in Selection as a Function of Self-Monitoring Level of Decision Maker.

The authors, in two experiments, investigated the influence of the sex and attractiveness of applicants for male and female sex-typed jobs on selection decisions made by low and high self-monitors. In both experiments, attractiveness and the congruence between applicants' sex and the sex type of the job influenced selection decisions. In addition, high self-monitors were more influenced by attractiveness and sex of the applicant when hiring for sex-typed jobs than low self-monitors, but this difference in hiring pattern was not evident when the job was gender neutral. Results indicate that job applicants may encounter different employment opportunities as a function of their sex, their physical attractiveness, the sex type of the job, and the self-monitoring level of the decision maker. Implications of results are discussed and suggestions for future research are offered. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Subtle effects of sex role stereotypes on recruiters' hiring decisions.

Asked 150 male job recruiters from 2 university placement officers to evaluate relevant employment materials on 1 hypothetical job applicant (male or female) for either a male-oriented (personnel technician) or female-oriented (editorial assistant) position to make a hiring decision. Results indicate that hiring decisions were not influenced independently by the applicant's sex or position for which he/she was applying, but rather by the interaction of the 2 variables. That is, significantly more females than males were recommended for hiring for the editorial assistant position, while significantly more males were recommended for the personnel technician job. Post-hoc analyses revealed different trait patterns attributed to applicants recommended for hiring based on their sex-job role congruence. Implications for further research relating to personnel-related decisions are discussed. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Employment and career status of women psychologists.

Examined the employment status of doctoral recipients in psychology from 1960-1970. Data collected by the Office of Scientific Personnel of the National Academy of Sciences, provided the information for these analyses. The career status of academic female psychologists as compared to male psychologists is examined and discussed utilizing national data on faculty collected by the Carnegie Commission of Higher Education and the American Council on Education. This investigation of the career status of academic psychologists clearly documents the relatively low status of academic women in psychology in comparison to their male colleagues. Although it could be argued that the female psychologist's lower rank, lower salary, and lack of tenure are a consequence of merit consideration (e.g., degree held, publications), these analyses suggest strongly that such is not the case. Among new PhDs women have always had a somewhat harder time locating employment than have men, and these sex differences have been increasing in the recently tightening job market. Compared to sex differences in academic rank, salary, and tenure, however, the relative difficulty that the new woman PhD finds in securing initial employment appears to be minor. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sex differences in employment experiences of 1976 Canadian graduates in psychology.

Two large-scale surveys were undertaken by Statistics Canada in 1978 to examine the employment experiences of 1976 graduates from Canadian universities (outside Quebec). The present report is based on secondary analyses of this data. It compares the experiences of psychology graduates with those from other fields and examines possible sex differences. In terms of full-time employment, salary, and relatedness of job to education and job satisfaction, the employment experiences of psychology graduates were positive. There were, however, consistent sex differences (in favor of males) in salary and, to a lesser extent, in full-time employment rate. Sex differences remained after controlling for several possible contributors, such as working experience, age, marital status, and, in the case of salary, for full-time employment. (French abstract) (13 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sex and physical attractiveness of raters and applicants as determinants of resumé evaluations.

110 male and female student "interviewers," classified as either high, moderate, or low on physical attractiveness, evaluated 12 bogus job applicants for whom sex, physical attractiveness, and qualifications had been varied. A 2?×?3?×?2?×?3?×?2 analysis of variance was computed, with the 1st 2 variables (interviewer sex and attractiveness) constituting between-group factors, and the last 3 variables (applicant sex, attractiveness, and qualifications) constituting repeated measures factors. Regardless of interviewer sex and attractiveness, highly qualified applicants were preferred over poorly qualified applicants, male applicants were preferred over female applicants, and attractive candidates were preferred over unattractive candidates. Discrimination in employment decisions was attributed to sex-role and physical attractiveness stereotypes. (23 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of organizational citizenship behaviors on selection decisions in employment interviews.

This article reports on an experiment examining the effects of job candidates' propensity to exhibit organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs) on selection decisions made in the context of a job interview. We developed videos that manipulated candidate responses to interview questions tapping task performance and citizenship behavior content in 2 administrative positions. Results obtained from 480 undergraduates provided support for our hypotheses that job candidates who exhibited higher levels of helping, voice, and loyalty behaviors were generally rated as more competent, received higher overall evaluations, and received higher salary recommendations than job candidates who exhibited lower levels of these behaviors. These effects held even after taking into account candidate responses regarding task performance. We also found that candidate responses to OCB-related questions tended to have a greater effect on selection decisions for the higher level position (supervisor of administrative personnel) than for the lower level one (administrative assistant). Finally, content analyses of open-ended responses indicated that participants' selection decisions were particularly sensitive to candidates who exhibited low levels of voice and helping behaviors. Implications and future research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Perceptions of promotion fairness and promotion candidates' qualifications.

A sample of 336 undergraduate students (168 women and 168 men) read summaries of fictitious court cases prompted by 1 of 4 possible promotion decisions in 1 of 3 different jobs or occupations. Ss assessed the fairness of the promotion decision and the qualifications of the promoted and nonpromoted employees. Women and men perceived promotion of a member of the opposite sex instead of a member of their own sex as significantly less fair than any of the other 3 possible promotion decisions (opposite sex instead of opposite sex, same sex instead of same sex, or same sex instead of opposite sex). Perceptions of promotion candidates' qualifications, however, were not influenced by sex, job sex type (masculine vs sex neutral), or promotion decision or by any interactions of these variables. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of procedural and distributive justice on reactions to a selection system.

Procedural and distributive justice were examined in an employee selection situation. Along procedural justice dimensions, job relatedness of and explanation offered for the selection procedures were manipulated. Distributive justice was examined through manipulation of a selection decision and collection of a priori hiring expectations. Dependent measures included fairness reactions, recommendation intentions, self-efficacy, and actual work performance. Undergraduates (n?=?260) were selected/rejected for paid employment. Job relatedness influenced performance and interacted with selection decision on perceptions of distributive fairness and self-efficacy. Explanations influenced recommendations of rejected applicants. Interactions between hiring expectations and selection decision were observed on perceived fairness and recommendation intentions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A linear model of job satisfaction.

Data relevant to 5 separate areas of a worker's job satisfaction (satisfaction with: work, pay, promotion opportunities, co-workers, and supervision) and 6 independent variables (age, tenure on the job, tenure with the company, job level, salary, and salary desired minus salary received) were gathered from a sample of 185 male workers and 75 female workers employed in 2 plants of an electronics manufacturing firm in New England. Multiple-regression analyses were done on these data to determine the validity of two hypotheses of Herzberg that age and tenure bear U-shaped relationships to job satisfaction. No support was found for these hypotheses. For the male workers a linear model of job satisfaction predicted work and pay satisfaction. None of the other dependent variables for the male or female workers could be predicted significantly and consistently. An explanation based on discrepancies between expectations and environmental return is offered. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Influence of applicant's dress on interviewer's selection decisions.

Investigated the effect of female applicants' dress on interviewers' selection decisions for management positions by having 77 personnel administrators view videotaped interviews of 4 applicants in different costumes and make hiring recommendations for each applicant. Three-way ANOVA was used to determine the effect of costume on hiring decisions independent of the effects of person, sequence of showing, and costume?×?person interaction. Results confirm that masculinity of the female applicant's dress had a significant effect on interviewers' selection decisions. There was a positive relationship between masculinity of the applicant's costume and favorability of hiring recommendations received by the applicants. The influence of person on selection decisions also was significant. It is concluded that female applicants' clothing is an avenue for influencing the selection decision for management positions. (21 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Impact of recruiter authoritarianism and applicant sex on evaluation and selection decisions in a recruitment interview analogue study.

Investigated the role of authoritarianism in Ss' judgments of male and female candidates in a job selection interview. Male and female personnel officers were randomly selected from a pool of 144 volunteers (males' ages 23–58 yrs, females' 21–50 yrs) and were assigned on the basis of Revised California F Scale scores to high, moderate, and low authoritarian groups, until 14 males and 14 females constituted each group. It was hypothesized that high authoritarian Ss of both sexes (a) would rate male job applicants more favorably than females when they were presented in simulated videotaped recruitment interviews and (b) would subsequently make more job offers to male than female job applicants. Results support both hypotheses and indicate the usefulness of extending this approach to other aspects of the employment setting and to other nonemployment settings, such as vocational counseling. (24 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Factors affecting employment decisions about older workers.

Investigated effects of 2 factors on simulated employment decisions about older workers. 10 male and 38 female undergraduates made decisions about older workers in 2 hypothetical work situations. The design of the study was a 2 (absolute decision vs comparison decision)?×?2 (information vs no information) factorial with repeated measures on type of decision. Significant main effects were found for both type of decision and amount of information. No significant interaction effects were found. Increasingly favorable decisions were made about older workers when (a) the situation did not require a choice between an older worker and a younger worker and (b) behaviorally stated performance information about the older worker was provided. A separate study assessed the specificity of the factors' impact on older workers. 13 male and 35 female undergraduates made decisions about younger workers, using the same procedures used in the 1st study. These results indicate that, for younger workers, the effect of the type of decision depended on the amount of information. (10 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sex differences in career self-efficacy, consideration, and interests of eighth and ninth graders.

Assessed 57 female and 51 male 8th- and 9th-grade college-bound students to determine relations between their self-efficacy, interest, and consideration of 10 traditionally male and female occupations. Sex differences were examined. Significant relations emerged, suggesting that interest plays a major role in the consideration of both traditionally male and female occupations and that interest is a function of sex differences. Analysis of individual occupations revealed significant sex differences for only a select group of occupations within each occupational cluster. Both males and females indicated similar confidence in meeting the educational requirements and performing the job duties for most of the occupations. Results are compared with those reported by N. E. Betz and G. Hackett (see record 1982-02194-001) for college students. Counseling recommendations are also proposed. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of applicant's sex and difficulty of job on evaluations of candidates for managerial positions.

To investigate the influence of sex-role stereotypes on evaluations of candidates for managerial positions, 235 male undergraduate business students evaluated job applicant forms which differed only in the male or female name given to the applicant. Findings confirm that sex-role stereotypes influence evaluations of applicants and selection decisions. Male applicants were accepted more frequently than equally qualified females, and were evaluated more favorably on general suitability, potential for long service, and potential for fitting in well in the organization. Also supported was the hypothesis that job demands have differential effects on evaluations of male and female applicants. Females were given lowest acceptance rates and poorest evaluation for "demanding" managerial positions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The right question, wrong answers.

Comments on L. R. O'Leary's (see record 1973-25947-001) article on predicting job success via testing. The problem with using biographical data (e.g., age, sex, race) as a legitimate basis for employment selection is not a question of psychometrics but of social values and public policy. While the use of job samples is more socially defensible, it can create a set of special problems. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Job analysis results as influenced by sex of incumbent and sex of analyst.

22 male and 35 female undergraduate and 1st-yr graduate students were given preliminary training on the use of the Position Analysis Questionnaire (PAQ). Subsequently, they used this job analysis instrument to rate the job of administrative assistant presented through a verbal narrative and color slide stimulus format. While all other factors remained constant in the job stimulus conditions depicted, sex of the job incumbent was manipulated by using male and female figures matched on attractiveness and voice quality. ANOVA results indicate that although sex of the job incumbent did not influence the PAQ scores, sex of the analyst showed a marginal but consistent effect. Female analysts gave relatively lower PAQ scores to the job than male analysts across 22 PAQ job dimensions regardless of the sex of the job incumbent. Adjective Check List scores had no consistent effect on PAQ dimensions. The need for replication is stressed. (25 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Performance of male and female children, adolescents and adults on spatial tasks that involve everyday objects and settings.

Administered 9 spatial tasks to 52 male and 52 female children (aged 7–9 yrs), 30 male and 33 female adolescents (aged 18–19 yrs), and 46 male and 48 female undergraduate (adult) Ss. Eight of the tests involved stimuli and settings with which Ss would have everyday experience. Significant sex differences were observed on 2 of the 9 tasks: estimating the length of a floor and identifying embedded figures. Adults performed better than other age groups on the embedded figures task and a wall height estimation task. In those cases where sex differences were observed, the effect sizes were well below .100, suggesting the magnitudes of sex differences were minimal. The fact that no sex differences were found on 7 or the 9 spatial tasks allows, at most, the statement that males perform better than females on some spatial tasks. There is no justification for the global statement that males excel in spatial abilities. (French abstract) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)