Anthony J. Mento

A meta-analytic study of the effects of goal setting on task performance: 1966-1984

Abstract A meta-analytic study was conducted involving primarily published research from 1966 to 1984 and focusing on the relationship between goal-setting variables and task performance. Two major sets of studies were analyzed, those contrasting hard goals (goal difficulty) versus easy goals, and those comparing specific hard goals (goal specificity/difficulty) versus general goals, “do best” instructions, or no goal. As expected, strong support was obtained for the goal difficulty and goal specificity/difficulty components of E. A. Lockes (1968a , Organizational Behavior and Human Performance , 3 , 157–189) theory. A two-stage approach was employed to identify potential moderators of the goal difficulty and goal specificity/difficulty—performance relationships. Setting (laboratory versus field) was identified as a moderator of the relationship between goal specificity/difficulty and task performance. Two supplemental meta-analyses yielded support for the efficacy of combining specific hard goals with feedback versus specific hard goals without feedback and for participatively set goals versus assigned goal setting (when goal level is held constant), although this latter finding was interpreted as inconclusive based on the limited studies available. Implications for future research are addressed.

Task complexity as a moderator of goal effects: A meta-analysis.

Much evidence exists that supports the use of goal setting as a motivational technique for enhancing task performance; howevei; little attention has been given to the role of task characteristics as potential moderating conditions of goal effects. Meta-analysis procedures were used to assess the moderator effects of task complexity for goal-setting studies conducted from 1966 to 1985 (n = 125). The reliability ofthe task complexity ratings was .92. Three sets of analyses were conducted: for goaldifficulty results (hard vs. easy), for goal specificity-difficulty (specific difficult goals vs. do-best or no goal), and for all studies collapsed across goal difficulty and goal specificity-difficulty. It was generally found that goal-setting effects were strongest for easy tasks (reaction time, brainstorming), d = .76, and weakest for more complex tasks (business game simulations, scientific and engineering work, faculty research productivity), d = .42. Implications for future research on goal setting and the validity of generalizing results are discussed.

Relationship of Goal Level to Valence and Instrumentality

Eight experiments were conducted to explore the relationships between goal level, valence, and instrumentality. Valence, measured in terms of anticipated satisfaction across a range of performance levels, was strongly but negatively related to goal level. This finding was explained by showing that low goals entail using less stringent standards for self-evaluation than do high goals. Instrumentality was positively associated with goal level. Subjects believed that trying for hard goals would be more likely to give them a sense of achievement, develop their skills, and prove them competent than would trying for easy goals. Subjects also believed that high goals would lead to more practical (job and life) benefits, as well as more pride and self-respect, than would low goals.

Mind Mapping in Executive Education: Applications and Outcomes.

Developed by Tony Buzan in 1970, mind mapping is a revolutionary system for capturing ideas and insights horizontally on a sheet of paper. This paper illustrates the technique of mind mapping, and highlights its specific applications in a variety of contexts based on our work in executive education and in management development consulting. Positive outcomes of the approach are described as well as reactions of executive students to mind mapping. We conclude with a rationale of why we believe mind mapping works with executives.

Impact of situational constraints on subjective and objective criteria of managerial job performance

Laboratory research has consistently indicated that situational constraints may have a substantial impact on performance criteria. However, little research has attempted to study situational constraints in organizational field settings, and no field research to date has examined their influence upon objective performance criteria. The effects of situational constraints on supervisory appraisals, self-ratings, and objective performance criteria were investigated for a sample of 438 branch managers from a large finance company. A Hotelling T2 statistic indicated significant effects for situational constraints on the performance criteria of the study. Conventional t tests revealed significant differences between groups of managers from high- and low-constraint settings on supervisory appraisal ratings, self-appraisals, and one objective measure of performance (i.e., past due control). The studys contributions to the literature on the relationship between situational constraints and performance are discussed.

Factors Influencing the Success and Failure of Two Quality Circle Programs

Quality circle (QC) programs instituted in two Department of Defense (DOD) organizations were evaluated within the framework of a nonequivalent control group design. Two waves of survey data were collected from 107 members of a military maintenance organization and 165 employees of a medical facility located on the same DOD installation. Analysis of covariance procedures on data from the maintenance sample isolated significant treatment group effects on 7 of the 20 criterion variables used in the study. However, QC treatment effects were not apparent in the covariance results for the hospital personnel. Subgroup analyses on the data provided by active QC members identified different patterns of responses from individuals in the two samples. Active circle members from the maintenance organization tended to evaluate their situation more favorably as the study progressed. In contrast, responses provided by active QC group members from the medical facility tended to take an increasingly more negative tone over the course of the study. Qualitative differences between the two organizations in the conduct of the QC intervention are reviewed in an effort to identify potential moderating variables conditioning the degree of program success.

The Participation-Performance Controversy Reconsidered Subordinate Competence as a Mitigating Factor

Recent literature reviews (Locke, Feren, McCaleb, Shaw, & Denny, 1980; Locke & Schweiger, 1979) dealing with the impact of participation in decision making (PDM) on work outcomes have tended to cast doubt upon the relationship between PDM and job performance criteria. Results of cross-sectional research from six different U.S. military organizations are reported. Self-report measures of the degree of influence perceived by employees (i.e., PDM) were significantly correlated with job satisfaction ratings and with supervisory performance ratings in all six samples. Moderated regression analysis and partial correlation analysis indicated that PDM performance correlations were potentially confounded with the employees self- ratings of task competence.

Constraining Forces and the Work Performance of Finance Company Cashiers

A field study was performed examining the influence of situational constraints on the job performance of 368 finance company cashiers. Increasing levels of contextual constraint (as rated by a cashiers immediate supervisor) were negatively related to supervisory performance ratings, self-appraisals, and objective performance criteria. No differences were in evidence in the degree ofperformance variation found in high and low constraining task environments. Constraints were also found to be weakly related to ancillary measures of cashier work load.

Psychometric properties of a measure of sense of competence

A series of investigations was performed exploring the psychometric properties of Wagner and Morses (1975) Sense of Competence Questionnaire (SCQ). Data were obtained from a total of 849 individuals constituting five different United States Air Force samples. Construct validation indicated that self-and supervisory ratings of competence converged on a common evaluation. SCQ ratings were significantly correlated with measures of skill and ability, job feedback, and need for achievement. Concurrent validation demonstrated that SCQ ratings significantly predicted supervisory performance appraisals. In addition, the instrument displayed moderate predictive validity over a 14-month interval (r = .26, p < .001).

Effects of Perceived Decision-Making Influence on Labor Relations and Organizational Outcomes

By providing employees with an outlet for expressing dissatisfaction and advocating remedial action, influence in organizational decision making may foster more harmonious industrial relations. Longitudinal research at a U.S. federal mint found that degree of perceived influence was significantly correlated with organizational outcomes (e.g., organizational commitment, sick leave) and labor relations outcomes (e.g., unfair labor practice complaints, adverse actions). Hierarchical regression analysis, controlling for a range of personal and organizational factors, yielded mixed support for relationships between perceived influence and outcome. Boundary conditions and theoretical implications relating to the studys results are outlined.