Ditsa Kafry

Capturing rater policies for processing evaluation data

Abstract A raters strategy or policy for assessing information on nine criterion elements for a ratee in order to form an over-all evaluation was examined by developing regression equations for each rater. In addition, clusters of raters who had similar strategies were identified by a judgment analysis (JAN) procedure ( Bottenberg & Christal, 1968 ; Christal, 1968 ; Naylor & Wherry, 1965 ). Raters were 67 nursing personnel (35 Public Health Nurses and 32 Hospital Registered Nurses), each of whom provided over-all evaluations of 40 hypothetical behavioral descriptions of nurses. Results indicated that raters were consistent in their evaluations. Two clusters within each of the nursing groups were identified by JAN; these clusters were, however, homogeneous in terms of background, organizational and cognitive measures. Differences between objectively and subjectively determined weights were identified; the importance of major elements was underestimated whereas that of minor elements was overestimated. Explanations of the self-insight discrepancy as well as differences in the elements considered by the two occupational groups are offered; applications of the techniques are suggested.

Conspicuous in Its Absence: The Lack of Positive Conditions as a Source of Stress

Sress research has concentrated on the presence of negative conditions as a source of stress and largely has ignored stress reactions that result from a lack of positive conditions. In an attempt to demonstrate the seriousness of this omission of stress theory, for samples of students (N = 84) and professionals (N = 205) the presence of negative and absence of positive life and work features were each related to the experiences of life and work tedium and satisfaction/dissatisfaction. Two hypotheses were proposed: that the presence of negative and lack of positive life and work features are (1) both significantly related to tedium and satisfaction/dissatisfaction and (2) are independent of each other. The hypotheses were confirmed for both samples except in the case of work satisfaction/dissatisfaction, which was related only to the lack of positive features. These results highlight the need in stress research to consider lack of positive conditions as a source of stress.

The Experience of Tedium in Life and Work

Tedium, the experience of physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion, was introduced. It was assumed to stem from chronic daily pressures. Tedium was predicted to be related to: (1) internal features which include pressures inherent in the individuals roles and imposed on the cognitive capacity and the need for meaningfulness and achievement; and (2) external features which include pressures imposed on the individual by the physical, organizational, and social environment. A trilogy of studies designed to develop a tedium measure, to test its reliability and validity, and to study its relationships to internal and external life and work features was presented. It was concluded that tedium is a highly relevant psychological construct, experienced in its extreme form by 6% of the people studied (N = 1187). Tedium was found to be a significant correlate of both internal and external life and work features. The comparison between life and work features showed that the former are more highly related to tedium than the latter. Life was also found to be a higher source of rewards and a lower source of pressures relative to work. The need to develop a more rigorous causal model of tedium was stressed.

Sensation seeking of young children

Thirty-six boys and 33 girls, attending kindergatern, second-grade and fourth-grade, and their parents responded to a simplified version of the general Sensation Seeking Scale. Childrens preferences for activities, puzzles, pictures, responses, foods, mazes and behaviors were also assessed. Results showed that the mean scores for the Sensation Seeking Scale of young children were much lower than scores of high school and college students, and significantly lower than the guesses of their parents. Sensation seeking was found to be related to preference for complex puzzles and pictures, to engagement in negative behaviors and to the childrens knowledge about the environment. These findings suggest that the level of sensation seeking of children is related to their activities and preferences as well as their exposure to a variety of experiences.

Tedium in the life and work of professional women as compared with men

The experience of tedium, its antecedents, and its chronic life and work correlates in professional women as compared to men, were the foci of the present study. “Tedium” was defined as a general experience of physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion characterized by depression; emotional and physical depletion; burnout; and negative attitudes toward ones life, ones environment, and oneself. Women did not differ significantly from men in the experience of tedium. This is particularly noteworthy, since women reported less positive features and rewards and more negative features, pressures, and stresses in their work environments than men. There were far more significant sex differences in work features than in life-outside-of-work features, and many variables emerged as equally important tedium correlates for both sexes. For both sexes, life outside of the work sphere provided more positive aspects, while work presented more negative ones.

Behavioral Expectations: Development of Parallel Forms and Analysis of Scale Assumptions

The development of parallel forms of behavioral expectation scales (BBS) as well as a check on the adequacy of examples contributed as documentation for BES numerical evaluations was examined. Data generated by Harari and Zedeck were used to develop two forms of BES, A and B. Results indicated that the forms (A: N — 44; B: JV = 51) had, in general, equivalent dimension means and variances as well as the same degree of correlation with other variables (overall evaluation and satisfaction with the instructor). An independent sample (N = 56) assessed 39 contributed examples provided to support actual evaluations. Results indicated high agreement between the original value and the independent assessments. The flexibility and increased use of the BES data are discussed.

Format and scoring variations in behavioral expectation evaluations

Abstract Three formats (I, behavioral expectation scales; II, checklist; and III, graphic rating), each with an underlying behavioral expectation frame of reference, were compared for their variations in performance evaluation results. In addition, the effect of different scoring systems, for the same set of data, on the evaluation results were examined. Students (I, N = 50; II, N = 48; and III, N = 43) evaluated an instructor on forms which were developed by utilizing data generated in the Harari and Zedeck (1973) study. Results indicated that conclusions with respect to performance evaluation can be a function of response format or scoring system. Implications of these results with respect to their effect on the traditional response biases of halo and leniency are offered along with methods, for their assessment.

The experience of tedium in three generations of professional women

Tedium, defined as the experience of emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion, was studied in three generations of professional women, who were questioned extensively about their lifestyles, life stresses, and life attitudes. Results indicated that in spite of the differences in life features and pressures among the three groups, the similarities in their experiences, attitudes, and overall life satisfaction are rather impressive. The differences among the generations tended to cluster around the more stressful environment of college for the young preprofessional women, who experienced most tedium and were most overextended and conflicted, and around the more traditional attitudes toward women and womens issues expressed by the older postprofessional generation, who also had the least tedium. The midcareer professional women were characterized by more positive life attitudes, more satisfaction from their work, and by liberal feministic attitudes toward working womens issues. Three focal variables were hypothesized and documented to be important tedium correlates for all professional women. Of the three, role conflict rather than number of roles was found to be a positive tedium correlate. Sense of control and especially having social support systems emerged as significant negative tedium correlates.

Discriminability in Multidimensional Performance Evaluations

A series of behavioral expectation scale (BES) applications were analyzed in an attempt to point out an appropriate number of dimensions to be in cluded in such studies. Data from 4 independent samples, representing 3 different occupations, and incorporating a total of 436 multidimensional evaluations were subjected to factor analysis. Re sults reflected the lack of unique information con tributed when the number of dimensions exceeds 9. The problem of lack of dimension independence was discussed in terms of theory and application to multidimensional performance evaluation. Sug gestions are advanced for limiting the number of dimensions as a potential solution to information redundancy.

Capturing and Clustering Judges' Policies

Abstract Judgment analysis has been used as a method for grouping judges according to the homogeneity of their regression equations. It is demonstrated that (a) contrary to the accepted claim, judgment analysis may fail to generate an optimal grouping, and (b) this problem is, in fact, a special case of a wellknown clustering problem for which a variety of cluster analysis techniques are available.