Patricia C. Smith

A general measure of work stress: The Stress in General scale.

The present study focused on the development and validation of scores on the Stress in General scale. Three diverse samples of workers (n = 4,322, n = 574, n = 34) provided psychometric and validity evidence. All evidence converged on the existence of two distinct subscales, each of which measured a different aspect of general work stress. The studies also resulted in meaningful patterns of correlations with stressor measures, a physiological measure of chronic stress (blood-pressure reactivity), general job attitude measures, and intentions to quit.

A Lengthy Look at the Daily Grind: Time Series Analysis of Events, Mood, Stress, and Satisfaction

The present study investigated processes by which job stress and satisfaction unfold over time by examining the relations between daily stressful events, mood, and these variables. Using a Web-based daily survey of stressor events, perceived strain, mood, and job satisfaction completed by 14 university workers, 1,060 occasions of data were collected. Transfer function analysis, a multivariate version of time series analysis, was used to examine the data for relationships among the measured variables after factoring out the contaminating influences of serial dependency. Results revealed a contrast effect in which a stressful event associated positively with higher strain on the same day and associated negatively with strain on the following day. Perceived strain increased over the course of a semester for a majority of participants, suggesting that effects of stress build over time. Finally, the data were consistent with the notion that job satisfaction is a distal outcome that is mediated by perceived strain.

Shorter can Also be Better: The Abridged Job in General Scale.

The Job Descriptive Index family of job attitude measures includes the Job in General (JIG) scale, a measure of global satisfaction with one’s job. The scale was originally developed and validated by Ironson, Smith, Brannick, Gibson, and Paul. Following structured scale reduction procedures developed by Stanton, Sinar, Balzer, and Smith, the current authors developed an abridged version of the JIG for use by practitioners and researchers of organizational behavior. They report the results of three validation studies documenting the process of scale reduction and the psychometric suitability of the reduced-length scale.

The Relation between Job Level and Job Satisfaction

Two studies examined the relation between job level and job satisfaction. Study 1 was a metaanalysis of the relation between job level and job satisfaction using data drawn from 35 independent samples (N= 18,534). It was found that as job level increased, so did job satisfaction. Several possible moderators of this relation were identified. Study 2 was a primary study of the relation between job level and job satisfaction using 4 measures of job level and 5 facets of job satisfaction (N = 530 in 4 hospitals). There was a high degree of convergence among the measures of job level and a consistently positive relation between the job level and job facet satisfaction measures. These studies suggest that the relation between job level and job satisfaction is positive across most operationalizations of the 2 constructs and that other moderators should be investigated to account for the large residual variance in effect sizes identified.

Development of a Compact Measure of Job Satisfaction: The Abridged Job Descriptive Index

The Job Descriptive Index is a popular measure of job satisfaction with five subscales containing 72 items. A national sample (n = 1,534) and a sample of university workers (n = 636) supported development of an abridged version of the Job Descriptive Index (AJDI) containing a total of 25 items. A systematic scale-reduction technique was employed with the first sample to decide which items to retain in each scale. The abridged subscales were then tested in the second sample. Results indicated that the relationships among the five abridged subscales and between the five abridged subscales and other measures were substantially preserved.

Revising the JDI Work Satisfaction Subscale: Insights into Stress and Control.

The Job Descriptive Index (JDI) is a widely used facet measure of job satisfaction that has undergone several revisions since its first publication in 1969. A revision in 1985 added items that, in subsequent research, appeared to tap work stress rather than work satisfaction. To illuminate the contaminating effect of these items, the authors analyzed two samples (n = 1,623 and n = 314) that also contained test items hypothesized to tap job control. A multigroup confirmatory factor analysis supported a three-factor solution and provided evidence supporting the removal of the contaminating items from the JDI. The presence of factorially complex items, however, indicated that some content overlap remains in the measure. Hierarchical regression results supported predictions about relationships between satisfaction, stress, and control. Results of the study have implications for development of occupational satisfaction measures and further refinement of stress, control, and satisfaction constructs.

Perspectives on the measurement of job attitudes: the long view

Abstract Insights from 50 years of industrial research and consulting projects were synthesized into a set of themes pertaining to the measurement of job attitudes. The themes include the importance of developing instruments using vocabulary and style familiar to respondents; of programmatic research in developing and validating measures; of paying attention to anomalies and discontinuities in data; and of integrating research results into science and practice. The authors develop recommendations concerning obtaining useful field experience and fostering a scientific environment that respects and encourages efforts to improve psychological measurement.

INFLUENCE OF VARYING SOURCES OF INFORMATION ON JUDGMENTS OF INTERVIEWS

Ratings of 17 role-played interviews were made by separate raters on 17 dimensions by 17 Es serving in turn as interviewer, observer with application form, observer without application form, listener to a tape with application form, listener to a tape without an application form, and rater of application form alone. There were differences in means and correlations among the conditions (p < .05) and a differential reliance on the application blank when interviewee was observed or not observed.

Common Errors in Reports of Psychological Studies

Over 90% of manuscripts finally accepted for publication by Perceptual and Motor Skills require revision. Frequently, faults are found in the formal structure and content of reports, and in the style and grammar of reporting. Examples of common deficiencies in both categories are reported.

Apparent size contrasts of retinal images and size constancy as determinants of the moon illusion.

Kaufman and Rock (1962) and Rock and Kaufman (1962) concluded that the moon illusion is a function of and attributable to apparent distance. They also reported a large framing effect as an exception. Analysis of the effect suggests two components which can account for the illusion independently of apparent distance. These are apparent size contrasts of visual images of discriminable features or objects of the earth with the moons image and size constancy of the features or objects plus the interactions of the two. Apparent distances to horizons are always a consequence of the necessary conditions for the illusion. They are related to the illusion but are not a determinant of it.