Validity of General Mental Ability for the Prediction of Job Performance and Training Success in Germany: A meta‐analysis1

Abstract

A meta‐analysis into the operational validity of general mental ability (GMA) measures in Germany is presented. The meta‐analysis addresses the question whether findings of US and European meta‐analyses are generalizable to Germany given the differences in the education systems of these countries. The high level of differentiation in the German educational system is expected to enhance the homogeneity of applicant pools resulting in a low level of variability in predictor scores which reduces the observed GMA–performance relationships. Our analysis is based on 54 independent German articles and unpublished reports. Results indicated an operational validity of ρ=.467 for training success (k=90; N=11,969) and ρ=.534 for job performance (k=9; N=746). Moderator analyses showed that job complexity and the year of publication are relevant moderator variables, with lower job complexity levels and older studies being associated with higher operational validities. Findings suggest that overall German operational validities are comparable with findings in the United States or other European countries. However, for training success operational GMA validities are slightly lower in Germany compared with US or European meta‐analyses.