Acquaintance Ratings Research Articles

The interplay between extraversion, task significance, and task variety at work

Extraversion bears several advantages for employees at work such as increased job performance and organizational citizenship behavior. However, empirical research and theoretical perspectives suggest that contextual moderators may qualify the extent to which extraversion is beneficial at work. Here, we investigated whether task significance and task variety – two contextual variables that are congruent with extraversion's advantages – moderate extraversion-performance relations. Across two multi-source studies with employees, we found that task significance strengthened the positive relationships between extraversion with job performance and organizational citizenship behavior. Task variety did not moderate these extraversion-performance relationships. Moreover, the interaction between acquaintance ratings of extraversion and task significance also predicted organizational citizenship behavior. We discuss the practical and theoretical implications.

Implicit core self‐evaluations and work outcomes: Validating an indirect measure

Core self‐evaluations (CSE) represent the fundamental appraisals individuals make about their self‐worth and capabilities. Although scholars characterize CSE as evaluations that are both conscious and subconscious, the implicit aspect of CSE has not yet been examined. Drawing on models of dual information processing, we develop and validate an indirect measure (Implicit Association Test) assessing implicit CSE. Therefore, we investigate how explicit, implicit, and acquaintance‐rated CSE relate to task performance, organizational citizenship behaviours (OCB), and income. We argue that implicit CSE accounts for incremental variance in these three outcomes beyond explicit and acquaintance‐rated CSE. We found that implicit CSE accounted for incremental variance in OCB and income above and beyond explicit CSE. Our effects for implicit CSE held even when controlling for acquaintance ratings of CSE. Also, acquaintance ratings accounted for incremental variance in income and OCB beyond explicit CSE. We discuss implications for CSE measurement and research, and the practical implications of our findings.Practitioner points In evaluative situations, such as personnel selection, self‐reported core self‐evaluations (CSE) are susceptible to impression management and social desirability. We developed an indirect measure (i.e., an Implicit Association Test) to assess implicit CSE and demonstrated that it accounts for incremental variance in job performance and income beyond self‐reported and other‐rated CSE. Organizations and practitioners should measure self‐rated, implicit, and other‐rated CSE to predict job performance and income more accurately.

Acquaintance ratings of the Big Five personality traits: incremental validity beyond and interactive effects with self-reports in the prediction of workplace deviance.

It is widely established that the Big Five personality traits of conscientiousness, agreeableness, and emotional stability are antecedents to workplace deviance (Berry, Ones, & Sackett, 2007). However, these meta-analytic findings are based on self-reported personality traits. A recent meta-analysis by Oh, Wang, and Mount (2011) identified the value of acquaintance-reported personality in the prediction of job performance. The current investigation extends prior work by comparing the validities of self- and acquaintance-reported personality in the prediction of workplace deviance across 2 studies. We also hypothesized and tested an interactive, value-added integration of self- with acquaintance-reported personality using socioanalytic personality theory (R. T. Hogan, 1991). Both studies assessed self- and acquaintance-rated Big Five traits, along with supervisor-rated workplace deviance. However, the studies varied the measures of workplace deviance, and the 2nd study also included a self-rated workplace deviance criterion for additional comparison. Across both studies, the traits of conscientiousness and agreeableness were strong predictors of workplace deviance, and acquaintance-reported personality provided incremental validity beyond self-reports. Additionally, acquaintance-reported conscientiousness and agreeableness moderated the prediction of workplace deviance by interacting with the corresponding self-reported traits. Implications for personality theory and measurement are discussed along with applications for practice.

Supplemental Material for Acquaintance Ratings of the Big Five Personality Traits: Incremental Validity Beyond and Interactive Effects With Self-Reports in the Prediction of Workplace Deviance

Supplemental Material for Acquaintance Ratings of the Big Five Personality Traits: Incremental Validity Beyond and Interactive Effects With Self-Reports in the Prediction of Workplace Deviance

Observer judgmental accuracy of personality: Benefits related to being a good (normative) judge

The current study tested the hypothesis that accuracy of personality judgment would be positively related to beneficial life outcomes. 189 participants observed targets across 5 dyadic interactions and made judgments of the 10 targets on the Big Five traits. Self and acquaintance ratings were used as the accuracy criteria. Normative accuracy for all traits was related to agreeableness, and normative accuracy for some traits was positively related to interpersonal control, interpersonal support, positive affect, and life satisfaction. Distinctive accuracy was not related to beneficial outcomes. These results imply that normative accuracy based on observation is associated with beneficial outcomes, whereas distinctive accuracy is not.

An Examination of Information Quality as a Moderator of Accurate Personality Judgment

Information quality is an important moderator of the accuracy of personality judgment, and this article describes research focusing on how specific kinds of information are related to accuracy. In this study, 228 participants (159 female, 69 male; mean age = 23.43; 86.4% Caucasian) in unacquainted dyads were assigned to discuss thoughts and feelings, discuss behaviors, or engage in behaviors. Interactions lasted 25-30 min, and participants provided ratings of their partners and themselves following the interaction on the Big Five traits, ego-control, and ego-resiliency. Next, the amount of different types of information made available by each participant was objectively coded. The accuracy criterion, composed of self- and acquaintance ratings, was used to assess distinctive and normative accuracy using the Social Accuracy Model. Participants in the discussion conditions achieved higher distinctive accuracy than participants who engaged in behaviors, but normative accuracy did not differ across conditions. Information about specific behaviors and general behaviors were among the most consistent predictors of higher distinctive accuracy. Normative accuracy was more likely to decrease than increase when higher-quality information was available. Verbal information about behaviors is the most useful for learning about how people are unique.

The many faces of assumed similarity in perceptions of personality

We propose that most coefficients of assumed similarity in acquaintance ratings are based on actual similarity between observer and target rather than any bias to project self onto other. We assessed assumed similarity, actual similarity, and rater accuracy in 62 university roommate dyads who rated each other on 74 personality-related variables. Our findings indicate that our roommates (a) were actually alike on many variables, (b) knew this, rather than assumed it, and (c) applied this knowledge to enhance the accuracy of their ratings. We outline a model of judgment that urges three distinct concepts: true assumed similarity, known similarity, and spurious similarity. We conclude that personality ratings among acquaintances reflecting true assumed similarity are probably rare.

Acquaintance-Ratings of Personality and Workplace Deviance: Incremental Validity Beyond Self-Reports

It is widely established that the Big Five personality traits of conscientiousness, emotional stability, and agreeableness are antecedents to workplace deviance (Berry, Ones, & Sackett, 2007). However, these meta-analytic findings are based on self-reported assessments of personality traits. A recent meta-analysis by Oh and colleagues (Oh, Wang, & Mount, 2010) identifies the value of other- reported Big Five traits with task performance. The current manuscript extends prior work on acquaintance ratings of personality by comparing self- and acquaintance-ratings of personality to workplace deviance. We tested these relationships in two studies. Study 1 (n = 234) assessed self- and acquaintance-rated conscientiousness, emotional stability, and agreeableness and supervisor ratings of workplace deviance. Study 2 (n = 225) again assessed these self- and acquaintance-rated personality traits and supervisor rated deviance, in addition to self-rated deviance. Across both studies, the traits of conscientiousness and agreeableness were strong predictors of workplace deviance and provided incremental validity beyond their respective self-rated counterpart. Results for emotional stability were mixed. Implications for personality theory and measurement are discussed along with applications for the practice of personnel selection.

Gender Differences in the Correlates of Self‐Referent Word Use: Authority, Entitlement, and Depressive Symptoms

Past research shows that self-focused attention is robustly positively related to depression, and women are more likely than men to self-focus in response to depressed mood (e.g., R. Ingram, 1990; S. Nolen-Hoeksema, 1987). The goal of the current study was to further delineate gender differences in the correlates of self-focus as measured through the frequency of spontaneous use of self-referencing words. The frequency of such word use during a life history interview was correlated with self-reports, observations by clinically trained interviewers, and personality judgments by acquaintances. Results indicated that the relationship between self-reference and observations of depressive symptoms was stronger for women than men, and the relationship between self-reference and narcissistic authority and entitlement was stronger for men than for women. Acquaintance ratings supported these correlates. These findings illuminate the importance of using multiple measures and paying attention to gender differences in research on self-focus.

Applications of Generalizability Theory to Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology Research*

Using generalizability theory to evaluate the reliability of child and adolescent measures enables researchers to enhance precision of measurement and consequently increase confidence in research findings. With an observer-rated measure of child self-regulation, we illustrate how multiple sources of error variance (e.g., raters, items) affect the dependability (replicability) of scores and demonstrate methods for enhancing dependability of observer ratings. Using ratings of 181 children, we illustrate the use of two-facet (i.e., raters and items as sources of error) and three-facet (i.e., raters, items and occasions) analyses to optimize design features of future studies using this measure. In addition, we show how generalizability theory provides a useful conceptual framework for thinking about determinants of scores on acquaintance (e.g., teacher or parent) ratings, as well as observer ratings, and sheds light on the strengths and limitations of both types of data for child and adolescent clinical research.

Beyond self-report in the study of hedonic and eudaimonic well-being: Correlations with acquaintance reports, clinician judgments and directly observed social behavior

Surprisingly little is known about how well-being is related to social reputation, clinician judgments, and directly observed social behaviors. This study presents data that bear directly on these issues, along with comparing the personality and behavioral correlates of subjective happiness, a measurement based on a hedonic conceptualization of well-being, with psychological well-being, a eudaimonic conceptualization. The findings demonstrate remarkable consistency in the pattern of correlates of the two measures across acquaintance ratings, clinician judgments, and directly observed social behaviors. By either conceptualization, people high in well-being enjoy positive social reputations (e.g., cheerful, sociable, satisfied with life), are rated as well-adjusted by clinicians (e.g., consistent, resilient), and can be observed to exhibit adaptive social behaviors (e.g., social skill, expressiveness).

The Impact of Item Characteristics on Item and Scale Validity

This study describes the relation between personality items' validities, defined as the items' correlations with acquaintance ratings on the Big 5 personality factors, and other itemmetric properties including ambiguity, syntactic complexity, social desirability, content, and trait indicativity. Five external validity coefficients for each item on the California Psychological Inventory were correlated with a number of itemmetric variables often assumed to affect item validity. Item validity correlated positively with social desirability and trait indicativity and negatively with ambiguity across the five factors. Other characteristics had a more limited influence on item validity. Multiple regression analyses revealed trait indicativity -- how obviously an item response indicates a trait -- to be the most important determinant of item validity. Scales built from itemmetrically sound versus poor items showed differential validity in two additional samples. Implications for the psychological processes underlying responses to personality items are discussed.

Predicting observers' ratings of the big five from the CPI, HPI, and NEO-PI-R: a comparative validity study

The present study compares the ability of three widely used personality inventories to predict averaged acquaintance ratings. Scores from 135 individuals on the California Psychological Inventory (CPI; Gough, 1987), Hogan Personality Inventory (HPI; Hogan and Hogan, 1992) and NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI-R; Costa and McCrae, 1992) were correlated with four sets of acquaintance ratings representing four variants of the Five-Factor Model. Validity coefficients for the NEO-PI-R primary domain scales equalled or surpassed the CPI and HPI validity coefficients. Across all inventory scales and subscales, the magnitude of validity coefficients was moderated by the congruence between a predictor's and criterion's secondary factor loading. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Predicting observers' ratings of the big five from the CPI, HPI, and NEO-PI-R: a comparative validity study

The present study compares the ability of three widely used personality inventories to predict averaged acquaintance ratings. Scores from 135 individuals on the California Psychological Inventory (CPI; Gough, 1987), Hogan Personality Inventory (HPI; Hogan and Hogan, 1992) and NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI-R; Costa and McCrae, 1992) were correlated with four sets of acquaintance ratings representing four variants of the Five-Factor Model. Validity coefficients for the NEO-PI-R primary domain scales equalled or surpassed the CPI and HPI validity coefficients. Across all inventory scales and subscales, the magnitude of validity coefficients was moderated by the congruence between a predictor's and criterion's secondary factor loading. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Effects of variable selection on the factor structure of person descriptors.

Previous factor-analytic studies of lexical person descriptors have produced some recurrent patterns of results, but their integration has been hampered by divergences in variable sampling, such as disparate criteria for what is considered a personality descriptor. To isolate effects of variable selection on factor structures, 500 of the most familiar English person descriptors were identified. Fifteen judges provided reliable classifications of these adjectives as disposition, state, social evaluation, or physical-appearance terms. Analyses of adult self-ratings (N = 700) and acquaintance ratings (N = 201) led to a stable Big Five structure when disposition terms, or combined disposition and state terms, were analyzed. Including a wider range of terms led to two additional stable factors: Attractiveness and a factor resembling Big Seven Negative Valence. A stable 3-factor solution was relatively impervious to variable-selection effects.

On the accuracy of ratings of personality by strangers.

Past studies in person perception have shown unexpectedly high correlations between targets' self-ratings of personality traits and ratings of those targets made by stranger judges. Possible reasons for the apparent accuracy of strangers' ratings are examined, including personality judgments that are based on (a) the perceived social desirability of targets, (b) known sex-linked base rates of behavior, and (c) the inevitable presence of valid personality cues in the typical stranger rating study. A computer simulation study is then described that illustrates that a relatively small number of nonrandom accurate judgments among many random judgments can produce substantial overall correlations between self-ratings and stranger ratings. The data of the study provide some clarification of past empirical results of both stranger and acquaintance ratings of personality.

Personality and compatibility: a prospective analysis of marital stability and marital satisfaction.

The antecedents of marital stability (divorce or remaining married) and marital satisfaction (within the group that remains married) were investigated with a panel of 300 couples who were followed from their engagements in the 1930s until 1980. Twenty-two of the couples broke their engagements; of the 278 couples who married, 50 got divorced at some time between 1935 and 1980. Personality characteristics (measured by acquaintance ratings made in the 1930s) were important predictors of both marital stability and marital satisfaction. The three aspects of personality most strongly related to marital outcome were the neuroticism of the husband, the neuroticism of the wife, and the impulse control of the husband. In combination, the 17 major antecedent variables were moderately predictive of a criterion variable composed of both marital stability and marital satisfaction (R = .49). The three major aspects of personality accounted for more than half of the predictable variance. The remaining variance was accounted for by attitudinal, social-environment, and sexual history variables.

Intraindividual consistency in personality assessment: The effect of self-monitoring

Low and high scoring individuals on Snyder's Self-Monitoring (SM) Scale were compared for differences in (a) variability in personality descriptions provided by 10 acquaintances, and (b) discrepancies between their self-ratings and the averaged acquaintance ratings. Each subject was rated by 10 different persons (e.g., parent, sibling, roommate, teacher), and the standard deviations of their ratings on each subject for 14 personality dimensions served as dependent measures. Contrary to the first hypothesis, no differences in the variability of acquaintance ratings were observed between SM groups. The second hypothesis received substantial empirical support. High SM subjects showed a significantly larger discrepancy between self-ratings and the mean acquaintance ratings, primarily because they rated themselves more highly on traits than their acquaintances did. High self-monitors also showed less similarity in the shape of the two personality profiles generated by self- and acquaintance ratings across the 14 traits. The discrepancies observed in high SM subjects between self-ratings and the averaged acquaintance ratings (the latter considered to be more objective) extends the finding of Snyder and Tanke (1976) that high SM subjects showed less congruence between self-reported attitudes and behavior. It is suggested that high SM individuals are particularly high on evaluation apprehension and that in both studies they acted in ways which they believed would enhance their self-presentations.

The Value of Acquaintance Ratings in Criterion Research1

Personnel PsychologyVolume 2, Issue 1 p. 93-102 The Value of Acquaintance Ratings in Criterion Research1 Leonard W. Ferguson, Leonard W. Ferguson Leonard W. Ferguson has been with the Field Training and Field Management Divisions of the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company since 1943. He received his Ph.D. from Stanford University in 1942, and was Assistant Professor of Psychology at the University of Connecticut, 1942–43. He is a member of the American Psychological Association, a Fellow in the Business and Industrial Division, and an Associate in the Evaluation and Measurement Division. He is a Diplomate in Industrial Psychology, American Board of Examiners in Professional Psychology, and is Chairman of the Clerical Salary Study Committee of the Life Office Management Association. He has published in the fields of selection, appraisal, aptitude and attitude testing, and social and applied psychology.Search for more papers by this author Leonard W. Ferguson, Leonard W. Ferguson Leonard W. Ferguson has been with the Field Training and Field Management Divisions of the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company since 1943. He received his Ph.D. from Stanford University in 1942, and was Assistant Professor of Psychology at the University of Connecticut, 1942–43. He is a member of the American Psychological Association, a Fellow in the Business and Industrial Division, and an Associate in the Evaluation and Measurement Division. He is a Diplomate in Industrial Psychology, American Board of Examiners in Professional Psychology, and is Chairman of the Clerical Salary Study Committee of the Life Office Management Association. He has published in the fields of selection, appraisal, aptitude and attitude testing, and social and applied psychology.Search for more papers by this author First published: March 1949 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-6570.1949.tb01673.xCitations: 17 1 Slightly revised version of paper presented at the Boston meetings of the American Psychological Association, September 9, 1948. AboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat Citing Literature Volume2, Issue1March 1949Pages 93-102 RelatedInformation