General Mental Ability and Selection in Private Sector Organizations: A Commentary

Author(s):  
Jerard F. Kehoe
2014 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 123-133 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wiebke Goertz ◽  
Ute R. Hülsheger ◽  
Günter W. Maier

General mental ability (GMA) has long been considered one of the best predictors of training success and considerably better than specific cognitive abilities (SCAs). Recently, however, researchers have provided evidence that SCAs may be of similar importance for training success, a finding supporting personnel selection based on job-related requirements. The present meta-analysis therefore seeks to assess validities of SCAs for training success in various occupations in a sample of German primary studies. Our meta-analysis (k = 72) revealed operational validities between ρ = .18 and ρ = .26 for different SCAs. Furthermore, results varied by occupational category, supporting a job-specific benefit of SCAs.


2016 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 45-54 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jason G. Randall ◽  
Anton J. Villado ◽  
Christina U. Zimmer

Abstract. The purpose of this study was to test for race and sex differences in general mental ability (GMA) retest performance and to identify the psychological mechanisms underlying these differences. An initial and retest administration of a GMA assessment separated by a six-week span was completed by 318 participants. Contrary to our predictions, we found that race, sex, and emotional stability failed to moderate GMA retest performance. However, GMA assessed via another ability test and conscientiousness both partially explained retest performance. Additionally, we found that retesting may reduce adverse impact ratios by lowering the hiring threshold. Ultimately, our findings reinforce the need for organizations to consider race, sex, ability, and personality when implementing retesting procedures.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 8
Author(s):  
Christopher J. Schmank ◽  
Sara Anne Goring ◽  
Kristof Kovacs ◽  
Andrew R. A. Conway

In a recent publication in the Journal of Intelligence, Dennis McFarland mischaracterized previous research using latent variable and psychometric network modeling to investigate the structure of intelligence. Misconceptions presented by McFarland are identified and discussed. We reiterate and clarify the goal of our previous research on network models, which is to improve compatibility between psychological theories and statistical models of intelligence. WAIS-IV data provided by McFarland were reanalyzed using latent variable and psychometric network modeling. The results are consistent with our previous study and show that a latent variable model and a network model both provide an adequate fit to the WAIS-IV. We therefore argue that model preference should be determined by theory compatibility. Theories of intelligence that posit a general mental ability (general intelligence) are compatible with latent variable models. More recent approaches, such as mutualism and process overlap theory, reject the notion of general mental ability and are therefore more compatible with network models, which depict the structure of intelligence as an interconnected network of cognitive processes sampled by a battery of tests. We emphasize the importance of compatibility between theories and models in scientific research on intelligence.


1967 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 488-490 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arden Grotelueschen ◽  
Thomas J. Lyons

Quick Word Test (QWT) total and part scores for 178 adults were correlated with WAIS IQ scores. Pearson rs of .77 and .74 were found between total QWT scores and WAIS verbal and total IQ scores, respectively. Data indicate that the QWT appears to be a valid measure of general mental ability.


2013 ◽  
Vol 14 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S328-S357 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claudine Kearney ◽  
Robert D. Hisrich ◽  
Bostjan Antoncic

A model is proposed that tests the antecedents and the mediating effect of corporate entrepreneurship on the external environment-performance relationship within private and public sector organizations. Hypotheses were tested using data from a sample of chief executive officers in 51 private sector organizations in the United States, 141 private sector organizations in Slovenia and 134 public sector state and semi-state enterprises in Ireland. Data was analyzed using hierarchical regression analysis. The results show that dynamism and munificence effects on performance are mediated by an organization's corporate entrepreneurship in the private sector and munificence effects on performance are mediated by an organization's renewal in the public sector and that renewal must be in place to maximize the effect of munificence on performance. The results support a model that incorporates an extensive and diverse literature into a single model and helps illuminate similarities and differences of corporate entrepreneurship between the private sector and the public sector. The study shows that an integrative model and the interplay among the constructs yields new insights unavailable to single and focused approaches. It offers new insights about corporate entrepreneurship, not only as a discrete pursuit, but also as a construct that shapes and extends organizational performance.


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