Validating Construct Validity And Optimizing Test Effect Of The In-basket Test

Reliability and validity which include content validity,construct validity and criterion-related validity,is most important measurement index for juding a personnel selection and assessment tools good or not.In-basket construct validity is often checked in assessment center,little for itself.Researchers abroad employ factor reduction,Multitrait-Multimethod analysis,and confirmatory factor analysis and so on to check the construct validity of in-basket;however,the result is sill not convergent.Despite these is some researches primary discussing the construct validity problem,but theory basis and analysis method are limited to these researches and In-basket research is on the primary phase at home.The present study adopts competence theory and the trait-activation theory to establish dimensions of in-basket testing,Lying in this basis,for one hand,we use the G study of Generalizability theory to check the construct validity of in-basket,and employ the D study to optimize test effect when changing task quantity and rater quantity.For another hand,we apply nomoical net to probe the construct difference between in-basket and other personnel selection tools,and analysis the incremental validity of in-basket to others in order to optimize combination effect among different personnel selection and assessment tools.The results as follows:(1) The trait-activation theory is the usful theory and method guidance to catch dimensions of in-basket.Adopting the trait-activation theory to analysis the relation between assessment of trait-task and assessment of position requirement,we discover that two are notabily related on the ability of planning and organizing,integration analysis and so on.Thus,we establish the dimension system of in-basket test.(2) The G study of Generalizability theory suggests that those components associated with a person main effect,a dimension main effect,and a person by dimension interaction accounted for a considerable proportion of the total variance; but components associated with a rater main effect,a task main effect,a rater by task interaction and a dimension by task interaction accounted for limited proportion of the total variance.This means in-basket showing definite construct validity.(3)Multivariate Generalizability Research of in-basket discovers when in-basket has 8-12 pieces of tasks and 3-4 raters joining rating,its reliability could reach a preferable level.(4)Stepwise regression analysis suggests that gerneral cognitive ability notably affects in-basket score,whereas,big-five has no effect on in-basket score.Combined with correlation analysis,we infer that gerneral cognitive ability is more likely to be former variable of in-basket,not conceive of in-basket.(5)Enter regression analysis suggests that in-basket could contribute considerable incremental validity beyond gerneral cognitive ability test and personality test.For different criterion,personnel selection and assessment tools combination produces different incremental validity.When taking task performance and total performance as criterion,in-basket could contribute more incremental validity beyond gerneral cognitive ability test and personality test.