Book Description

Literature pertaining to prediction of enlisted military job performance, 1952-1980, was reviewed. The review excluded studies in which training performance or reenlistment is the criterion. Aptitude was the most frequently used predictor and supervisor ratings the most frequent criterion. Relationships among classes of criteria and between predictors and criteria were examined. Major classes of criteria were job proficiency, job performance, and suitability to military service. The following conclusions are supported by the review: (1) For the great majority of jobs, job knowledge tests appear to provide the most practical method of objective measurement; (2) Because job sample tests are very expensive to construct and administer, their use is not practical unless the job is extremely costly or critical; and (3) Use of supervisors' ratings as the only measure of job performance should be restricted to jobs for which motivation, social skill, and response to situational requirements are the only attributes worth measuring. Two promising approaches to improved prediction are the selective use of miniaturized training and assessment centers and the use of self-paced training performance as a predictor. The review includes abstracts of the studies that were reviewed.