A COMPARISON OF VALIDATION CRITERIA: OBJECTIVE VERSUS SUBJECTIVE PERFORMANCE MEASURES AND SELF‐ VERSUS SUPERVISOR RATINGS

Abstract

This study compared four criteria–two objective (production quantity and production quality) and two subjective (supervisor and self‐ratings)–for their predictability in a criterion‐related validity study. Results from this sample of 212 maintenance, mechanic, and field service workers replicated previous meta‐analytic results with clerical workers (Nathan & Alexander, 1988); supervisor ratings and objective productivity indices provided similar and significant validity coefficients with a unit‐weighted composite of five cognitive ability tests. The objective quality index and employee self‐ratings resulted in near zero correlations with the same predictor battery. Additional productivity and quality objective criterion data were available for 2 years since the original validation study; no change in validity was found.