Psychological Measurement and Group Dynamics Essentials

Reliability and Validity in Measurement

Reliability: The consistency of a measure; how well scores for the same subject are replicable across repeated measurements of the same variable. Types include: Internal, Inter-rater, Parallel Forms, and Test-Retest.

• Construct validity: The extent to which a test measures the underlying construct it was intended to measure.
• Content validity: The degree to which a test or predictor covers a representative sample of the quality being assessed.
• Predictive validity: The extent to which test scores obtained at one point in time predict criteria obtained in the future.
• Concurrent validity: The extent to which a test predicts a criterion measured at the same time the test is conducted.

Workplace Stress and Coping Mechanisms

General Stress Model Sources

• Intrinsic factors: Poor working conditions (e.g., low lighting, excessive noise, long hours).
• Role variables: A role is a set of behaviors expected of a person in a group (e.g., role ambiguity or receiving mixed signals from a supervisor).
• Interpersonal relationships and career advancement.

Coping Strategies

• Problem-focused coping: Behaviors or actions targeted toward solving or handling the problem itself, such as compromising with a coworker on a conflict.
• Emotion-focused coping: Cognitive or thought-related strategies to minimize stress induced by an event, such as reframing the situation positively.

Warr's emotional determinants of well-being: Work-family conflict and work-family enrichment.

Group Dynamics and Team Performance

• Norms: Shared expectations about appropriate ways of responding in a group.
• Role differentiation: The process by which a group establishes distinct roles for various members.
• Cohesion: The strength of members' motivation to maintain membership in a group and the bonds developed.
• Social loafing: The reduction in individual effort that occurs when people work in groups instead of alone.
• Brainstorming: A technique where all members generate potential solutions without fear of criticism.
• Process loss: Any non-motivational element of a group situation that detracts from performance, such as a lack of coordination.
• Groupthink: A mode of thinking where the desire to agree in a cohesive group overrides the realistic appraisal of alternatives.
• Shared mental model: Organized structures combining knowledge, beliefs, and understandings that help coordinate efforts.
• Task work: Activities or behaviors involving task-oriented aspects of work.
• Teamwork: Activities or behaviors involving process-oriented aspects of work.

The 5 Bases of Power

1. Legitimate power
2. Reward power
3. Coercive power
4. Expert power
5. Referent power