Title Details

Leonard D. Goodstein, Ph.D., a consulting psychologist based in Washington, D.C., specializes in providing consultation in personality assessment, especially in the workplace—as well as executive development, including executive coaching. He is also a Principal with Professional Assessment Services and Solutions (PASS), Psichometrics International, LLC, and Forensic Sciences Medical Group, PC.
After receiving his bachelor’s degree with honors from the City College of New York, Dr. Goodstein went on to receive both an M.A. and Ph.D. from Columbia University, both in psychology. A holder of the Diploma in Clinical Psychology of the American Board of Professional Psychology, Dr. Goodstein is a Distinguished Practitioner of the National Academy of Practice. He is a licensed psychologist in both California and the District of Columbia. Dr. Goodstein is listed in Who’s Who in America and American Men and Women in Science.
Since completing a three-year term as executive vice president and chief executive officer of the American Psychological Association, psychology’s national membership association, in 1988 he has been engaged in consulting, research, and writing. Prior to APA, Dr. Goodstein had a distinguished academic career, including professorships at the Universities of Iowa, Cincinnati, and Arizona State, where he served as chair of the Department of Psychology. In addition, he has been a Fulbright Senior Lecturer (Professor) at the Vrije Universiteit in the Netherlands. After leaving academia and prior to joining APA, he was president and later chairman of the board of University Associates, Inc., now Pfeiffer.

Erich P. Prien, Ph.D., an industrial/organizational psychologist based in Memphis, Tennessee, specializes in the development, standardization, and application of psychological tests, especially in the workplace. He is also the founder and president of Performance Management Press (PMP), which has been the principal marketing arm for his tests.
Following receipt of his bachelor’s degree from Western Michigan University, he received an MA from Carnegie Mellon University and a Ph.D. from Western Reserve University (now Case Western Reserve), both in industrial/organizational psychology. Dr. Prien has served as a research psychologist for the Standard Oil Company, as assistant director of the Psychological Research Service at Case Western University, as adviser to the Imperial Iranian Armed Forces, and as a faculty member at Greensboro College, University of Akron, Georgia Technical University, and the University of Memphis. After leaving the University of Memphis in 1987, Dr. Prien has devoted himself to his professional practice, his research, and his sustained interest in writing. Dr. Prien is a fellow of the American Psychological Association and the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology and holds the Diploma in Industrial Psychology from the American Board of Professional Psychology. Among his many awards are the Distinguished Professional Award from the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, the Author of the Year Award from The American Society of Training Directors and the Journal of Performance and Instruction, and he was the Creativity Research Award Winner from the American Society for Personnel Administration twice.

Foreword by W. Warner Burke xi

Foreword by Adrian Furnham xv

1. Introduction 1

For Whom Did We Write This Book? 1

What Are Our Recommendations? 2

How Is This Book Organized? 3

2. The Practice of Individual Assessment 7

What Is Individual Assessment? 8

What Does an Assessor Need to Know? 8

The Three Levels of Assessor Competencies 9

The Individual Assessment Model 15

Information Technology and Individual Assessment 22

Summary 29

3. Psychological Measurement 31

The Normal Distribution Curve 31

Reliability 33

Validity 37

Norms 40

The Role of the Assessor 42

Classification of Psychological Tests 44

Interviewing 51

Summary 52

4. Collecting and Analyzing Assessment Data 53

Using the Five-Step Model of Individual Assessment 54

Hard and Soft Data 68

Assessment Procedures and Choices 71

Reporting and Follow-Up Choices 82

Summary 83

5. Developing and Integrating Individual Assessment Data 85

Choosing Measures 86

The Database 88

Processing the Database 96

Summary 104

6. Reporting Individual Assessment Results 107

The Focus of a Final Report 108

Content and Style 108

Drawing Conclusions and Making Recommendations 118

A Decision-Making Model 119

A Forty-Question Checklist 121

Computer-Generated Reports 121

Individual Assessment for Development 125

Future-Oriented Job Analysis 134

Summary 135

Appendix A: Recommended Readings 137

Appendix B: Sample Position Description 139

Appendix C: Introduction to Job Analysis 143

Appendix D: First-Line Management/Supervisory Level Competency Model 153
Appendix E: Senior Management/Executive Level Competency Model 159

Appendix F: Sample Individual Assessment Report on Applicant for Administrative
Assistant Position 167

Appendix G: Sample Assessment Report—Supervisor/First-Line Manager 171

Appendix H: Sample Individual Assessment Report—Management and Executive Level 179

Appendix I: Selected Tests and Publishers 189

References 199

About the Authors 203

Index 205

"Clearly written and well organized" (Personnel Psychology, 10/03/2007) "This book is the prefect resource for professionals with some background in employment assessment for selection. It offers the best expert advice available for conducting psychological assessment that will yield excellent results, both for job candidates and organizations. It will prove invaluable to anyone planning or conducting assessments for selection and development."
—Marshall Sashkin, professor of human resource development, graduate school of education and human development, The George Washington University