A method of developing performance appraisal instruments : an alternative to the Behavioral Expectation Scale

The purposes of this study were (1) to determine whether supervisors and employees could agree on the relative importance of 25 dimensions for the evaluation of clerical job performance, and (2) to test the effectiveness of using this information in determining the content of performance appraisal instruments. Each of 245 supervisors and employees was administered the Dimension Selection Questionnaire (DSQ) in which they were asked to rate the importance of the 25 performance dimensions on a 7-point Likert scale. As a second method of evaluating the dimensions, the DSQ asked participants to circle the five dimensions that they felt were most important. Agreement on the importance of dimensions was found both within and between the groups of supervisors and employees, as well as across methods of evaluation. Convergent validity was established for the DSQ, but discriminant validity was not. Possible explanations for the lack of discriminant validity were discussed, and the conclusion was reached that the method of developing performance appraisal instruments described in this study provides a potentially effective alternative to existing methods. Recommendations to personnel practitioners were offered.