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  • 1.  Self knowledge as a discrepancy between objective and self-report data

    Posted 08-26-2009 21:17

    For a sample of respondents, I have a self-report measure of cognitive ability (sample item: I have a better vocabulary than most people I know) and scores on a cognitive ability test. I am trying to locate a literature relevant to discrepancies between the two measures.

    My questions are as follows:

    1) What is the best way of expressing the discrepancy between self-reported and objectively-assessed cognitive ability?

    2) What is the best way to characterize the meaning of the discrepancy?  Some discrepancy would be expected from random measurement error in the two measures (both have alpha reliabilities near .80). If the discrepancy is not all measurement noise, I assume that it indicates a systematic error in the self-report measure. Is this error best characterized as a lapse in self-knowledge? If one's self-reported cognitive ability underestimates one's actual cognitive ability, is one modest, or both modest and lacking in self-knowledge?  If one's self-reported cognitive ability is higher than one's actual cognitive ability, is one clueless (or perhaps a teenager)?

    3) If one lacks self knowledge, would one's scores on a personality test be less predictive of a criterion than if one has accurate self knowledge (i.e., self knowledge as a moderator)?  If degree of self-knowledge is an indicator of contamination in the measurement of personality, would self knowledge and the personality measure result in a regression suppressor situation when used to predict a criterion of interest (i.e., self-knowledge as an indicator of systematic error in another measure)?

    4) Is one's degree of self-knowledge concerning cognitive ability a good indicator of the level of self-knowledge concerning other personal characteristics?

    Comments on any of the above would be appreciated.

    Mike
    Michael A. McDaniel, Ph.D.
    Professor - Human Resources and
         Organizational Behavior
    Department of Management,
    Research Professor, Department of Psychology
    Virginia Commonwealth University
    301 West Main Street, , PO Box 844000
    Richmond, VA 23284-4000         		The Management Department of the VCU School of Business offers a Ph.D. in Business with a specialization in Organizational Behavior.

    http://www.people.vcu.edu/~mamcdani/
    voice: 804.827.0209
    e-mail:    MAMcDani@vcu.edu
    skype: MichaelAMcDaniel




  • 2.  Self knowledge as a discrepancy between objective and self-report data

    Posted 08-27-2009 20:57
    Mike,
     
    The following article may be useful to you:
     
    Why people fail to recognize their own incompetence
    Current Directions in Psychological Science
    Volume 12, Issue 3, Date: June 2003, Pages: 83-87
    David Dunning, Kerri Johnson, Joyce Ehrlinger, Justin Kruger
    It's a summary of some very interesting research that basically shows how the most incompetent individuals vastly overestimate their own performance.  The same basic finding has been replicated in a variety of domains, including academic test performance, logical thinking, grammar, and even identifying funny jokes. 
     
    Good luck,
     
    Mark

     
    On Wed, Aug 26, 2009 at 6:17 PM, Michael A McDaniel/AC/VCU <mamcdani@vcu.edu> wrote:

    For a sample of respondents, I have a self-report measure of cognitive ability (sample item: I have a better vocabulary than most people I know) and scores on a cognitive ability test. I am trying to locate a literature relevant to discrepancies between the two measures.

    My questions are as follows:

    1) What is the best way of expressing the discrepancy between self-reported and objectively-assessed cognitive ability?

    2) What is the best way to characterize the meaning of the discrepancy?  Some discrepancy would be expected from random measurement error in the two measures (both have alpha reliabilities near .80). If the discrepancy is not all measurement noise, I assume that it indicates a systematic error in the self-report measure. Is this error best characterized as a lapse in self-knowledge? If one's self-reported cognitive ability underestimates one's actual cognitive ability, is one modest, or both modest and lacking in self-knowledge?  If one's self-reported cognitive ability is higher than one's actual cognitive ability, is one clueless (or perhaps a teenager)?

    3) If one lacks self knowledge, would one's scores on a personality test be less predictive of a criterion than if one has accurate self knowledge (i.e., self knowledge as a moderator)?  If degree of self-knowledge is an indicator of contamination in the measurement of personality, would self knowledge and the personality measure result in a regression suppressor situation when used to predict a criterion of interest (i.e., self-knowledge as an indicator of systematic error in another measure)?

    4) Is one's degree of self-knowledge concerning cognitive ability a good indicator of the level of self-knowledge concerning other personal characteristics?

    Comments on any of the above would be appreciated.

    Mike
    Michael A. McDaniel, Ph.D.
    Professor - Human Resources and
         Organizational Behavior
    Department of Management,
    Research Professor, Department of Psychology
    Virginia Commonwealth University
    301 West Main Street, , PO Box 844000
    Richmond, VA 23284-4000         		The Management Department of the VCU School of Business offers a Ph.D. in Business with a specialization in Organizational Behavior.

    http://www.people.vcu.edu/~mamcdani/
    voice: 804.827.0209
    e-mail:    MAMcDani@vcu.edu
    skype: MichaelAMcDaniel





    --
    Mark Ehrhart, Ph.D.
    Associate Professor
    Department of Psychology
    San Diego State University
    5500 Campanile Drive
    San Diego, CA  92182-4611
    619-594-4439 (phone)
    619-594-1332 (fax)
    mehrhart@sunstroke.sdsu.edu


  • 3.  Self knowledge as a discrepancy between objective and self-report data

    Posted 08-28-2009 06:40
    Hi Mike,

    the attached paper discusses why there might be systematic discrepancies between reported self-knowledge and more objective measures regarding the self generally (not just cognitive ability) and might be of interest to you.

    best, Karin
    ___________________________________________________
    Karin S. Moser, PhD

    Associate Professor in Social and Organisational Psychology
    Roehampton University
    School of Human and Life Sciences
    Holybourne Avenue
    London, SW15 4JD
    UK

    phone: +44 (0)208 392 3719
    e-mail: k.moser@roehampton.ac.uk
    ________________________________________
    From: Organizational Behavior Division Listserv [OB@AOMLISTS.PACE.EDU] On Behalf Of Michael A McDaniel/AC/VCU [mamcdani@VCU.EDU]
    Sent: 27 August 2009 02:17
    To: OB@AOMLISTS.PACE.EDU
    Subject: [OB-LIST] Self knowledge as a discrepancy between objective and self-report data

    For a sample of respondents, I have a self-report measure of cognitive ability (sample item: I have a better vocabulary than most people I know) and scores on a cognitive ability test. I am trying to locate a literature relevant to discrepancies between the two measures.

    My questions are as follows:

    1) What is the best way of expressing the discrepancy between self-reported and objectively-assessed cognitive ability?

    2) What is the best way to characterize the meaning of the discrepancy? Some discrepancy would be expected from random measurement error in the two measures (both have alpha reliabilities near .80). If the discrepancy is not all measurement noise, I assume that it indicates a systematic error in the self-report measure. Is this error best characterized as a lapse in self-knowledge? If one’s self-reported cognitive ability underestimates one’s actual cognitive ability, is one modest, or both modest and lacking in self-knowledge? If one’s self-reported cognitive ability is higher than one’s actual cognitive ability, is one clueless (or perhaps a teenager)?

    3) If one lacks self knowledge, would one’s scores on a personality test be less predictive of a criterion than if one has accurate self knowledge (i.e., self knowledge as a moderator)? If degree of self-knowledge is an indicator of contamination in the measurement of personality, would self knowledge and the personality measure result in a regression suppressor situation when used to predict a criterion of interest (i.e., self-knowledge as an indicator of systematic error in another measure)?

    4) Is one’s degree of self-knowledge concerning cognitive ability a good indicator of the level of self-knowledge concerning other personal characteristics?

    Comments on any of the above would be appreciated.

    Mike

    Michael A. McDaniel, Ph.D.
    Professor - Human Resources and
    Organizational Behavior
    Department of Management,
    Research Professor, Department of Psychology
    Virginia Commonwealth University
    301 West Main Street, , PO Box 844000
    Richmond, VA 23284-4000 The Management Department of the VCU School of Business offers a Ph.D. in Business with a specialization in Organizational Behavior.

    http://www.people.vcu.edu/~mamcdani/
    voice: 804.827.0209
    e-mail:MAMcDani@vcu.edu<mailto:MAMcDani@vcu.edu>
    skype: MichaelAMcDaniel



    Consider the environment. Please don't print this e-mail unless you really need to.

    This email and any attachments are confidential and intended solely for the addressee and may also be privileged or exempt from disclosure under applicable law. If you are not the addressee, or have received this e-mail in error, please notify the sender immediately, delete it from your system and do not copy, disclose or otherwise act upon any part of this email or its attachments.

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  • 4.  Self knowledge as a discrepancy between objective and self-report data

    Posted 08-28-2009 08:00
    Michael,
     
    In your email you raise some very interesting conceptual
    and methodological issues about self-assessment
    and self-knowledge. Below are two references that
    relate to some of them but certainly not with all that
    you raised. On the self-knowledge/personality issue
    you mention, I wonder whether implicit personality
    tests and the theory behind them are relevant?
     
     

    Allan Church. 1997. Managerial self-awareness in high-performing individuals. Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 82, n. 2: pp. 281-292.

     

     

    David Dunning, Chip Heath, & Jerry Suls. 2004. Flawed self-assessments: Implications for health, education, and the workplace. Psychological Science in the Public Interest. Vol. 15, n 3: pp: 69-106.

     
     
    Regards,
    Bob Renn
     
    Robert W. Renn, Ph.D.
    Department of Management
    Fogelman College of Business and Economics
    University of Memphis
    Memphis, TN 38152
    Voice: 901-678-2886
    Dept.: 901-678-4551
    FAX  : 901-678-4990
     
    Leadership principles are values translated into action. Bill George
    From: Organizational Behavior Division Listserv [OB@AOMLISTS.PACE.EDU] On Behalf Of Mark Ehrhart [mehrhart@SUNSTROKE.SDSU.EDU]
    Sent: Thursday, August 27, 2009 7:56 PM
    To: OB@AOMLISTS.PACE.EDU
    Subject: Re: [OB-LIST] Self knowledge as a discrepancy between objective and self-report data

    Mike,
     
    The following article may be useful to you:
     
    Why people fail to recognize their own incompetence
    Current Directions in Psychological Science
    Volume 12, Issue 3, Date: June 2003, Pages: 83-87
    David Dunning, Kerri Johnson, Joyce Ehrlinger, Justin Kruger
    It's a summary of some very interesting research that basically shows how the most incompetent individuals vastly overestimate their own performance.  The same basic finding has been replicated in a variety of domains, including academic test performance, logical thinking, grammar, and even identifying funny jokes. 
     
    Good luck,
     
    Mark

     
    On Wed, Aug 26, 2009 at 6:17 PM, Michael A McDaniel/AC/VCU <mamcdani@vcu.edu> wrote:

    For a sample of respondents, I have a self-report measure of cognitive ability (sample item: I have a better vocabulary than most people I know) and scores on a cognitive ability test. I am trying to locate a literature relevant to discrepancies between the two measures.

    My questions are as follows:

    1) What is the best way of expressing the discrepancy between self-reported and objectively-assessed cognitive ability?

    2) What is the best way to characterize the meaning of the discrepancy?  Some discrepancy would be expected from random measurement error in the two measures (both have alpha reliabilities near .80). If the discrepancy is not all measurement noise, I assume that it indicates a systematic error in the self-report measure. Is this error best characterized as a lapse in self-knowledge? If one's self-reported cognitive ability underestimates one's actual cognitive ability, is one modest, or both modest and lacking in self-knowledge?  If one's self-reported cognitive ability is higher than one's actual cognitive ability, is one clueless (or perhaps a teenager)?

    3) If one lacks self knowledge, would one's scores on a personality test be less predictive of a criterion than if one has accurate self knowledge (i.e., self knowledge as a moderator)?  If degree of self-knowledge is an indicator of contamination in the measurement of personality, would self knowledge and the personality measure result in a regression suppressor situation when used to predict a criterion of interest (i.e., self-knowledge as an indicator of systematic error in another measure)?

    4) Is one's degree of self-knowledge concerning cognitive ability a good indicator of the level of self-knowledge concerning other personal characteristics?

    Comments on any of the above would be appreciated.

    Mike
    Michael A. McDaniel, Ph.D.
    Professor - Human Resources and
         Organizational Behavior
    Department of Management,
    Research Professor, Department of Psychology
    Virginia Commonwealth University
    301 West Main Street, , PO Box 844000
    Richmond, VA 23284-4000         		The Management Department of the VCU School of Business offers a Ph.D. in Business with a specialization in Organizational Behavior.

    http://www.people.vcu.edu/~mamcdani/
    voice: 804.827.0209
    e-mail:    MAMcDani@vcu.edu
    skype: MichaelAMcDaniel




    --
    Mark Ehrhart, Ph.D.
    Associate Professor
    Department of Psychology
    San Diego State University
    5500 Campanile Drive
    San Diego, CA  92182-4611
    619-594-4439 (phone)
    619-594-1332 (fax)
    mehrhart@sunstroke.sdsu.edu


  • 5.  Self knowledge as a discrepancy between objective and self-report data

    Posted 08-28-2009 12:46
    Hi Mike,
     
    In addition to the papers the others have suggested, you may want to look at some of Paulhus' work (e.g., Paulhus, Lysy, & Yik, 1998). I also highly recommend Kruger and Dunning's "Unskilled and Unaware of It" article (aside from being applicable to this topic, it is also a very entertaining read).
     
    You may also find the literature on metacognition to be quite useful. There is a plethora of articles that discuss the discrepancy between one's knowledge of the self and one's actual performance, as well as common ways to interpret and/or assess this discrepancy. If you would like more information on this topic, please let me know; I would be happy to provide you with some references to aid you in your endeavors.
     
    Best,
     
    Jen Klafehn
     
    Jennifer Klafehn, M. A.
    Doctoral Candidate
    Department of Psychology
    University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
    603 E Daniel St
    Champaign, IL 61820
     
    On Fri, Aug 28, 2009 at 5:39 AM, Karin S Moser <K.Moser@roehampton.ac.uk> wrote:
    Hi Mike,

    the attached paper discusses why there might be systematic discrepancies between reported self-knowledge and more objective measures regarding the self generally (not just cognitive ability) and might be of interest to you.

    best, Karin
    ___________________________________________________
    Karin S. Moser, PhD

    Associate Professor in Social and Organisational Psychology
    Roehampton University
    School of Human and Life Sciences
    Holybourne Avenue
    London, SW15 4JD
    UK

    phone: +44 (0)208 392 3719
    e-mail: k.moser@roehampton.ac.uk
    ________________________________________
    From: Organizational Behavior Division Listserv [OB@AOMLISTS.PACE.EDU] On Behalf Of Michael A McDaniel/AC/VCU [mamcdani@VCU.EDU]
    Sent: 27 August 2009 02:17
    Subject: [OB-LIST] Self knowledge as a discrepancy between objective and self-report data

    For a sample of respondents, I have a self-report measure of cognitive ability (sample item: I have a better vocabulary than most people I know) and scores on a cognitive ability test. I am trying to locate a literature relevant to discrepancies between the two measures.

    My questions are as follows:

    1) What is the best way of expressing the discrepancy between self-reported and objectively-assessed cognitive ability?

    2) What is the best way to characterize the meaning of the discrepancy?  Some discrepancy would be expected from random measurement error in the two measures (both have alpha reliabilities near .80). If the discrepancy is not all measurement noise, I assume that it indicates a systematic error in the self-report measure. Is this error best characterized as a lapse in self-knowledge? If one's self-reported cognitive ability underestimates one's actual cognitive ability, is one modest, or both modest and lacking in self-knowledge?  If one's self-reported cognitive ability is higher than one's actual cognitive ability, is one clueless (or perhaps a teenager)?

    3) If one lacks self knowledge, would one's scores on a personality test be less predictive of a criterion than if one has accurate self knowledge (i.e., self knowledge as a moderator)?  If degree of self-knowledge is an indicator of contamination in the measurement of personality, would self knowledge and the personality measure result in a regression suppressor situation when used to predict a criterion of interest (i.e., self-knowledge as an indicator of systematic error in another measure)?

    4) Is one's degree of self-knowledge concerning cognitive ability a good indicator of the level of self-knowledge concerning other personal characteristics?

    Comments on any of the above would be appreciated.

    Mike

    Michael A. McDaniel, Ph.D.
    Professor - Human Resources and
        Organizational Behavior
    Department of Management,
    Research Professor, Department of Psychology
    Virginia Commonwealth University
    301 West Main Street, , PO Box 844000
    Richmond, VA 23284-4000         The Management Department of the VCU School of Business offers a Ph.D. in Business with a specialization in Organizational Behavior.

    http://www.people.vcu.edu/~mamcdani/
    voice: 804.827.0209
    e-mail:MAMcDani@vcu.edu<mailto:MAMcDani@vcu.edu>
    skype: MichaelAMcDaniel



    Consider the environment. Please don't print this e-mail unless you really need to.

    This email and any attachments are confidential and intended solely for the addressee and may also be privileged or exempt from disclosure under applicable law. If you are not the addressee, or have received this e-mail in error, please notify the sender immediately, delete it from your system and do not copy, disclose or otherwise act upon any part of this email or its attachments.

    Internet communications are not guaranteed to be secure or virus-free. Roehampton University does not accept responsibility for any loss arising from unauthorised access to, or interference with, any Internet communications by any third party, or from the transmission of any viruses.

    Any opinion or other information in this e-mail or its attachments that does not relate to the business of Roehampton University is personal to the sender and is not given or endorsed by Roehampton University.

    Roehampton University is a company limited by guarantee incorporated in England under number 5161359. Registered Office: Grove House, Roehampton Lane, London SW15 5PJ. An exempt charity.



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