CONTRIBUTIONS OF PERSONALITY MEASURES TO PREDICTING SUCCESS OF TRAINEES IN THE AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL SPECIALIST NONRADAR SCREEN PROGRAM
Reviews have consistently concluded that the validity of personality as a predictor of job performance is low. However, Barrick and Mount's (1991) meta-analysis of studies of personality and job performance demonstrated the utility of the "Big Five" model of personality in personnel selection and training. This study was designed to evaluate the utility of personality in predicting student success in the Federal Aviation Administration's Air Traffic Control Specialist (ATCS) Nonradar Screen Program ("the Screen"). The Screen follows the miniature training, testing, and evaluation paradigm, in which individuals with no prior knowledge of the occupation are taught critical aspects of the job and then assessed on a pass/fail basis for their potential to succeed as controllers. The NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI) was administered to 723 men and 307 women at entry into the 9-week Screen. NEO-PI scale scores and cognitive aptitude measures were used to predict final composite scores (COMP) of students. Men and women air traffic students exhibited lower average scores in Neuroticism, higher average scores in Extroversion, Openness to Experience, and Conscientiousness, and no difference on Agreeableness when compared to normative samples. Correlations between the personality scales and COMP were low for both sexes. Despite the lower zero-order correlations, several of the personality facets proved useful in a regression equation, explaining an additional 3% of variance in performance over that explained by cognitive aptidude measures. These included Excitement-seeking, Fantasy, Activity, and Ideas. While these results were not entirely consistent with Barrick and Mount, they do offer some support for the role of personality variables in the prediction of success in the ATCS Screen.
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Corporate Authors:
Federal Aviation Administration
Office of Aerospace Medicine, 800 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, DC United States 20591 -
Authors:
- Schroeder, D J
- Broach, D
- Young, W C
- Publication Date: 1993-4
Language
- English
Media Info
- Features: References; Tables;
- Pagination: 32 p.
Subject/Index Terms
- TRT Terms: Air traffic controllers; Aptitude tests; Correlation analysis; Human subject testing; Performance evaluations; Personality; Personnel performance; Regression analysis; Selection and appointment; Training
- Subject Areas: Aviation; Data and Information Technology; Education and Training; Operations and Traffic Management; Safety and Human Factors;
Filing Info
- Accession Number: 00935775
- Record Type: Publication
- Report/Paper Numbers: DOT/FAA/AM-93/4
- Files: TRIS, USDOT
- Created Date: Dec 22 2003 12:00AM