Measuring and Analyzing Behavior in Organizations

Measuring and Analyzing Behavior in Organizations brings together the latest advances in measurement and data analysis, providing accessible, current discussions of measurement, applied statistics, research methods, and data analysis. The book details the range of problems that can be addressed with these new approaches, answering the more complex questions with sophisticated analyses that can extract more information from the data than simpler methods. The contributors provide workable solutions to many previously intractable problems, including those that require measuring change, studying person-environment fit, understanding the effects of error, and more. Foreword (Neal Schmitt).

Preface.

The Contributors.

Part One: Introduction.

1. Applied Problems and Methods of Analysis: A Road Map (NealSchmitt, Fritz Drasgow).

Part Two: Description and Measurement of Variables.

2. The Grounded Theory Approach to Qualitative Research (KarenLocke).

3. Computer-Based Advances in Assessment (Julie B.Olson-Buchanan).

4. Item Response Theory for Dichotomous Assessment Data (StevenPaul Reise, Niels G. Waller).

5. Modeling Data with Polytomous Item Response Theory (Michael J.Zickar).

6. Differential Item and Test Functioning (Nambury S. Raju, BarbaraB. Ellis).

7. Generalizability Theory (Richard P. DeShon).

8. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (Charles E. Lance, Robert J.Vandenberg).

Part Three: Examining the Interrelationships Among Variables andTesting Substantive Hypotheses.

9. Structural Equation Modeling: A User's Guide (Roger E.Millsap).

10. Latent Growth Modeling (David Chan).

11. Alternatives to Difference Scores: Polynomial RegressionAnalysis and Response Surface Methodology (Jeffrey R.Edwards).

12. Multilevel Random Coefficient Modeling in OrganizationalResearch: Examples Using SAS and S-PLUS (Paul D. Bliese).

13. Structure and Timing in Limited Range Dependent Variables:Regression Models for Predicting If and When (David A.Harrison).

14. Computational Modeling in Organizational

Sciences: Contributions of a Third Research Discipline (CharlesHulin, Andrew G. Miner, Steven T. Seitz).

15. Meta-Analysis: A Review of Quantitative Cumulation Methods(Hannah R. Rothstein, Michael A. McDaniel, MichaelBorenstein).

Name Index.

Subject Index. "This is an excellent book that most of us will find useful."(Personnel Psychology, Spring 2003) Fritz Drasgow is a professor of psychology and director of theCenter for Human Resources Management at the University ofIllinois. He is also the current chair of Scientific Affairs at theSociety for Industrial and Organizational Psychology.

Neal Schmitt is University Distinguished Professor of Psychologyand Management and chair of the psychology department at MichiganState University. He is the editor of SIOP's OrganizationalFrontiers series. Rapid advances in measurement theory and methods for data analysis have occurred over such a broad front that it is virtually impossible to keep up on the most current information by reading original journal articles. As the material learned in graduate school quickly becomes dated, how do researchers and practitioners stay alert to new developments in the field without spending countless hours poring over many highly technical journal articles?

Measuring and Analyzing Behavior in Organizations brings together the latest advances in measurement and data analysis, providing accessible, current discussions of measurement, applied statistics, research methods, and data analysis. The book details the range of problems that can be addressed with these new approaches, answering the more complex questions with sophisticated analyses that can extract more information from the data than simpler methods. The contributors provide workable solutions to many previously intractable problems, including those that require measuring change, studying person-environment fit, understanding the effects of error, and more.

The book is structured to maximize ease of understanding, with special care taken to add explanations and clarifications, explain difficult concepts in ways more easily understood, and provide examples to illustrate methods of analysis. Each chapter is broken down into five major parts, including descriptions of 1) the method and assumptions about data that must be satisfied to use the analysis appropriately, 2) the types of problems that one can or should address with the approach being discussed and what advantages the approach holds, 3) the limitations of the method, 4) an example that highlights the manner in which the method should be used, and 5) information on computer software and instructional materials.

Researchers, students, and practitioners who want to update themselves on analyses and measurement methods will find this book to be an invaluable tool. Most important, Measuring and Analyzing Behavior in Organizations will make recent developments in psychometrics and statistics accessible to all professionals who do not necessarily read or understand the basic literature in these areas.

Researchers and practitioners looking for new or updated methods of measurement and data analysis must often spend a great deal of time tracking down and reading technical articles from a wide variety of journals devoted to these topics. Now, this fifteenth volume in the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology's Organizational Frontiers Series fills the gap in the literature by providing readable, up-to-date discussions of many of the most important areas of measurement and data analysis. In each chapter, the expert authors provide descriptions of the types of problems that can or should be addressed with the approach, a description of the limitations of the method, and an instructive example that illustrates the advantages of the approach and highlights the way it should be used. Most important, Measuring and Analyzing Behavior in Organizations allows substantive researchers to learn about recent developments without having to spend countless hours reading highly technical books and articles.

Contributors to Measuring and Analyzing Behavior in Organizations include:

Paul D. Bliese
Michael Borenstein
David Chan
Richard P. DeShon
Fritz Drasgow
Jeffrey R. Edwards
Barbara B. Ellis
David A. Harrison
Charles Hulin
Charles E. Lance
Karen Locke
Michael A. McDaniel
Roger E. Millsap
Andrew G. Miner
Julie B. Olson-Buchanan
Nambury S. Raju
Neal Schmitt
Steven Paul Reise
Hannah R. Rothstein
Steven T. Seitz
Robert J. Vandenberg
Niels G. Waller
Michael J. Zickar