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Development of the Stress Strategy Test as a personnel selection instrument

Federmann, Rolf LU (2008)
Abstract
The thesis concerns the development of a computerised test, termed the Stress Strategy Test (SST), intended for use in a personnel selection and placement context. A similar but less extended form of that test, termed the Stroop Strategy Test, developed first, was adjudged to be somewhat less effective as a selection instrument. Both of the tests, concerned with cognition, personality and ability to deal with stress, are based in part on the Stroop test, developed in the first half of the 1930s by J. R. Stroop. That test utilises the fact that it takes longer for persons to name the color in which each of a series of words is printed when the words represent color names but are printed in a color different from the colour the word... (More)
The thesis concerns the development of a computerised test, termed the Stress Strategy Test (SST), intended for use in a personnel selection and placement context. A similar but less extended form of that test, termed the Stroop Strategy Test, developed first, was adjudged to be somewhat less effective as a selection instrument. Both of the tests, concerned with cognition, personality and ability to deal with stress, are based in part on the Stroop test, developed in the first half of the 1930s by J. R. Stroop. That test utilises the fact that it takes longer for persons to name the color in which each of a series of words is printed when the words represent color names but are printed in a color different from the colour the word designates. The greater time such a task takes is termed the ”Stroop effect” or ”interference effect”, The two tests are also based in part on the Serial Colour Word Test (S-CWT), developed by Smith and Neumann in the 1960s. That test utilises the Stroop effect but examines as well changes in performance at such tasks over time. The two present tests, in addition to being computerised, take account of a greater number of variables than are measured in the conventional Stroop test or the S-CWT. The SST is also designed so as to produce what was termed a ”reorientation effect”, which makes the tasks in question more difficult.

Three empirical studies were carried out. Studies 1 and 2 concern the Stroop Strategy Test and the Stress Strategy Test, respectively. In both studies, three groups of military men differing in the level of qualification required for the type of jobs to which they had been assigned –primarily on the basis of an intelligence test and an interview – as well as a fourth group of men, found guilty of having committed serious crimes and thus not adjudged to be qualified for military service, were given the test in question. In multivariate analyses carried out in both these studies it was found that the four groups in question could be correctly classified in terms of group membership – on the basis of results of the respective test – with an overall accuracy of 52.6% in the case of the Stroop Strategy Test (consisting of two test series) and with an accuracy of 65.2% in the case of the Stress Strategy Test (consisting of three test series, the third series involving both the Stroop effect and the reorientation effect). In the third study, a large group of military recruits (more than 3000 in all), both men and women being included, were tested with the SST as well as with the two selection instruments currently employed: the intelligence test and the interview. Relations between the SST results and results of the two selection instruments currently employed were investigated, a common variance of 17% and 12% being found in relation to results of the intelligence test and the interview, respectively. The potential usefulness of the SST both in a military context and in other selection contexts is discussed. (Less)
Abstract (Swedish)
Popular Abstract in Swedish

Avhandlingen beskriver utvecklingen av ett personlighetstest, Stress Strategy Test (SST), och hur detta test kan skilja på olika personer utifrån personlighet och de särskilda kognitiva strategier de använder sig av. Det relateras också till ett begåvningstest och psykologintervju av över tretusen individer.



Testet bygger på den av J.R. Stroop uppmärksammade principen, Stroopeffekten, att det går fortare att läsa färgord än att benämna den färg de är tryckta i, exempelvis om färgordet rött står skrivet i grönt eller ordet rött i blått. Här finns således en inkongruens mellan färgordets innebörd och den färg det är tryckt i vilket är den färg som försökspersonen ska... (More)
Popular Abstract in Swedish

Avhandlingen beskriver utvecklingen av ett personlighetstest, Stress Strategy Test (SST), och hur detta test kan skilja på olika personer utifrån personlighet och de särskilda kognitiva strategier de använder sig av. Det relateras också till ett begåvningstest och psykologintervju av över tretusen individer.



Testet bygger på den av J.R. Stroop uppmärksammade principen, Stroopeffekten, att det går fortare att läsa färgord än att benämna den färg de är tryckta i, exempelvis om färgordet rött står skrivet i grönt eller ordet rött i blått. Här finns således en inkongruens mellan färgordets innebörd och den färg det är tryckt i vilket är den färg som försökspersonen ska uttala.



I den första studien testades tre olika militära grupper sammansatta utifrån urvalskriterierna vid mönstringen samt en grupp bestående av personer som dömts till fängelse eller ungdomsvård för våldsbrott och som bedömts ha bristande impulskontroll. I den mest kvalificerade militärgruppen ingick stridspiloter, fallskärmsjägare och kustjägare, medan i den något lägre rankade gruppen ingick stridsbåtförare och officersaspiranter. Den tredje militärgruppen som ingick bestod av stridsvagnsskyttar vars värden är genomsnittliga på begåvning och psykologbedömning vilket motsvarar normalpopulationen.



Resultatet visade att testet kunde skilja mellan grupperna på ett relativt bra sätt så att 52,6% av försökspersonerna placerades i respektive ursprungsgrupp, det vill säga rätt grupptillhörighet utifrån varje individs individuella prestation avseende de fyra måtten i varje serie. Om endast slumpen fått råda skulle utfallet på de fyra grupperna ligga på 25%. De mest extrema grupperna innefattade piloterna och de våldsbrottsdömda där 56% respektive 50% kategoriserades i rätt grupp. Testresultatet var således mer än dubbelt så bra som ett slumpmässigt utfall.



Den andra studien utgör ett experiment med en vidareutvecklad testdesign, Stress Strategy Test (SST), som är utökad med en tredje serie med inkongruenta färgord, således sådana som innefattar Stroop effekten som också ingår i serie två. Denna serie skiljer sig emellertid från serie två i det att de kvadrater med färgord som befinner sig runt om rektangeln där nya färgord kontinuerligt visas ständigt byter plats. Detta innebär att försökspersonen får svårare att på ett konsekvent sätt skapa en strategi i testgenomförandet då personen ständigt måste reorientera sig för att lokalisera var det fasta färgordet befinner sig. Stroopeffekten i den tredje serien är således kopplad till vad som kom att benämnas för reorienteringseffekten vilket motsvaras av en persons förmåga att anpassa sig till nya omständigheter på ett rationellt och effektivt sätt..



I den andra studien ingick motsvarande grupper som i den första dock något mer renodlade och med något färre individer. Här ingick piloter, stridsbåtförare, pansarbilsförare samt en grupp personer som dömts till fängelse eller ungdomsvårdskola för våldsbrott.



Resultatet visar att testet ökade diskrimineringsförmågan till totalt 65,2 % i jämförelse med den första testdesignen. I extremgrupperna av piloter och våldsbrotts dömda kunde 80 % respektive 72,2 % av individerna placerades i respektive ursprungsgrupp.



Den tredje studien redovisar sambanden mellan Stress Strategy Test och den obligatoriska psykologintervjun av värnpliktiga vid mönstringen samt intelligenstestet.



I intervjun bedöms de mönstrandes psykiska funktionsförmåga (PF) genom att psykologen med utgångspunkt i den mönstrandes tidigare historia gör en prognos av personens förutsättningar att klara av och agera på ett rationellt sätt i en krigssituation.



Resultatet visar på att Stress Strategy Test har en samvariation med PF i termer av emotionell stabilitet motsvarande 12,25 % samt 17,64 % till begåvningstestet. SST utgår från helt andra premisser än de konventionella urvalsmetoderna men mäter delvis samma faktorer som intervjun och begåvningstestet. SST antas dessutom tillföra ett mått på stresshanteringsförmåga samt förmågan till koncentration och att kunna fokusera på arbetsuppgifter, något som är kopplat till arbetsminnet ”working memory”. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
supervisor
opponent
  • Professor Hentchel, Uwe, University of Leiden, Holland
organization
alternative title
Utveckling och validering av Stress Strategy Test. Ett datoriserat personlighetstest med starkt kognitivt inslag för användning i urvalssammanhang
publishing date
type
Thesis
publication status
published
subject
keywords
military personnel selection., stress, cognition, personality, personnel selection, Serial Colour Word Test, Stroop effect, Stroop test, Stress Strategy Test
pages
100 pages
publisher
Department of Psychology, Lund University
defense location
Lundmarksalen, Institutionen för astronomi, Sölvegatan 27, Lund
defense date
2008-12-19 10:00:00
ISBN
978-91-628-7616-6
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
1856092d-d5ba-43e1-a312-721a5c799c86 (old id 1270609)
date added to LUP
2016-04-04 10:50:56
date last changed
2021-11-24 16:59:09
@phdthesis{1856092d-d5ba-43e1-a312-721a5c799c86,
  abstract     = {{The thesis concerns the development of a computerised test, termed the Stress Strategy Test (SST), intended for use in a personnel selection and placement context. A similar but less extended form of that test, termed the Stroop Strategy Test, developed first, was adjudged to be somewhat less effective as a selection instrument. Both of the tests, concerned with cognition, personality and ability to deal with stress, are based in part on the Stroop test, developed in the first half of the 1930s by J. R. Stroop. That test utilises the fact that it takes longer for persons to name the color in which each of a series of words is printed when the words represent color names but are printed in a color different from the colour the word designates. The greater time such a task takes is termed the ”Stroop effect” or ”interference effect”, The two tests are also based in part on the Serial Colour Word Test (S-CWT), developed by Smith and Neumann in the 1960s. That test utilises the Stroop effect but examines as well changes in performance at such tasks over time. The two present tests, in addition to being computerised, take account of a greater number of variables than are measured in the conventional Stroop test or the S-CWT. The SST is also designed so as to produce what was termed a ”reorientation effect”, which makes the tasks in question more difficult.<br/><br>
 Three empirical studies were carried out. Studies 1 and 2 concern the Stroop Strategy Test and the Stress Strategy Test, respectively. In both studies, three groups of military men differing in the level of qualification required for the type of jobs to which they had been assigned –primarily on the basis of an intelligence test and an interview – as well as a fourth group of men, found guilty of having committed serious crimes and thus not adjudged to be qualified for military service, were given the test in question. In multivariate analyses carried out in both these studies it was found that the four groups in question could be correctly classified in terms of group membership – on the basis of results of the respective test – with an overall accuracy of 52.6% in the case of the Stroop Strategy Test (consisting of two test series) and with an accuracy of 65.2% in the case of the Stress Strategy Test (consisting of three test series, the third series involving both the Stroop effect and the reorientation effect). In the third study, a large group of military recruits (more than 3000 in all), both men and women being included, were tested with the SST as well as with the two selection instruments currently employed: the intelligence test and the interview. Relations between the SST results and results of the two selection instruments currently employed were investigated, a common variance of 17% and 12% being found in relation to results of the intelligence test and the interview, respectively. The potential usefulness of the SST both in a military context and in other selection contexts is discussed.}},
  author       = {{Federmann, Rolf}},
  isbn         = {{978-91-628-7616-6}},
  keywords     = {{military personnel selection.; stress; cognition; personality; personnel selection; Serial Colour Word Test; Stroop effect; Stroop test; Stress Strategy Test}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  publisher    = {{Department of Psychology, Lund University}},
  school       = {{Lund University}},
  title        = {{Development of the Stress Strategy Test as a personnel selection instrument}},
  year         = {{2008}},
}