The use of person-organization fit in employment decision making: an assessment of its criterion-related validity.
Because measures of person-organization (P-O) fit are accountable to the same psychometric and legal standards used for other employment tests when they are used for personnel decision making, the authors assessed the criterion-related validity of P-O fit as a predictor of job performance and turnover. Meta-analyses resulted in estimated true criterion-related validities of .15 (k = 36, N = 5,377) for P-O fit as a predictor of job performance and .24 (k = 8, N = 2,476) as a predictor of turnover, compared with a stronger effect of .31 (k = 109, N = 108,328) for the more commonly studied relation between P-O fit and work attitudes. In contrast to the relations between P-O fit and work attitudes, the lower 95% credibility values for the job performance and turnover relations included zero. In addition, P-O fit's relations with job performance and turnover were partially mediated by work attitudes. Potential concerns pertaining to the use of P-O fit in employment decision making are discussed in light of these results.
Arthur
Winfred
W
Department of Psychology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843-4235, USA. wea@psyc.tamu.edu
Bell
Suzanne T
ST
Villado
Anton J
AJ
Doverspike
Dennis
D
D003657:Decision Making; D004650:Employee Performance Appraisal; D004651:Employment; D006801:Humans; D015279:Organizational Culture; D010563:Personnel Turnover / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D015203:Reproducibility of Results