Effects of college internships on individual participants
Article Abstract:
In this research, I examined three hypotheses concerning the effects of college internships on individual participants: (a) greater crystallization of vocational self-concept and work values, (b) less reality shock, and (c) better employment opportunities. A quasi-experimental design was used to compare interns from five academic programs with matched cohorts as preinternship, postinternship, college graduation, and postemployment measurement periods. Research findings provided partial support for the crystallization hypothesis and strong support for better employment opportunities. Furthermore, when the level of autonomy experienced in the internship was considered as a potential moderating variable, support was found for all three hypotheses. A second study using an experimental design was conducted to examine the effect of internship experience on recruiters' evaluation of applicants' qualifications and their probability of hire. Results from the experimental study also supported the employment opportunity hypothesis. Implications of the findings and suggestions for future research are discussed. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher.)
Publication Name: Journal of Applied Psychology
Subject: Social sciences
ISSN: 0021-9010
Year: 1988
User Contributions:
Comment about this article or add new information about this topic:
Predicting individual differences in complex skill acquisition dynamics of ability determinants
Article Abstract:
Substantial controversy exists about ability determinants of individual differences in performance during and subsequent to skill acquisition. This investigation addresses the controversy. An information-processing examination of ability-performance relations during complex task acquisition is described. Included are ability testing (including general, reasoning, spatial, perceptual speed, and perceptual/psychomotor abilities) and skill acquisition over practice on the terminal radar approach controller simulation. Results validate and extend Ackerman's (1988) theory of cognitive ability determinants of individual differences in skill acquisition. Beliefs of ability component and task component analyses over global analyses of ability-skill relations are demonstrated. Implications are discussed for selection instruments to predict air traffic controller success and for other tasks with inconsistent information-processing demands. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher.)
Publication Name: Journal of Applied Psychology
Subject: Social sciences
ISSN: 0021-9010
Year: 1992
User Contributions:
Comment about this article or add new information about this topic:
Predictors of individual differences in mail-coding skills and their variation with ability level
Article Abstract:
Personality and cognitive predictors of mail coding were investigated in 2 samples, 1 of high coding ability (N=56) and 1 of mixed ability (N=158). Two approaches to predicting correlates of skill within groups of differing ability were compared: Ackerman's (1988) ability theory, and Norman and Shallice's (1985) account of levels of action control. The predictors of mail-coding skill varied with ability: Personality variables were more predictive among higher ability subjects, and cognitive measures were more predictive among lower ability subjects. Implications of the findings for theories of individual differences in skill are discussed. There were 2 main practical conclusions. First, the measures used were more predictive than a standard psychometric selection test. Second, correlates of skill may be different among unselected job applicants and among the subset of applicants hired for subsequent operational training. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher.)
Publication Name: Journal of Applied Psychology
Subject: Social sciences
ISSN: 0021-9010
Year: 1992
User Contributions:
Comment about this article or add new information about this topic:
- Abstracts: Vividness effects: a resource-matching perspective. Affect intensity: an individual difference response to advertising appeals
- Abstracts: Sustainable intensification in the highland tropics: Rwandan farmers' investments in land conservation and soil fertility
- Abstracts: The emerging international policy agenda for reproductive health services in conflict settings. Incentives can lower the incidence of HIV AIDS in Africa
- Abstracts: Psychological impact of predicting individuals' risks of illness: a systematic review. Effects of gain and loss decision frames on risky purchase negotiations
- Abstracts: Importance of specialized cognitive function in the selection of military pilots. Importance of factors in the review of grant proposals