Can test preparation help to reduce the black-white test performance gap?

Journal of Management

Volumn 35, Issue 5, 2009, Pages 1207-1227

  Chung Herrera, Beth G ^a   Ehrhart, Karen Holcombe ^a   Ehrhart, Mark G ^b   Solamon, Jerry ^c   Kilian, Britta ^d  

^a SAN DIEGO STATE UNIVERSITY   (United States)

^b SAN DIEGO STATE UNIVERSITY   (United States)

^c University of Mannheim ^*  (United States)

^d UNIVERSITY OF MANNHEIM   (Germany)

Author keywords

Ethnicity; Job knowledge tests; Mathew Effect; Race; Test preparation

Indexed keywords

EID: 70350437359     PISSN: 01492063     EISSN: 15571211     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1177/0149206308328506     Document Type: Article

References (51)

1. Ackerman, P.L. 1988. Determinants of individual differences during skill acquisition: Cognitive abilities and information processing. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 117: 288-318.
2. Aguinis, H., Beaty, J.C., Boik, R.J., & Pierce, C.A. 2005. Effect size and power in assessing moderating effects of categorical variables using multiple regression: A 30-year review. Journal of Applied Psychology, 90: 94-107.
3. Aguinis, H., & Harden, E.E. 2009. Sample size rules of thumb: Evaluating three common practices. In C. E. Lance & R. J. Vandenberg (Eds.), Statistical and methodological myths and urban legends: Received doctrine, verity, and fable in the organizational and social sciences: 267-286. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
4. Arvey, R., Strickland, W., Drauden, G., & Martin, C. 1990. Motivational components of test taking. Personnel Psychology, 43: 695-716.
5. Bangert-Drowns, R.L., Kulik, J.A., & Kulik, C.C. 1983. Effects of coaching programs on achievement test performance. Review of Educational Research, 53: 571-585.
6. Baron, R.M., & Kenny, D.A. 1986. The moderator-mediator variable distinction in social psychological research: Conceptual, strategic and statistical considerations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51: 1173-1182.
7. Borkowski, J.G., & Peck, V.A. 1986. Causes and consequences of metamemory in gifted children. In R. J. Sternberg & J. E. Davidson (Eds.), Conceptions of giftedness: 182-200. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
8. Brown, A.L., 1987. Metacognition, executive control, self-regulation, and other even more mysterious mechanisms. In F. E. Wienert & R. H. Kluwe (Eds.), Metacognition, motivation, and understanding: 65-116. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
9. Ceci, S.J., & Papierno, P.B. 2005. The rhetoric and reality of gap closing. American Psychologist, 60: 149-160.
10. Chan, D., & Schmitt, N. 1997. Video-based versus paper-and-pencil method of assessment in situational judgment tests: Subgroup differences in test performance and face validity perceptions. Journal of Applied Psychology, 82: 143-159.
11. Clause, C.S., Delbridge, K.D., Schmitt, N., Chan, D., & Jennings, D. 1998. Test preparation activities and employment test performance. Paper presented at the 13th annual conference of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, Dallas, TX.
12. Cohen, J. 1988. Statistical power analysis for the behavioral sciences (2nd ed.). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
13. Craik, F.I.M., & Lockhart, R.S. 1972. Levels of processing: A framework for memory research. Journal of Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior, 11: 671-684.
14. Davis, M.D. 1985. The logic of causal order. In J. L. Sullivan & R. G. Niemi (Eds.), Sage university paper series on quantitative applications in the social sciences. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.
15. Ellis, A.P.J., & Ryan, A.M. 2003. Race and cognitive-ability test performance: The mediating effects of test preparation, test-taking strategy use and self-efficacy. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 33: 2607-2629.
16. Freedman, L.S., & Schatzkin, A. 1992. Sample size for studying intermediate endpoints within intervention trials of observational studies. American Journal of Epidemiology, 136: 1148-1159.
17. Goldstein, H., Yusko, K., Braverman, E.P., Smith, D.B., & Chung, B. 1998. The role of cognitive ability in the subgroup differences and the incremental validity of assessment center exercises. Personnel Psychology, 51: 357-374.
18. Hayes, S.C., Mayer, D.M., Bates, A.L., & Gelfand, M.J. 2004. Development of a measure of cultural mistrust. Paper presented at the 19th annual conference of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, Chicago, IL.
19. Helms, J.E. 1992. Why is there no study of cultural equivalence in standardized cognitive ability testing? American Psychologist, 47: 1083-1101.
20. Holden, L.M. 1996. The effectiveness of training in improving test performance. Presented at the 11th Annual Conference for the Society of Industrial and Organizational Psychology, San Diego, CA.
21. Humphreys, L.G. 1979. The construct of general intelligence. Intelligence, 3: 105-120.
22. Hunter, J.E. (1983). A causal analysis of cognitive ability, job knowledge, job performance, and supervisory ratings. In F. Landy, S. Zedeck, & J. Cleveland (Eds.), Performance measurement and theory: 257-266. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
23. Hunter, J.E., & Hunter, R.F. 1984. Validity and utility of alternative predictors of job performance. Psychological Bulletin, 96: 72-98.
24. Koenig, J.A., & Leger, K.F. 1997. A comparison of retest performance and test-preparation methods for MCAT examinees grouped by gender and race-ethnicity. Academic Medicine, 72: S100-S102.
25. Kulik, J.A., Bangert-Drowns, R.L., & Kulik, C.C. 1984. Effectiveness of coaching for aptitude tests. Psychological Bulletin, 95: 179-188.
26. Kyllonen, P.C., & Cristal, R.E. 1990. Reasoning ability is little more than working memory capacity. Intelligence, 14: 389-433.
27. MacKinnon, D.P., Krull, J.L., & Lockwood, C.M. 2000. Equivalence of the mediation, confounding, and suppression effect. Prevention Science, 1: 173-181.
28. MacKinnon, D.P., Lockwood, C.M., Hoffman, J.M., West, S.G., & Sheets, V. 2002. A comparison of methods to test mediation and other intervening variable effects. Psychological Methods, 7: 83-104.
29. Mathieu, J.E., & Taylor, S.R. 2006. Clarifying conditions and decision points for mediational type inferences in Organizational Behavior. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 27: 1031-1056.
30. McKeachie, W. J., Pintrich, P. R., & Lin, Y. 1985. Teaching learning strategies. Educational Psychology, 20: 153-160.
31. Merton, R. K. 1968. The Matthew Effect in science. Science, 159: 56-63.
32. Millman, J., Bishop, C.H., & Ebel, B. 1965. An analysis of test-wiseness. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 18: 787-790.
33. Nist, S.L., Simpson, M.L., & Hogrebe, M.C. 1985. The relationship between the use of study strategies and test performance. Journal of Reading Behavior, 17: 15-28.
34. Oyserman, D., Kemmelmeier, M., Fryberg, S., Brosh, H., & Hart-Johnson, T. 2004. Racial-ethnic self-schemas. Journal of Social Psychology, 66: 333-347.
35. Paris, S.G., Lawton, T.A., Turner, J.C., & Roth, J.L. 1991. A developmental perspective on standardized achievement testing. Educational Researcher, 20: 12-20.
36. Pintrich, P.R., Smith, D.A.F., Garcia, T., & McKeachie, W.J. 1993. Reliability and predictive validity of the motivated strategies for learning questionnaire (MSLQ). Educational and Psychological Measurement, 53: 801-813.
37. Powers, D.E. 1985. Effects of test preparation on the validity of a graduate admissions test. Applied Psychological Measurement, 9: 179-190.
38. Powers, D.E. (1993). Coaching for the SAT: A summary of the summaries and an update. Educational Measurement: Issues and Practice, 12: 24-39.
39. Quinn, K.D. 1993. The effects of test preparation training on intelligence test score composites. Presented at the 8th Annual Conference of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, San Francisco.
40. Roth, P.L., Bevier, C.A., Bobko, P., Switzer, F.S., III, & Tyler, P. 2001. Ethnic subgroup differences in cognitive ability in employment and educational settings: A meta-analysis. Personnel Psychology, 54: 297-330.
41. Ryan, A.M., Ployhart, R.E., Greguras, G.J., & Schmit, M.J. 1998. Test preparation programs in selection contexts: Self-selection and program effectiveness. Personnel Psychology, 51: 599-621.
42. Sackett, P.R., Burris, L.R., & Ryan, A.M. 1989. Coaching and practice effects in personnel selection. In C. L. Cooper & I. T. Robertson (Eds.), International review of industrial and organizational psychology: 145-183. Chichester, UK: John Wiley.
43. Samson, G.E. 1985. Effects of training in test-taking skills on achievement test performance: A quantitative synthesis. Journal of Educational Research, 78: 261-266.
44. Schmidt, F.L. (1988). The problem of group differences in ability test scores in employment selection. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 33: 272-292.
45. Schmitt, N., & Noe, R.A. 1986. Personnel selection and equal employment opportunity. In C. L. Cooper & I. Robertson (Eds.), International review of industrial and organizational psychology: 71-115. New York: John Wiley.
46. Spring, C. 1985. Comprehension and study strategies reported by university freshmen who are good and poor readers. Instructional Science, 14: 157-167.
47. Stanovich, K.E. 1986. Matthew Effects in reading: Some consequences of individual differences in the acquisition of literacy. Reading Research Quarterly, 21: 360-407.
48. Tang, T.L.P. 1996. Pay differentials as a function of rater's sex, money ethic, and job incumbent's sex: A test of the Matthew Effect. Journal of Economic Psychology, 17: 127-144.
49. U.S. Census Bureau. 2004. 2004 American community survey data profile highlights. Retrieved December 6, 2005, from http://factfinder.census.gov.
50. Walberg, H.J., & Tsai, S. 1983. Matthew effects in education. American Educational Research Journal, 20: 359-373.
51. Weinstein, C.E., & Mayer, R.E. 1986. The teaching of learning strategies. In M. Wittrock (Ed.), Handbook of research on teaching: 315-327. New York: Macmillan.