1University of Sunderland CIFM03 Information Systems Strategies Lecture 4

Methodology: Micro LevelMethodology: Micro Level

Personality Testing

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Psychological TestingPsychological Testing

‘Psychological testing is an instrument for the quantitative assessment of some psychological attribute or attributes of an individual’.

The British Psychological Society

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• Designed to compare peoples’ characteristics

• Offers a selector

• Assigning a role according to the person’s Personality Trait Characteristics in Systems Development Projects

Psychological TestingPsychological Testing

4University of Sunderland CIFM03 Information Systems Strategies Lecture 4

Psychological TestingPsychological Testing

• Sir Francis Galton, 19th century .

• Assess people’s abilities that cannot be accurately identified through other means.

• Binet in France and Spearman in England termed Psychometrics.

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Psychological TestingPsychological Testing

• Job analysis• Organisational analysis• Job description• Selection criteria

Job Analysis

Job Description

Selection Criteria

Organisational Analysis

Applicants

Billsberry (1996) The organisational entry analysis process

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Psychological TestsPsychological Tests

• Ability and Aptitude tests

• Motivational tests

• Personality tests

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Psychological TestsPsychological Tests• Specific underlying principles.

• Standardised to produce results that equate with the norm of the general population.

• Less subjective than other means of assessment.

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Psychological TestsPsychological Tests• Reduce bias in selection.

• Promote effective organisational communication and decision-making.

• Tool for strategising.

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Psychological TestsPsychological Tests1.0

0.8

0.98

0.7

0.6

0.5

0.4

0.3

0.1

0.2

0

-0.1

Perfect positive correlation

Perfect negative correlation

Accuracy of selection methods

Perfect prediction

Assessment centres (promotion)

Work-sample tests

Ability tests

Assessment centres (performance)

Personality Tests (combinations)

Bio-data

Structured interviews

Typical interviews & references

Astrology

Graphology

Chance prediction

Smith, Gregg & Andrews (1989) Accuracy of selection tools

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Personality TestPersonality Test

• Allport and Odbert,1936

• Designed to identify the unchanging personality of an individual

• Motivation for use must be justified.

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Personality TestPersonality Test

• Application is carried out in a non-discriminatory manner.

• Professional test application management team.

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Personality testing Personality testing Strategy in SDStrategy in SD

• Implementation according to user personalities.

• Training team members according to the personality types.

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Personalities in SDPersonalities in SD

• Emotional Intelligence is ‘the ability to monitor one's own or others' emotions’

• Communication with understanding of others would is a requirement for accomplished collaboration.

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Personalities in SDPersonalities in SD• Systems Development personnel have

lower emotional intelligence (97.5) than the general public (100).

• Cloning syndrome: 60% vs. 20%.

• Global phenomenon.

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Personality Testing: Personality Testing: ResultsResults

• DeMarco (1999)

• Psychological Testing

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Methodology: Micro LevelMethodology: Micro Level

Group Dynamics

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Group DynamicsGroup Dynamics• Grouping people to work together towards a

common goal

• Groups in Systems Development

• Group Dynamics

• Enable strategic positioning and selection of group stakeholders

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Group DynamicsGroup Dynamics• Applies the process of Personality

Testing.

• Ignores functional role attributes.

• Members complement each other and have a greater likelihood of project success.

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Group DevelopmentGroup Development• Synergy is the fusing of a team.

• A group will go through stages in its lifetime:– forming stage– storming stage – norming stage – performing stage and– adjourning stage

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Group DevelopmentGroup Development

• A group that is considered successful both works together and accomplishes its tasks to a high quality and within resource and time constraints.

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Group Dynamics: Group Dynamics: ResearchResearch

• Functional Role vs. Team Role.

• Slater (1955) made one of the first studies in Group Dynamics.

• MBTI found similar results.

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Group Dynamics: Group Dynamics: BelbinBelbin

• Belbin’s research

• Team Role Activities:

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Group Dynamics: Group Dynamics: Belbin cont.Belbin cont.

• Team Roles:– Plant, Resource Investigator, Monitor Evaluator,

Shaper, Co-ordinator, Implementer, Completer Finisher, Team Worker, Specialist

• Strengths and weaknesses for each team role.

• A group needs to be made up of the team members for stability.

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ConclusionConclusion• Groups have an essential role to play in

decision making within organisations.

• A group is made up of people with diverse knowledge, skills and personalities.

• Diversity and monoculture can result in unproductive decision-making.

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ConclusionConclusion

• Group Dynamics offers a strategic process that balances personalities.

• Each personality associated role brings individual benefits to the group.