Which predictor did Schmidt & Hunter (1998) identify as the most valid across different jobs?

Which predictor did Schmidt & Hunter (1998) identify as the most valid across different jobs?

• A. General Mental Ability
• B. Biodata
• C. Structured Interview Validity
• D. Paired Comparison

Answer: (B)

General mental ability is the best single predictor of job performance across a wide range of occupations. Schmidt and Hunter’s meta-analysis shows that tests of cognitive ability consistently yield the strongest validity when predicting how well people will perform in different jobs, because they tap broad capacities like reasoning, learning, and problem solving that are useful in nearly any task. While biodata can be predictive and structure in interviews can add value, neither typically surpasses general mental ability as a universal predictor across diverse roles. Paired comparison is a method for ranking applicants, not a direct predictor of performance across various jobs, so it isn’t the top cross-job predictor.

General mental ability is the best single predictor of job performance across a wide range of occupations. Schmidt and Hunter’s meta-analysis shows that tests of cognitive ability consistently yield the strongest validity when predicting how well people will perform in different jobs, because they tap broad capacities like reasoning, learning, and problem solving that are useful in nearly any task. While biodata can be predictive and structure in interviews can add value, neither typically surpasses general mental ability as a universal predictor across diverse roles. Paired comparison is a method for ranking applicants, not a direct predictor of performance across various jobs, so it isn’t the top cross-job predictor.