NCJ Number
179050
Journal
Policing Volume: 22 Issue: 3 Dated: 1999 Pages: 343-352
Editor(s)
Lawrence F. Travis III
Date Published
1999
Length
10 pages
Annotation
This study examined whether the ratings of the behavioral-personnel assessment device (B-PAD), which can be used in testing for the selection of police recruits, are influenced by the demographic backgrounds of raters and ratees.
Abstract
In B-PAD ratings, applicants view videotaped scenarios and are instructed to respond as if they were the officer handling the situation. Participant responses are preserved on tape for subsequent review by panels of three raters. This instrument has had limited reliability checks to date, and the literature questions the reliability of the oral board process. The data for the current study were based on 113 subjects exposed to eight scenarios graded by panels of three judges. The variables of interest included the race and gender of both the raters and the ratees. The findings support the assertion that the B-PAD device is a reliable instrument when the focus of the investigation is on the demographic composition of both raters and ratees. The scores the applicants received were independent of their racial and gender characteristics and were also unrelated to the race and gender of the raters. This conclusion remained constant for all the scenarios, regardless of whether they were oriented toward a law-enforcement, social-service, or officer-conduct theme. Thus, the B-PAD ratings examined in this study were not apparently contaminated by any unwarranted discriminatory biases. 2 tables and 24 references