This chapter presents a review of applications of structural equation modeling (SEM) published in psychological research journals in recent years. We focus first on the variety of research designs and substantive issues to which SEM can be applied productively. We then discuss a number of methodological problems and issues of concern that characterize some of this literature. Although it is clear that SEM is a powerful tool that is being used to great benefit in psychological research, it is also clear that the applied SEM literature is characterized by some chronic problems and that this literature can be considerably improved by greater attention to these issues.

Goals and related constructs are ubiquitous in psychological research and span the history of psychology. Research on goals has accumulated sporadically through research programs in cognition, personality, and motivation. Goals are denned as internal representations of desired states. In this article, the authors review the theoretical development of the structure and properties of goals, goal establishment and striving processes, and goal-content taxonomies. They discuss affect as antecedent, consequence, and content of goals and argue for integrating across psychological content areas to study goal-directed cognition and action more efficiently. They emphasize the structural and dynamic aspects of pursuing multiple goals, parallel processing, and the parsimony provided by the goal construct. Finally, they advocate construct validation of a taxonomy of goals.The pursuance of future ends and the choice of means for their attainment are the mark and criterion of the presence of mentality in a phenomenon. (James, 1890, p. 8) William James's words, written over a century ago, foreshadowed a science of goal-and plan-directed behavior that is beginning to see fruition (Ajzen, 1991;Bargh & Gollwitzer, 1994;Locke & Latham, 1990a;Pervin, 1989a). In the interval since that statement, and despite the hegemony of behaviorism, the study of goal constructs has expanded to consider (a) the interplay between persons, behavior, and environments (e.g., Bandura, 1986); (b) situated versus symbolic accounts of cognition (e.g., Vera & Simon, 1993); (c) goal-behavior gaps (e.g., Lord & Levy, 1994); (d) self-regulation (e.g., Karoly, 1993); (e) volition (e.g., Corno & Kanfer, 1993); and (f) agentic behavior (e.g., R. M. Ryan, 1992). The breadth of psychological inquiry is apparent from the list of theories that incorporate goal constructs (see Table 1). Yet, the sheer magnitude of this body of research is associated with a certain danger. Heterogeneous perspectives can generate a large body of facts, an excess of vocabulary, and numerous microtheories (Cacioppo & Berntson, 1995). Organizing this knowledge of goals across domains is as vital as understanding each domain in isolation (Spaulding, 1994). In this review, we consider the structural, process, and

Change is all about us, but many of its targets remain cynical about its impact and importance. Cynicism about organizational change often combines pessimism about the likelihood of successful change with blame of those responsible for change as incompetent, lazy, or both. Data from a new empirical study, and from previously published research, suggest numerous factors that contribute to the development of such cynicism. These include a history of change programs that are not consistently successful, a lack of adequate information about change, and a predisposition to cynicism. Results also suggest that cynicism about changes has negative consequences for the commitment, satisfaction and motivation of employees.

Individuals differ on multiple aspects of their job-role behavior; criteria are measures that attempt to capture these differences. Measures of criteria are used by several constituencies within applied psychology. Among them, researchers used criteria for the evaluation of theories of work behavior, the effective administration of human resources and the provision of feedback to individuals. One index of the importance of criteria is the observation that most, if not all, of the pioneers of industrial-organizational psychology addressed this issue during their careers. This article reviews conceptual and methodological developments pertaining to the criterion problem since 1917, using as an organizing device dimensions, methods of measurement and analysis, and categorizing frameworks. A shift away from an emphasis on brute prediction toward a balanced treatment of both empirical and conceptual issues is highlighted by calls for the validation of criteria and by increased attention to modeling performance, as well as a recognition of multiple perspectives and competing values from which to view performance and criterion measurement.People in organizations behave according to their role perceptions and the roles assigned to them by others. The resulting behaviors and associated outputs, which are often limited by situations (Viteles, 1925(Viteles, -1926b and may vary widely across individuals (Tiffin, 1942;Viteles, 1932), form a large part of the subject matter of industrial-organizational (I-O) psychology. Individual variability on criterion measures interests researchers and managers, who attempt to measure and influence it. Because criteria are essential for evaluation of individuals, programs, and organizational interventions (Schmitt & Klimoski, 1991), the practical significance of criterion measurement has been recognized since the beginning of industrial psychology (Munsterberg, 1913;Scott, 1917). However, the systematic study of criteria per se to expand scientific knowledge This article is dedicated to Robert L. Thorndike, 1910Thorndike, -1990, who made monumental contributions to the study of criteria during his long career at Teachers College, Columbia University. Both authors contributed equally to the preparation of this article.We thank the following individuals, who critically and constructively commented on earlier versions of this article:

A new construct called Cynicism About Organizational Change (CAOC) was proposed and distinguished from related concepts. The measure of CAOC was supported by confirmatory factor analysis and has acceptable internal consistency reliability. Potential antecedents (measured 21 months before the measurement of CAOC) were examined. Little support was found for CAOC having dispositional roots in one’s general negative affectivity. More support was found for CAOC being learned as a result of little previous change, ineffective leadership practices, and lack of participation in decisions. CAOC was negatively correlated with a concurrent measure of organizational change and with the motivation to keep on trying to support change efforts. In addition, CAOC was negatively correlated with factors outside the realm of change: organizational commitment and the number of labor grievances. Finally, CAOC weakened the instrumentality perception of the relationship between performing well and earning more money, while holding the actual pay system constant.

Ability, interest, gender, and family socioeconomic status of 13,248 tenth-grade participants in Project TALENT were studied as they relate to occupational attainment by using discriminant analysis. Individuals were classified into 12 broad categories reported 11 years after graduation. Accuracy analyses indicated correct classifications significantly above chance for all except the Technical and Sales categories. Within-category classification percentages were higher for all groups except Construction. Five canonical discriminant functions that jointly accounted for 96.8% of the between-groups variance were interpreted. The first 2 accounted for 81.9% of the variance. Function 1 was a general ability function; Function 2 differentiated the categories on the basis of mathematics ability and gender. Functions 3 through 5 accounted for 14.9% of the between-groups variance. Some implications of these findings are discussed.

This article reviews the development of industrial-organizational (I-O) psychology in the United States since its beginnings at about the turn of the century. The history is divided into periods, within which are described topics, roles, and forces, with the goal of explaining as well as describing developments. Among the conclusions are that I-O psychology is a dynamic field that has been making contributions both to the science of behavior and to industrial society and that those contributions have been underestimated by some and possibly overestimated by others. Among the problems still facing the field is the disjunction between science and practice. However, in principle, that and other bipolarities can be made complementary.

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