Further Evaluation of the Accuracy of Managerial Prediction of Employee Preference

Abstract

Previous research (i.e., Wilder, Rost, & McMahon, 2007) has suggested that managers perform poorly when predicting items and activities which their employees state that they might like to earn as part of performance improvement programs. The purpose of the current study was to replicate the earlier study conducted by Wilder et al. (2007) with a larger and more diverse sample of managers and employees. One hundred employees and 15 managers were asked to rank order a list of items/activities they thought their employees would most prefer to be incorporated into a performance improvement plan. Next, employee preference for these same items was directly assessed using an employee reinforcer survey. Kendall rank-order correlation coefficients were used to compare the results of the managerial rank with the employee reinforcer survey. Correlations ranged from −.6 to 1, with a mean of .25.

The Behavioral and Neuroeconomics of Reinforcer Pathologies: Implications for Managerial and Health Decision Making

“…Although Oah and Lee's experimental preparation differed from the typical schedule arrangement used to study demand, their findings are generally consistent with the behavioral economic research documenting a decrease in consumption with an increase in unit price (Reed et al ., ). A benefit on using demand analyses and behavioral economic considerations with employees is that they provide a framework for evaluating the efficacy of rewards as reinforcers, which is advantageous given the temporal instability of employee preference for rewards (Wine et al , ) and the difficulty that managers have in identifying the items preferred by employees (Wilder et al , ).…”

A Survey of Staff Training and Performance Management Practices: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

“…The use of low-or no-cost items may help mediate budgetary restrictions. Because supervisors often err when making predictions about employee preferences for rewards (e.g., Wilder et al 2011), we recommend employees provide input about the types of incentives used. Additionally, any incentive program should ensure the incentives are contingent on desired work behavior and available on a more frequent basis.…”

Quantifying efficacy of workplace reinforcers: An application of behavioral economic demand to evaluate hypothetical work performance.

“…Research demonstrates managers may not always accurately predict employees’ preferences for incentives (e.g., Wilder, Harris, Casella, Wine, & Postma, 2011). To address this issue, managers may conduct preference assessments by asking employees to identify or rank prospective reinforcers (Waldvogel & Dixon, 2008).…”