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Individual Differences in the workplace

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Now suppose a police department has hired you as a consultant to come up with an exam to assess personality and other traits of applicants to the department. The department is looking to hire applicants who meet the following criteria:
1. Do you think cognitive abilities should be part of the exam? Do you agree with the police department that there should be an upper limit to cognitive abilities, or should the department try to hire those with the highest cognitive abilities? Consider the concepts of ability testing in Chapter 3 of Nair (2010).
2. What personality traits do you think will best predict a police officer's ability to handle stressful situations in the field and make decisions under stress? Consider the Big Five traits as well as any other personality traits in Chapter 6 of Nair (2010). Be specific about what traits the department should consider and why these traits will be associated with an ability to work under stress.
3. What personality traits will best predict an ability to work cooperatively with their coworkers as well as with members of the community they serve? Again, be specific about which traits the department should consider and why these traits will be associated with a good ability to work with others. Use Chapter 6 of Nair about Big Five and other personality traits to consider.
For the Questions 4-6, you will be applying the concepts from the background materials to your own personal workplace experiences. For this assignment, think of two former or current coworkers that had unique personalities. Choose two people that you worked with closely enough that you were able to get a good idea of their personality traits and workplace attitudes.
Review the main personality traits and attitudes from the background materials, and think about how these apply to your two coworkers.
4. How would you describe the personalities of these two coworkers? Use the Big Five Personality traits and other personality traits discussed in Chapter 6 of Nair (2010) to find the personality traits that best describe your coworkers. You must use specific personality traits that you found in the background readings for your answer.
5. How would you describe their workplace attitudes including job satisfaction and organizational commitment? Use the concepts from Chapter 4 of Nair (2010).
6. Do you think their personality traits impacted their workplace attitudes, or did other factors such as the work environment; job characteristics, etc. have a greater impact on their attitudes?

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Individual Differences in the workplace are examined. What personality traits you think best predict a police officer's ability to handle stressful situations in the field and make decisions under stress are determined.

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Now suppose a police department has hired you as a consultant to come up with an exam to assess personality and other traits of applicants to the department. The department is looking to hire applicants who meet the following criteria:

1. Do you think cognitive abilities should be part of the exam? Do you agree with the police department that there should be an upper limit to cognitive abilities, or should the department try to hire those with the highest cognitive abilities? Consider the concepts of ability testing in Chapter 3 of Nair (2010).

Cognitive abilities are vital for policing as it enables the police officer to analyze situations, mitigate negative consequences, and ensure that the most productive and effective approach is taken for the police department. Therefore, it would be prudent to ensure that those with the highest cognitive abilities are hired to represent the department as this ensures that police officers and citizens will be more safe than they would otherwise under police with less cognitive capabilities.

2. What personality traits do you think will best predict a police officer's ability to handle stressful situations in the field and make decisions under stress? Consider the Big Five traits as well as any other personality traits in Chapter 6 of Nair (2010). Be specific about what traits the department should consider and why these traits will be associated with an ability to work under stress.

The traits most necessary for police officers include agreeableness, conscientiousness, and extraversion, which represent traits that will allow the police officer to better handle stressful situations with the necessary poise and demeanor that ...

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Stephen Washington, MS
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  • BS, Sam Houston State University, 1903 University Avenue, Huntsville, Tx 77340
  • MS, Prairie View A&M University
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