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Sudden lockdowns caused many on-site employees to start working remotely, so many leaders found themselves needing to lead team members that are dispersed across multiple locations to function together as a team. 2. Caring, sympathetic, and considerate toward others Focuses on getting things finished Understands people and why they behave in certain ways Capable of persuading others to a point of view Involves others in decision making Trusts people Willing to work around standard procedures to get results when necessary Openly expresses feelings and emotions A composite of these personality traits predicted overall performance (as rated by the leader’s manager and direct reports) within a combination of the six pandemic-related challenges with an uncorrected r = .31 (p < .001). (2021) further suggested that research could focus on the role that individual differences play in leadership emergence during the pandemic crisis (e.g., are men or women more likely to attain leadership positions in crises).

Survey key driver analysis (SKDA) is a general term describing statistical procedures for identifying priorities from among a larger set of topics measured by a survey. The key drivers of a particular outcome measured by a survey (e.g., employee engagement) are the survey topics or items that are most highly associated with the outcome. By determining the relative importance of each survey topic to a particular outcome, SKDA suggests where attention should be focused to have the greatest impact on that outcome, helping decision makers prioritize action to drive meaningful change. This chapter describes appropriate SKDA methods, addresses potential criticisms of the approach, makes recommendations for the proper application of SKDA, and addresses the most frequent methodological questions that arise concerning SKDA.

In their critical review of survey key driver analyses (SKDA), Cucina, Walmsley, Gast, Martin, and Curtin (2017) contend that methodological issues limit the usefulness of SKDA and recommend that survey providers stop conducting SKDA until these issues can be overcome. I contend that many of these methodological issues are either overstated or able to be addressed through the proper application of the technique by a competent professional. In this commentary, I make recommendations for how SKDA should be applied so that methodological issues are addressed and the value of SKDA is maximized. Many of these recommendations were made in Lundby and Johnson (2006), who were cited by Cucina et al. but did not have much impact on their focal article.

BACKGROUND Bicipital groove location has been used as a reference for humeral stem orientation in total shoulder arthroplasty to recreate humeral head retroversion. However, anatomic variability has rendered its use for prosthetic orientation problematic in cases of comminuted proximal fractures. We hypothesized that variability in groove rotation is directly related to variability in humeral head retroversion and that by defining the degree of groove rotation, humeral head retroversion can be predicted. METHODS Computed tomographic scans (1-mm sections) were obtained along the entire lengths of thirty-four cadaveric humeri, and three-dimensional models were created by using computer-assisted design software. Humeral head retroversion was determined in reference to the transepicondylar axis. The bicipital groove was mapped from proximal to distal, and the rotation of the groove in relationship to the transepicondylar axis was tracked over the entire length of the groove. The overall groove rotation and the rotation of its proximal, intermediate, and distal 15-mm segments were determined. RESULTS The average humeral head retroversion was 21°, and the average angles of groove rotation in relation to the transepicondylar axis for the overall groove and the proximal, intermediate, and distal segments were 65°, 60°, 63°, and 71° of internal rotation relative to the transepicondylar axis, respectively. Pearson correlation coefficients between bicipital groove rotation and humeral head retroversion were ≥0.78 for all segments. CONCLUSIONS A previously unknown direct correlation between bicipital groove rotation and humeral head retroversion was found to exist. The ability to predict humeral head retroversion when mapping only the distal third of the groove has potentially important clinical implications because the distal third is often the only portion of the groove remaining in patients with a comminuted proximal humeral fracture. This is particularly relevant with computer-navigated surgery.

Purpose It is our impression that there is substantial, unexplained variation in hand surgeon recommendations for treatment of peripheral mononeuropathy. We tested the null hypothesis that specific patient and provider factors do not influence recommendations for surgery. Methods Using a web-based survey, hand surgeons recommended surgical or nonsurgical treatment for patients in 2 different scenarios. Six elements of the first scenario (symptoms, circumstances, mindset, diagnosis, objective testing, and expectations) had 2 possibilities that were each independently and randomly assigned to each rater. For the second scenario, 2 different scenarios were randomly assigned to each rater. Multivariable logistic regression sought factors associated with a recommendation for surgery. Results A total of 186 surgeons of the Science of Variation Group completed a survey regarding recommendation of surgery for 2 different patients based on clinical scenarios. Recommendations for surgery did not vary significantly according to provider characteristics. For the various elements in scenario 1, recommendation for surgery was more likely for patients who were self-employed and continued to work and who had objective electrodiagnostic abnormalities. For the 2 vignettes used in scenario 2, a recommendation for surgery was associated with abnormal electrophysiology. Conclusions The findings of this study suggest that—at least in a survey setting—surgeons prefer to offer peripheral nerve decompression to patients with abnormal electrophysiology, particularly those with effective coping strategies. Clinical relevance The role of objective verification of pathophysiology is debated, but it is an influential factor in recommendations for hand surgery.

We expected that the commentary process would provide valuable feedback to improve our ideas and identify potential obstacles, and we were not disappointed. The commentaries were generally in agreement that synthetic validity is a good idea, although we also received a fair amount of suggestions for improvements, conditional or tempered praise, and explicitly critical comments. We address the concerns that were raised and conclude that we should move forward with developing a large-scale synthetic validity database, incorporating the suggestions of some of the commentators.

Although synthetic validation has long been suggested as a practical and defensible approach to establishing validity evidence, synthetic validation techniques are infrequently used and not well understood by the practitioners and researchers they could most benefit. Therefore, we describe the assumptions, origins, and methods for establishing validity evidence of the two primary types of synthetic validation techniques: (a) job component validity and (b) job requirements matrix. We then present the case for synthetic validation as the best approach for many situations and address the potential limitations of synthetic validation. We conclude by proposing the development of a comprehensive database to build prediction equations for use in synthetic validation of jobs across the U.S. economy and reviewing potential obstacles to the creation of such a database. We maintain that synthetic validation is a practically useful methodology that has great potential to advance the science and practice of industrial and organizational psychology.

We describe a unique application of a synthetic validation technique to a selection system development project in a large organization. Job analysis data were collected from 4,725 job incumbents and 619 supervisors, and were used to identify 11 job families and 27 job components. We developed 12 tests to predict performance on these job components and conducted a concurrent validation study to collect test and job component data for 1,926 incumbents. We created a test composite for each job component and then chose a test battery for each job family based on its relevant job components. Synthetic validity coefficients were computed for each test battery and compared to traditional validity coefficients that were computed within job families with large sample sizes. The synthetic validity coefficient was very close to the within-family validity coefficient for most job families and was within the bounds of sampling error for all job families. Validities tended to be highest when predictors were weighted according to the number of job components to which they were relevant and job component criterion measures were unit weighted. Synthetic validation is a process by which validity in a specific situation can be inferred by identifying the basic components of the job, determining the validity of a selection instrument for predicting performance on each of those components, and combining or synthesizing the component validities into a whole (Cascio, 1987). Using this technique, test batteries can be assembled and validity coefficients can be calculated for jobs in which a traditional criterion-related validity study cannot be conducted because it is difficult or impossible to collect the necessary data (Johnson, 2007). Lawshe (1952) introduced the term “synthetic validity,” but this technique has had relatively little influence in the field of

Arthroscopic-assisted reduction and fixation of Bennett-type fractures of the thumb metacarpal allow for the confirmation of reduction as well as the assessment of the degree of chondral damage. With use of a 1.9-mm arthroscope and a traction tower, direct visualization and reduction is possible. Traditional methods of fixation are used to secure the fracture fragment. Postoperative rehabilitation follows the usual protocol used in both open and percutaneous techniques. However, the potential to obtain and confirm a more accurate articular reduction may reduce the incidence of late arthritis of the thumb carpometacarpal articulation.

Relative weight analysis is a procedure for estimating the relative importance of correlated predictors in a regression equation. Because the sampling distribution of relative weights is unknown, researchers using relative weight analysis are unable to make judgments regarding the statistical significance of the relative weights. J. W. Johnson (2004) presented a bootstrapping methodology to compute standard errors for relative weights, but this procedure cannot be used to determine whether a relative weight is significantly different from zero. This article presents a bootstrapping procedure that allows one to determine the statistical significance of a relative weight. The authors conducted a Monte Carlo study to explore the Type I error, power, and bias associated with their proposed technique. They illustrate this approach here by applying the procedure to published data.

Using multisource data, this article examined the relationship of two types of employee perceptions of overall fairness (i.e., fairness of the organization and fairness of the department), with supervisor ratings of in-role task performance and organizational citizenship behaviors (OCB). We also examined whether high-quality leader-member exchange (LMX) relationships compensate for negative effects of fairness on job performance and citizenship behaviors. Focusing on a sample of 154 health care workers, we found that only employee perceptions of overall fairness regarding the department were related to supervisory ratings of OCB and in-role task performance. Moreover, LMX moderated the relationships between fairness perceptions and (a) task performance, (b) organization-focused OCB, but not (c) individual-focused OCB. We discuss implications for research and the potential for reducing negative effects of low fairness perceptions on job performance through positive LMX.

In this study, we demonstrated the usefulness of Occupational Information Network (O*NET) job analysis data for identifying applied adult literacy requirements across occupations. This was accomplished using a job component validity approach relating O*NET knowledge, skill, ability, and generalized work activity descriptor data to literacy test scores on the national adult literacy survey (NALS). Mean scores on prose, document, and quantitative literacy were estimated for 902 O*NET-SOC occupations using descriptor data at the occupation level. Multiple correlation coefficients ranging from .79 to .81 (corrected for shrinkage) were found when predicting literacy scores from O*NET descriptors. Results of this study showed that 3 different types of applied adult literacy were highly predictable from the O*NET descriptors.

Relative weights are used to interpret a regression equation when the researcher is interested in the relative importance of the predictor variables. Like other statistics, relative weights are influenced by sampling and measurement error. To assess the influence of sampling error, a bootstrapping approach to computing confidence intervals around relative weights is described. To assess the influence of measurement error, a Monte Carlo study was conducted in which relative weights were computed before and after correcting correlation matrices for unreliability. The influence of measurement error was generally small but can be substantial in some cases. Correcting for unreliability tended to make the biggest difference when criterion correlations were small, predictor reliabilities were low, and the number of predictors was large.

The relative weight of predictor variables in multiple regression is difficult to determine because of non-zero predictor intercorrelations. Relative weight (also called relative importance by some researchers) is defined here as the proportionate contribution each predictor makes to R2, considering both its unique contribution and its contribution when combined with other variables. Although there are no unambiguous measures of relative weight when variables are correlated, some measures have been shown to provide meaningful results (Budescu, 1993; Lindeman, Merenda, & Gold, 1980). These measures are very difficult to implement, however, when the number of predictors is greater than about five. A method is proposed that is computationally efficient with any number of predictors, and is shown to produce results that are very similar to those produced by more complex methods. Recommendations are made for when this procedure may be applied and in what situations it is not appropriate.

This study investigated (a) whether performance improvement following upward feedback is related to self-other rating discrepancies, (b) how self-ratings change after feedback, and (c) whether agreement among raters influences performance improvement. Self-ratings and subordinate ratings were collected from 1,888 managers at 2 points in time 1 year apart. Using polynomial regression equations, we determined that managers who overrated themselves relative to how others rated them tended to improve their performance from 1 year to the next, and underraters tended to decline. This is consistent with what would be predicted by self-consistency theory (Korman, 1976). Self-ratings tended to decrease for overraters and increase for underraters, but this effect was not constant throughout the range of self-ratings. Agreement among subordinate raters was negatively related to performance improvement, but this is likely a reflection of differential regression to the mean.

Each of several Monte Carlo simulations generated 100 sets of observed study correlations based on normal, heteroscedastic, or slightly nonlinear bivariate distributions, with one population correlation coefficient and true variance of 0. A version of J. E. Hunter and F. L. Schmidt's (1990b) meta-analysis was applied to each study set. Within simulations, ρ was accurate on average. σ ρ 2 was biased; one would correctly conclude more than half the time that no moderator effects existed. However, cases of variation in ρ and especially in σ ρ 2 indicated that results from individual meta-analyses could deviate substantially from what was found on average. Findings for these no-moderator cases offer applied psychologists some guidelines and cautions when drawing conclusions about true population correlations and true moderator effects (e.g., situational specificity, validity generalization) from meta-analytic results.

In this study, we applied a typological approach to the performance domain by investigating the profile similarity of managers across a number of managerial performance dimensions. Inverse principal components analysis identified three types of managers, which were defined by examining correlations between person-component loadings and scores on performance, ability, and personality variables. Task-Oriented Technicians were technically skilled but interpersonally ineffective; Amiable Underachievers were interpersonally sensitive, but were lacking in motiva- tion and many managerial skills; and People-Oriented Leaders excelled in leadership and supervision aspects of the job, but had relatively poor financial and quantitative skills. Despite the differences in their profiles, mean scores for Task-Oriented Technicians and People-Oriented Leaders did not differ on a measure of overall performance.

Despite the recent popularity of multiple perspective feedback systems, there is little theory to guide research in this area and to promote the successful implementation of multiple perspective feedback in organizations. By integrating organizational development and individual performance perspectives, a theoretical framework is developed that illustrates the mechanisms by which feedback can lead to improved individual, work group, and organizational performance. According to this framework, when the structure and systems of the organization are congruent with the goals of the feedback program, feedback positively influences individual performance determinants (e.g., declarative knowledge, motivation). This leads to improved individual performance, which contributes to desired organizational outcomes. Based on this framework, practical questions that should be addressed before a feedback process is implemented are presented.

Although a common theme in the service quality literature is that organizations must create and maintain a climate for service in order for employees to effectively deliver service, few studies exist that evaluate climate for service components against a criterion of customer satisfaction. The effectiveness of different aspects of a climate for service is evaluated by determining the relationships between service climate components and facets of customer satisfaction, as rated by 538 employees and 7,944 customers across 57 branches of a large bank. All service climate components were significantly related to at least one facet of customer satisfaction (e.g., teller service). Seeking and sharing information about customers' needs and expectations, training in delivering quality service, and rewarding and recognizing excellent service were the practices that were most highly related to satisfaction with service quality.

Purpose To address the factors that surgeons use to decide between 2 options for treatment when the evidence is inconclusive. Methods We tested the null hypothesis that the factors surgeons use do not vary by training, demographics, and practice. A total of 337 surgeons rated the importance of 7 factors when deciding between treatment and following the natural history of the disease and 12 factors when deciding between 2 operative treatments using a 5-point Likert scale between "very important" and "very unimportant." Results According to the percentages of statements rated very important or somewhat important, the most popular factors influencing recommendations when evidence is inconclusive between treatment and following the natural course of the illness were "works in my hands," "familiarity with the treatment," and "what my mentor taught me." The most important factors when evidence shows no difference between 2 surgeries were "fewer complications," "quicker recovery," "burns fewer bridges," "works in my hands" and "familiarity with the procedure." Europeans rated "works in my hands" and "cheapest/most resourceful" of significantly greater importance and "what others are doing," "highest reimbursement," and "shorter procedure" of significantly lower importance than surgeons in the United States. Observers with fewer than 10 years in independent practice rated "what my mentor taught me," "what others are doing" and "highest reimbursement" of significantly lower importance compared to observers with 10 or more years in independent practice. Conclusions Surgeons deciding between 2 treatment options, when the evidence is inconclusive, fall back to factors that relate to their perspective and reflect their culture and circumstances, more so than factors related to the patient's perspective, although this may be different for younger surgeons. Clinical relevance Hand surgeons might benefit from consensus fallback preferences when evidence is inconclusive. It is possible that falling back to personal comfort makes us vulnerable to unhelpful commercial and societal influences.

This report recommends potential initiatives to improve the retention of company grade officers. The report builds on prior work completed for the ARI research program entitled Strategies to Enhance Retention (STAY). The officer portion of the STAY program sought, over a three-year period, to improve the continuance of the Army's company grade officers. The recommendations are based on (a) focus groups and interviews on Army posts, (b) interviews with other subject matter experts, (c) literature review, (d) the model of company grade officer continuance, (e) the results of the evaluation of three interventions developed to enhance continuance, and (f) special expert panel meetings. First, we summarize major factors that were identified in focus groups and interviews as negatively and positively influencing officer retention. Then we propose a set of recommendations for future initiatives, organized in terms of the factors identified as influencing retention. Within each description, we discuss the nature of the intervention, the reasons the intervention should improve retention, and issues that may limit the effectiveness or feasibility of the intervention. Finally, we present recommendations that are specific to the three STAY interventions and the model of officer career continuance.

We developed and evaluated a retention counseling training program targeted at influencing factors identified as important to company grade officers? retention decisions. Training was given to Company Commanders, Battalion Commanders, XOs, and S3s in four brigades. The impact of training was evaluated by administering pre- and post-surveys (four months after training) to company grade officers under the trainees? command. Trainee feedback was used to revise the training program. Hierarchical regression analyses controlling for Time 1 satisfaction demonstrated that both the quantity and rated quality of counseling were related to Time 2 satisfaction levels on many factors believed to have the strongest connection to career continuance. Among those who received counseling from someone we trained, there was a significant increase in intention to stay in the Army from Time 1 to Time 2. The training focused on the importance of conducting informal counseling in addition to formal counseling, and results showed that both types of counseling interact to influence variables such as career satisfaction, leadership satisfaction, and morale. Recommendations are made to introduce training similar to that used in this intervention to officers early in their career, with periodic retraining of the counseling strategies and behaviors throughout an officer?s career.

We present a dynamic model of company grade officer career continuance that is designed to inform future interventions intended to retain company grade officers, as well as to inform future research to enhance understanding of the retention process. Both a taxonomic model and a process model are presented, with the taxonomic model defining the constructs included in the process model, and the process model specifying relationships between constructs. A number of moderator variables are hypothesized, which are especially important for suggesting interventions to increase retention. Those moderator variables are consistent with interventions implemented as part of project STAY, and also suggest future interventions beyond the scope of that project. We conducted an initial evaluation of the model using (a) data obtained from existing officer surveys and tracking databases, and (b) evaluations of the interventions implemented as part of this project. We found empirical support for several hypotheses derived from the model, and suggest directions for future research.

The purpose of this research was to develop and evaluate an intervention designed to improve U.S. Army company grade officer career continuance. This intervention was a video featuring interviews with former officers to present their perspective on what aspects of the Army they miss in civilian life. We conducted focus groups with 155 current company grade officers to evaluate the ability of the video to influence career decisions and intentions toward staying in the Army. Between 15-29% of participants agreed with various post-viewing survey questions about the video changing different attitudes they had about the Army (e.g., appreciate aspects of being an officer that were taken for granted, more convinced they made the right choice by joining the Army), and over 45% said that the video helped clarify for them the unique benefits of being an officer. There was some degree of consensus from different sources that if the video was shown to officers who were at a decision point, if the showing of the video was accompanied by counseling by one's commander, and if the video was also shown to the spouse as a stimulus of much-needed conversation, that it could prove to be well worthwhile and possibly advantageous in retaining company grade officers.

We developed and evaluated a website targeted at influencing key factors previously identified as important to company grade officers? retention decisions. Information collected from a series of focus groups conducted with officers guided the development of the website. We used a pre-test post-test control group design to evaluate the impact of having the opportunity to use the website. Officers in the treatment condition participated in group sessions featuring an orientation to the website. They subsequently had access to the website for about three months. Officers in the control group attended sessions where they participated in a structured group discussion of retention. Officers in both groups completed pre-surveys before the treatment was implemented and were invited to complete follow-up surveys three months later. After controlling for pre-survey scores and variables on which the treatment and control groups initially differed significantly, no statistically significant differences were observed between the control and treatment groups on the follow-up surveys. However, officers in the treatment condition who visited the website after the orientation subsequently had more favorable perceptions of their pay and benefits than those who did not. The limitations of this investigation are discussed. Recommendations for future initiatives to improve retention are made.

The purpose of this article is to review research relevant to understanding the processes through which personality influences work outcomes. It first provides an overview of personality constructs prominent in the literature on personality at work. Next, the article reviews recent research on personality measurement, including: issues associated with different measurement methods; and how the level of measurement and alternative personality taxonomies influence relationships between personality and work outcomes. It summarizes models describing the processes underlying observed correlations between personality traits and both attitudes and performance. The article then presents an integrated model of the relationship between personality and performance that pulls together aspects of each model reviewed. This model highlights the mediating role attitudes play in the path from personality to performance. The article closes with a research agenda suggested by the integrated model.

The functional thumb is a necessity for successful athletic participation. It not only allows the athlete to manipulate athletic equipment but also allows the precise manipulation of objects in the athlete's hand. Injury to the thumb often negates power grip and finesse of the athletic hand. Injuries can range from fractures, to dislocations, to ligamentous injuries. The relatively unconstrained thumb metacarpophalangeal joint is particularly vulnerable to injury from an abduction moment to its distal segment. Such injuries occur from direct contact and with falls on equipment such as racquet handles and ski poles. The stability of the athlete's metacarpophalangeal joint must be restored to allow for a productive return to sport.

We report a case of Brodie's abscess of the distal radius that presented 4 years after closed reduction and percutaneous pinning for a closed distal radius fracture. This condition has not been previously reported in the adult distal radius and we detail the clinical features and imaging findings. We also present a new way of management of Brodie's abscess using injectable bone substitute along with adjunctive parenteral antibiotic therapy.

Despite the importance of citizenship performance and adaptive performance to Army junior commissioned officer job performance, there has been very little published research studying these constructs in a military setting and there is no well-established model of the process by which individual differences predict citizenship or adaptive performance. The purpose of this research was to test a model of the process through which individual difference variables work to influence performance on specific performance dimensions. To test this model, we assembled and developed a battery of instruments that are construct-valid measures of each component of the model and administered them to 155 ROTC cadets. Results supported our model with some modifications. Individual differences in ability, personality, and experience influence performance through the mediating variables of knowledge, skill, and three components of motivation (motives, proactive cognitions, and self-regulation). A different model was found to describe the process depending on whether the performance dimension was an element of task, citizenship, or adaptive performance.

Purpose To determine whether radiation therapy department administrators prefer to hire graduates with certain types of educational preparation. The study was undertaken by the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists as part of a larger project to determine educational requirements for radiation therapists. Methods and materials Forty-one department administrators evaluated applications from a pool of 984 hypothetical applicants for the position of radiation therapist. Applications were created by systematically varying eight characteristics such as years of experience, quality of educational program, and ratings from prior references. Type of educational program (baccalaureate degree, associate’s degree, or hospital certificate) was of particular interest in this study. Each administrator evaluated 24 applications and assigned a rating ranging from 1 to 5 to indicate the extent to which he or she desired to interview each applicant. All ratings and applicant characteristics were coded and subjected to regression-type analyses to determine the relative importance of each applicant characteristic to administrators’ decision-making policies. Results Information obtained from applicant references had the greatest impact on administrators’ evaluations of applicant quality. Specifically, reference ratings of cooperation and technical skills were the two most important characteristics, followed closely by reference ratings of interpersonal skills and dependability. Quality of educational program had some influence, as did years of experience. Type of educational program had virtually no impact on interview decisions for a vast majority of the administrators. Conclusions When making hiring decisions about hypothetical applicants, department administrators place most emphasis on evidence relating to past performance and give almost no weight to type of educational preparation. The extent to which these results generalize to actual applicants is addressed in the article.

Although evidence supports the unique contribution of task performance and contextual performance to overall evaluations, little is known about the relative contribution that specific dimensions of contextual performance make to overall performance judgments. This study evaluated the extent to which supervisors consider task and contextual performance by using relative weights (J. W. Johnson, 2000) to statistically describe the relative importance of specific dimensions of each type of performance to overall performance ratings. Within each of 8 job families in a large organization, each of 4 dimensions of contextual performance made not only a unique contribution but a relatively important contribution to the overall evaluation. Evidence also supports the adaptive performance dimension of handling work stress as an aspect of contextual performance and job-task conscientiousness as an aspect of both task and contextual performance.

A new method is presented for conducting differential prediction analyses that makes it possible to test differential prediction hypotheses with adequate statistical power even when the sample size within a job or a job family is very small. This method, called synthetic differential prediction analysis, represents an application of the logic of synthetic validation to differential prediction analyses. The authors explain this new method and describe its application in a selection-system validation study conducted in a large organization.

with the broad range of problems generated in a technologically advanced democracy? Crosby et al. (2003) responded to this question by suggesting that psychology is capable of offering the valid moral choice and the correct public policy. Their solution suffers from four liabilities. First, they failed to demonstrate how the science of psychology can logically yield such a conclusion in preference to the moral principle of equal rights for individuals. Second, they misrepresented the function of a science in a democratic society. It is not to identify the correct public policy but instead to provide unbiased information so that voters and their representatives can make educated decisions in preference to uninformed choices. Third, they have corrupted the reputation of psychology by conflating the roles of scientists and political advocacy. The contributions of psychologists who abide by such a distinction will be perceived with suspicion or ignored. Fourth, by strongly advocating preferential treatment, they may discourage support for more politically acceptable and more effective policies of assisting the disadvantaged (e.g., early educational interventions). Finally, it should be noted that two different conceptions of science are being offered. For Crosby et al. (2003), science has to meet the combined standards of truth and social function. Seeking the latter will inevitably contaminate the former. History suggests that the dual-function conception of science characterizes totalitarian regimes, whereas the view that science searches for empirical truth is consistent with an open society. Unless the profession of psychology frees itself from political agendas, its value to a democracy will be badly compromised if not destroyed.