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Social comparison theory (Festinger,1954) implies that it may be more effi cacious for job performance raters to compare an employee to other employees rather than to use typical "absolute" rating standards. We assessed whether the incorporation of social comparisons into performance appraisals, using the relative percentile method (RPM), would predict criterion variance beyond that predicted by more traditional absolute ratings of performance. A sample (N=170) of managers involved in an assessment center was used, and the center provided criteria by which the relative criterion-related validity of social-comparative versus noncomparative (absolute) appraisals could be assessed. Overall, in consonance with a preponderance of earlier research, social-comparative (RPM) performance appraisals showed incremental criterion-related validity over traditional absolute performance appraisal methods.

We conducted a meta-analysis to estimate the effect of self-reported interview anxiety on job candidates' interview performance. Correspondingly, we examined the extent to which this relation was moderated by anxiety measurement approaches, type of interview (mock vs. real), timing of the anxiety measurement (before vs. after the interview), age, and gender. The overall meta-analytic correlation of Ϫ.19 was moderated by measurement approach and type of interview. Additionally, we evaluated the contributing studies with respect to power/sample size and provide sample size guidance for future research. The overall negative relation of Ϫ.19 (a medium effect size in this research area) indicates that anxiety may have a meaningful impact on hiring decisions in competitive situations through a decrease in interview performance. Public Significance StatementMany people experience anxiety before and during employment interviews. We systematically reviewed the literature on the relationship between anxiety and employment interview performance, to determine if anxiety affects people's performance in employment interviews. We found that anxiety has a moderate, negative effect on performance in employment interviews.

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Two experiments explored the role of information-processing capacity and strategies in regulating attitude-congruent selective exposure. In Experiment 1, participants were placed under time pressure and randomly assigned to conditions in which either an attitude-expressive or no-information processing goal was made salient. Analyses revealed an attitude-congruent selective exposure effect and indicated that this effect was stronger when an attitude-expressive goal was made salient than when no goal was made salient. In Experiment 2, information-processing goals and time pressure were factorially manipulated. Analyses revealed an attitude-congruent selective exposure effect and indicated that this effect was especially strong when time pressure was high and an attitude-expressive goal was made salient. In both experiments, bias at exposure was found to predict bias at later stages of information processing (attention and memory). Supplementary analyses and data confirmed that the attitude-expressive goal manipulation activated its intended motivational processing strategy.