Ability, Personality, Values & Motivation

Person-Task “fit”

PHED 1027 Weeks 5&6

ABILITIES...

• Definition

• Heritability

• Cognitive Abilities

– Emotional intelligence

• Psychomotor Abilities

Ability...

• An individual’s capacity to engage in a host of

tasks, behaviours, or activities (Chelladurai, 2006)

• Aptitude? (innate talent)

• Competency? (future-evaluated work behaviour)

Issues regarding ABILITY

• Heritability

• Generality vs. specificity

Heritability

• Behaviourist View – ability is acquired through

experience and learning (environment)

• Biological Determinist View – ability is genetically

endowed, and experience and learning

accentuate individual differences

• Interactionist View – ability is a function of both

biology and environment

Interactionist View...

• Training and practice can compensate for lack

of inherited capacity

• Influence of the environment is more

significant in the early stages of life than in

adulthood

Heritability...Nature vs. Nurture?

Inherited Interaction Acquired

Visual Acuity Peripheral Vision?

Body Type Body weight & Fatness?

Reaction Time Cardiovascular endurance?

Generality vs. Specificity

• Previous View - Success on one task would

transfer to other tasks (ability was a global

factor)

• NOW – no general ability factor exists;

individuals possess varying degrees of

different ability factors

Cognitive Abilities

Competency Description

Verbal Comprehension

Meaning of words, relationship to one another, comprehension of written and spoken information

Word Fluency Using words quickly and easily, without an emphasis on verbal comprehension

Numerical Handling numbers, mathematical analysis, arithmetic

Spatial Visualization of forms in space and manipulation of objects mentally (3-D)

Memory Memory for symbols, words, lists of numbers, etc.

Perceptual Speed Perception of visual details, similarities and differences

Inductive Reasoning Applying a rule/principle in problem solving, and making logical judgments

(Chelladurai, 2006)

Abilities of Outstanding Leaders• Reality focus• Honesty• Independence & self-confidence• Active Mind• Competence • Vision

• Cognitive abilities?

Emotional intelligence

• Identifying emotions

• Using emotions

• Understanding emotions

• Managing emotions

Psychomotor Abilities

• The field of PHE is based on psychomotor

abilities

• The testing of ability only reflects CURRENT

ability

Psychomotor Abilities

• Strength – static, power

• Endurance – muscular, cardiovascular

• Flexibility

• Agility

• Reaction Time

• Balance

• Coordination

• Classification of ALL abilities is important for

determining the requirements of a task,

establishing standards for performance,

assessing the abilities of clients, assigning

appropriate tasks, and providing training to

enhance required abilities.

PERSONALITY

• Uniqueness of a person through thoughts,

feelings, beliefs, behaviours

• Combination of genetic and environmental

factors that contributes to the development

of personality

PERSONALITY...

• Cultural Influences

• Family & social groups

• Situation and Behaviour

• Trait vs. State

Implications for Leaders...

• Different individuals will behave differently in any

given situation

• But, if the situation dictates behaviour strongly

enough, all individuals will behave similarly

• Are you aware of your behaviour at school, at

home, in social situations?

Do you agree?

Body Type Temperament

Endomorphy Viscerotonia – love of comfort and food; affectionate, tolerant, even-tempered, complacent, follower

Mesomorphy Somatotonia – prefers physical adventure, risk taker, aggressive, insensitive, noisy, courageous, dominant

Ectomorphy Cerebrotonia – restrained, inhibited, secretive, distrustful, anxious, ambitious, dedicated

(Sheldon, 1954)

Trait Theories

• Trait – general disposition to act in a specific

way

• Categorized into 5 key domains

Personality Domains (Kelley, 1992)

Domain Defining Terms

Surgency & Extroversion Enthusiastic, spirited, extroverted, dominant, playful...

Agreeableness Cooperative, helpful, amiable, cordial, friendly...

Conscientiousness Organized, concise, efficient, self-disciplined, precise, cautious....

Neuroticism & emotional stability

Defensive, fretful, insecure, emotionally unstable...

Intellect Contemplative, insightful, perceptive, bright, smart...

• Which domain best describes your

personality?

• Which domain best describes a high

performance athlete?

• Which domain best describes a leader?

• Conscientiousness – purposefulness, sense of

obligation, persistence

– This trait is associated with better

performance in all task contexts

(Barrick & Mount, 1991)

Unlike ability...

• Making judgments about personality does not

predict successful performance!

• But, it is important to recognize that

personality plays an important role in human

behaviour in all situations

How does your personality affect your approach to COACHING? (NCCP Level I Manual)

1. I would like to be known asa) Effective in teaching the skills of the gameb) A winning coachc) A friendly coach

2. When coaching I enjoy:a) Recognition for my effortsb) The feeling of a job well donec) Being with players

3. The worst thing that can happen to a coach is:a) Having a parent or player get angry with youb) The team losing the gamec) Embarrassing yourself while coaching

4. I would prefer that my players:a) Consider me as an important part of the teamb) Consider me as a friendc) Look up to me

5. Coaches I respect are:a) Those who know the game very wellb) Very successfulc) Easy to get along with

6. Coaches could do a better job if they:a) Taught fundamentals betterb) Received more recognition for their effortsc) Put less emphasis on competition and more on

getting along with others

7. I think a coach should:a) Be respected by playersb) Get the job donec) Make him/herself easy to talk to

Question Approach MOST Not CHOSEN LEAST

1 a) Taskb) Selfc) social

3 2 1

2 a) Selfb) Taskc) social

3 a) Socialb) Taskc) Self

4 a) Taskb) Socialc) Self

5 a) Taskb) Selfc) Social

6 a) Taskb) Selfc) Social

7 a) Selfb) Taskc) social

Self Score___________

Task Score__________

Social Score__________

Traits relevant to Organizations

• Authoritarian personality– Adherence to rules, obedience– Intolerant of weakness– Some are born to lead, others born to follow

• Bureaucratic Orientation– Specialization, division of labour, discipline, loyalty– Preference for rules and regulations– Impersonal relationships

• Attitude toward Authority

– Positive vs. Negative

• Attitude toward Individualism

– Working alone or with others

• Tolerance for Ambiguity

– Desire for change

• Locus of Control

– Internal vs. External

– Internals do well as leaders

• Positive and Negative Affectivity

– Positive affect – achievement oriented, interpersonal

– Negative affect – accentuate the negative in situations

• Service Orientation

– Adaptable, good social skills, interest in clients

• Machiavellianism

– Manipulating others for personal gain (e.g. power)

– Cool, calculating, self interest

MACH SCALE (Chelladurai, 2006)

Item Disagree Agree

The best way to manage people is to tell them what they want to hear

1 2 3 4 5

When you ask someone to do something for you, it is best to give the reason for wanting it rather than to give reasons that might carry more weight

5 4 3 2 1

Anyone who completely trusts anyone else is asking for trouble

1 2 3 4 5

It is hard to get ahead without cutting corners here and there

1 2 3 4 5

Honesty is the best policy 5 4 3 2 1

• Problem-solving style– Sensation – well-detailed, concrete information– Intuitive – “big picture”, new problems– Feeling – concerned about others’ emotions– Thinking – concerned about logic, not others

Problem Solvers:

– Sensation-thinkers (decisive, dependable, applied)

• Sport marketing, facility planning

– Intuitive-thinkers (creative, progressive, perceptive)

• Sport law, athletic administration

– Sensation-Feelers (pragmatic, analytical, methodical)

• Teaching, coaching, fitness leadership

– Intuitive-Feelers (charismatic, participative, people-oriented)

• Sport-media relations, customer services, sales

• Managerial Potential

– Identifies those individuals who possess traits

which would make them better managers

– Self-confidence, goal orientation, cognitive clarity

For Thursday,

• Read Chapter 6 – VALUES• Complete #1 Understand

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