RATING GOALS IN PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL: DEVELOPMENT OF AN INITIAL TAXONOMY AND MEASURE Overfors, Christine M. Rating employee performance is a common task undertaken by managers across most organizations with significant outcomes and complex antecedents. Efforts to understand the processes behind performance ratings have been the focus of substantial research within the performance appraisal domain. This study examined the structure of conscious rating goals pursued by managers when assigning ratings to employees by investigating an initial taxonomy of these goals based on both theoretical literature and managerial interviews. Additionally, a scale was developed as a means to effectively measure these goals to better address future research questions. The results from this preliminary work suggest four distinct rating goals endorsed by managers: Positive Development, Conflict Avoidance, Weaknesses and Consequences, and Equitable Treatment. Implications and avenues for future research are discussed. M.S. in Psychology, December 2012 Ellington, J. Kemp 2012-12-04 2012-12 Thesis application/pdf islandora:7516 http://hdl.handle.net/10560/3033 PSYCH / Institute of Psychology Illinois Institute of Technology en In Copyright http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/ Restricted Access