Sample
The study included 139 employee-supervisor dyads recruited from multiple organizations in the United States. Employees’ ages ranged from 19 to 69 (M = 39.21, SD = 11.66), and 53% were male. Ethnic representation included 89 White, 25 Black, 12 Mixed, 11 Asian, and 2 Other. Supervisory experience with the employee varied: more than 2 years (41%), 1–2 years (23%), 6–12 months (19%), 3–6 months (9%), and less than 3 months (7%).
Instrument
The HiPeople Problem Solving Test is an online multiple-choice cognitive assessment designed to measure the ability to identify patterns, infer rules, and solve novel problems. The items were created by an open-source item generator and are inspired by tasks such as Raven’s Progressive Matrices. The test contains 8 items, each scored as correct or incorrect, and is typically completed in under 10 minutes.
Example item
Internal Consistency
This test demonstrated excellent internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.851). This demonstrates that the items collectively measure a coherent construct.
Limitations: Reliability was evaluated solely through internal consistency. While alpha is a strong indicator of internal coherence, test–retest reliability would offer additional evidence of temporal stability.