Arts, Faculty of
Psychology, Department of
DSpace
UBCV
Devries, Alcon Gysbertus
Master of Arts - MA
University of British Columbia
The aim of this study was to show how Flanagan’s Critical Incident Technique may be used to conduct a systematic and objective study of training needs in the field of Real Estate selling. The data were gathered from 86 volunteer registered salesmen whose names had been randomly selected from a master file containing approximately 990 names of registered real estate salesmen. A total of 314 useable reports yielding 327 actual incidents and 88 items of general information were gathered and reclassified according to standard Critical Incident Technique methods. Agreement by two judges served as a check on the validity of the sorting and classification of each incident and item of information. It was found that more failures in selling may be ascribed to inadequate dealings involving property than to those involving people or monetary considerations. Within the limitations of the present study, the gathering of items of general information proved to be a valuable adjunct to Flanagan's Critical Incident Technique.
A STUDY OF TRAINING NEEDS IN THE SELLING OF REAL ESTATE THROUGH THE USE OF THE CRITICAL INCIDENT TECHNIQUE by ALCON GYSBERTUS DEVRIES A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS i n the Department of PHILOSOPHY AND PSYCHOLOGY We accept this thesis as conforming to the standard required from candidates for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS Members of the Department of Philosophy and Psychology THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA A p r i l , 1957. i l l ABSTRACT The aim of t h i s study was to show how Flanagan^s C r i t i c a l Incident Technique may be used to conduct a systematic and objective study of t r a i n i n g needs i n the f i e l d of Real Estate s e l l i n g . The data were gathered from 86 volunteer registered salesmen whose names had been randomly selected from a master f i l e containing approximately 990 names of registered r e a l estate salesmen. A t o t a l of 31^ useable reports y i e l d i n g 327 actual incidents and 88 items of general information were gathered and r e c l a s s i f i e d accord-ing to standard C r i t i c a l Incident Technique methods. Agreement by two judges served as a check on the v a l i d i t y of the sorting and c l a s s i f i c a t i o n of each incident and item of information. I t was found that more f a i l u r e s i n s e l l i n g may be ascribed to inadequate dealings involving property than to those involving people or monetary considerations. Within the l i m i t a t i o n s of the present study, the gathering of items of general information proved to be a valuable adjunct to Flanagan's C r i t i c a l Incident Technique. In presenting t h i s t h e s i s i n p a r t i a l f u l f i l m e n t of the requirements f o r an advanced degree at the U n i v e r s i t y of B r i t i s h Columbia, I agree that the L i b r a r y s h a l l make i t f r e e l y a v a i l a b l e f o r reference and study. I f u r t h e r agree that permission f o r extensive copying of t h i s t h e s i s f o r s c h o l a r l y purposes may be granted by the Head of my Department or by h i s r e p r e s e n t a t i v e . I t i s understood that copying or p u b l i c a t i o n of t h i s t h e s i s f o r f i n a n c i a l gain s h a l l not be allowed without my w r i t t e n permission. Department of Y ^ / / f ? / ^ V The U n i v e r s i t y of B r i t i s h Columbia, Vancouver 3, Canada. Date >3 7V7 / / / fT / 9 T"? i i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The writer would l i k e to express h i s g r a t i -tude to those indiv i d u a l s whose co-operation made i t possible to accomplish t h i s study. In p a r t i c u l a r , the writer wants to thank and express h i s appreciation to Dr. E.I. Signori without whose valuable assistance and advice t h i s study could not have been successfully f i n i s h e d , and to the Real Estate organization and members of the organization whose co-operation and loan of o f f i c e space f o r interviewing made t h i s study possible. In addition, s p e c i a l thanks are expressed to the salesmen who gave of th e i r time to be Interviewed, and to Professor E.S.W. Belyea for producing photostatic copies of the tables and the source material on the c r i t i c a l incident technique used i n t h i s study. i v TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE I INTRODUCTORY STATEMENT 1 II REVIEW OF SIGNIFICANT LITERATURE ON THE CRITICAL INCIDENT TECHNIQUE h I I I DESCRIPTION OF THE CRITICAL INCIDENT TECHNIQUE 6 IV EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE 10 V RESULTS 13 VI DISCUSSION OF RESULTS 2h VII CONCLUSIONS 33 VIII SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER RESEARCH 3^ REFERENCES. . 37 APPENDICES . ^ l I Copy f i r s t l e t t e r sent to General Membership h2 II Copy l e t t e r sent to Sample hh I I I Copy second l e t t e r sent to Sample .k6 IV Instructions. . . . . . . . . . . ,V7 V Instructions ^9 VI Copy Form 50 V LIST OF TABLES TABLE PAGE I Summary: Major Areas: Incidents (I) and General Information (GI) 1*+ II Breakdown of Major Areas: Frequency of C r i t i c a l Requirements 16 III C r i t i c a l Requirements by order of Frequency: Incidents (I) and General Information (GI) 17 IV C r i t i c a l Behaviours by Frequency, Under each C r i t i c a l Requirement 19 V C r i t i c a l Behaviours, by Frequency, Under each C r i t i c a l Requirement 20 VI C r i t i c a l Behaviours, by Frequency, Under each C r i t i c a l Requirement 21 VII C r i t i c a l Behaviours by Frequency Incidents (I) and General Information (GI). 22 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTORY STATEMENT This study arose out of the f a c t that the writer had learned that the Faculty of Commerce had been approached by a Real Estate organization f o r assistance i n the improvement of the t r a i n i n g and l i c e n s i n g of Real Estate salesmen. Since the writer had had some experience i n the f i e l d of Real Estate and since the Department of Psychology had been experimenting with the C r i t i c a l Incident Technique i n the f i e l d of tr a i n i n g i t was f e l t that the problem with which the Real Estate organization was faced might o f f e r further opportunity to experiment with the C r i t i c a l Incident Technique i n another f i e l d . Accordingly, the Real Estate organization was approached and an agreement reached to conduct a study of t r a i n i n g needs by use of the C r i t i c a l Incident Technique with the understanding that the findings would be made available to the Faculty of Commerce f o r possible assistance i n the development of a t r a i n i n g program f o r Real Estate salesmen. The problem of t r a i n i n g i n business and industry constitutes an important component of any corapre-•hensive personnel p o l i c y . In dealing with i t there has been a general tendency to r e l y on so-called common sense methods. Thus, the content of a t r a i n i n g program i s us u a l l y decided by a supervisor or one who has had a great deal of experience 2 with the a c t i v i t y i n question. While there i s nothing i n -herently wrong with such practices i n the i n i t i a l stages of the development of a t r a i n i n g program, i t i s often the case that once the program has been evolved i t s v a l i d i t y may go unquestioned for long periods of time and i t may even become an accepted and immutable part of company per-sonnel p r a c t i c e s . As a consequence one may never know whether or not the program i s meeting the r e a l needs of t r a i n i n g . I t appears that i n the development of several t r a i n i n g courses (*+l, k2) for Real Estate salesmen such practices have by and large been followed. In the business and i n d u s t r i a l f i e l d various approaches to the problem of evaluating the effectiveness of t r a i n i n g programs have been suggested. Lawshe (36) suggests evaluations based on controlled experiments i n which the r e s u l t s of one group of workers who receive new t r a i n i n g are compared with those of another group which does not receive i t or which c a r r i e s on i n the accustomed manner. Other evaluations described by Lawshe (36) are based on the effects which t r a i n i n g may have on such factors as breakage and absenteism. Likewise, K e l l y & Ware (3*+) have noted the effects of t r a i n i n g on labor turnover. Other authors ( 9 , 28 , >+3, k5) found s i m i l a r trends i n regard to ef f e c t s on accident rates, morale, job s a t i s f a c t i o n and pro-duction. While such research approaches undoubtedly have t h e i r place i n the evaluation of t r a i n i n g , t h e i r common 3 weakness i s that they f a i l to i d e n t i f y the s p e c i f i c features of the t r a i n i n g that are i n f a c t responsible f o r the recorded improvements. Nor Is i t possible from such information to know whether basic t r a i n i n g needs are a c t u a l l y being met. There i s always a good chance that a t r a i n i n g program may be f a r more extensive than i t need be i n order to produce what seem l i k e improvements i n a v a r i e t y of directions and yet f a i l to deal with many of the c r u c i a l matters i n the s i t u a t i o n . Thus i t appears that other more sensitive methods must be developed i n order to permit an understand-ing of the r e a l needs fo r which t r a i n i n g i s sought. In t h i s regard, Flanagan*s C r i t i c a l Incident Technique (25) (17) seems to be of considerable value. CHAPTER II REVIEW OF SIGNIFICANT LITERATURE ON THE CRITICAL INCIDENT TECHNIQUE The systematic development of the C r i t i c a l Incident Technique l i e s i n the United. States Aviation Research studies during and a f t e r World War I I . In some of these studies the following jobs were dealt with by the c r i t i c a l incident approach; aircrew p o s i t i o n (5), private p i l o t c e r t i f i c a t i o n ( 1 1 ) , p i l o t p roficiency (10 , 12 , 2*0, a i r l i n e p i l o t s (29 , 30, 3D, f l y i n g s k i l l ( 3 2 ) , aircrew jobs ( 33 , k-7), p i l o t i n s t r u c t o r (35), B-29 combat crews (37), a i r l i n e transport p i l o t s (38 , 39), USAF o f f i c e r s (kO), and t r a i n i n g t a c t i c a l i n s t r u c t o r s ( M O . The c r i t i c a l incident method was further developed aft e r World War II by the American I n s t i t u t e f o r Research of which John C Flanagan was the d i r e c t o r . This i n s t i t u t e conducted several c r i t i c a l incident studies on research personnel ( 1 , 2 , 3 , *f, 6, 7, .8, 15 , hQ). Through these and other studies on behalf of the U.S. A i r f o r c e s , Flanagan himself formalized the c r i t i c a l incident approach into a well defined technique which he described i n a number of a r t i c l e s (l*f, 16, 17, 18, 23, 25", 26, 27). He made a number of other applications of the technique to i n d u s t r i a l settings such as: establishing per-formance records handbooks f o r foremen and supervisors of 5 hourly employees (19)* superintendents and general foremen ( 2 2 ) , supervisors of non-salaried employees ( 2 1 ) , and admin-i s t r a t o r s ( 20 ) . Wagner's study of the c r i t i c a l requirements fo r dentists (16) i s of p a r t i c u l a r i n t e r e s t to the present study i n that i t shows, contrary to t r a i n i n g courses estab-l i s h e d by common sense methods, patients do not think the voice quality of the dentist i s at a l l important. Although Flanagan p r i m a r i l y evolved the technique as a means for o b j e c t i f y i n g r a t i n g and assessment procedures, he himself states ( 2 5 ) : "The c r i t i c a l incident technique i s e s s e n t i a l l y a procedure f o r gathering c e r t a i n important facts concerning behavior i n defined s i t u a t i o n s . I t should be emphasized that the c r i t i c a l incident technique does not consist of a single r i g i d set of rules governing such data c o l l e c t i o n . Rather i t should be thought of as a f l e x i b l e set of p r i n c i p l e s which must be modified and adapted to meet the s p e c i f i e d s i t u a t i o n at hand." Thus, as mentioned i n the introductory state-ment, i t i s the intention i n t h i s study to report on an adaptation of the technique to the f i e l d of r e a l estate s e l l i n g with s p e c i f i c reference to i t s usefulness for eval-uating t r a i n i n g needs. 6 CHAPTER III DESCRIPTION OF THE CRITICAL INCIDENT TECHNIQUE This technique as described i n an a r t i c l e by Flanagan ( 2 5 ) , assumes that indi v i d u a l s who have had some contact or experience i n a p a r t i c u l a r f i e l d when asked to do so, can r e c a l l those c r i t i c a l incidents which may be characterized as ind i c a t i n g e f f i c i e n t or i n e f f i c i e n t per-formance i n that f i e l d . Thus, i n the f i e l d of r e a l estate s e l l i n g an example of an incident which was described as r e f l e c t i n g e f f i c i e n t or good s e l l i n g was the following: "Recently a sale was completed by a c l i e n t who had a large family and proximity to shops was important f o r food shopping. In taking the c l i e n t to the house the salesman drove to the shopping center, noted the time with the c l i e n t and then drove to the house. He pointed out that only three minutes had elapsed. The c l i e n t was i n a recep-t i v e mood to the house at t h i s point and didn't ra i s e any objections to the house. The sale was completed." Another incident i l l u s t r a t i n g i n e f f i c i e n t or poor s e l l i n g was: "A short time ago a salesman was showing a property to a c l i e n t . I t was t h e i r f i r s t meeting. During the course of the inspection the following questions were asked: Taxes? (not too sure of the amount). Size of property? 7 (Oh! i t looks l i k e a 50 ' l o t ) . What i s t h i s area zoned for? (We would have to check at the c i t y h a l l ) . The c l i e n t was upset as he was looking at a property for which the p e r t i n -ent information was not available. This c l i e n t did not bother to contact the salesman again". Individuals from whom incidents are requested are generally asked to report or write down a l l of the i n c i -dents they can think about and i n most settings the range of individuals who may be asked to p a r t i c i p a t e u s u a l l y ex-tends beyond those who may be d i r e c t l y engaged i n the occu-pation. Thus, i n the case of r e a l estate s e l l i n g , incidents may be requested from representative populations of vendors, buyers, salesmanagers and executive personnel, as well as the salesmen themselves. Due to the extensiveness of such material i t follows that one must proceed by li m i t e d stages and i n the present study the data were drawn from r e a l est-ate salesmen only. The next step i n the procedure involves s c r u t i n i z i n g the reports and determining the number of s p e c i f i c incidents that have been described. These d e t a i l s are then c l a s s i f i e d according to a progression of more i n -clusive categories. Thus, one begins with an u n c l a s s i f i e d number of ' c r i t i c a l incidents' which i n turn are r e c l a s s i f i e d as ' c r i t i c a l behaviors', ' c r i t i c a l requirements' and f i n a l l y major 'behavior areas'. These steps may be i l l u s t r a t e d as follows: " a) A ' c r i t i c a l incident' may involve finding a suitable home f o r a vendor as a condi- t i o n of s e l l i n g t h e i r present home; another ' c r i t i c a l incident' may stress a need to get to know a buyer's require- ments as a f i r s t step i n s e l l i n g ; a t h i r d incident may involve resolving a clash of i n t e r e s t s between d i f f e r e n t members of a family. b) In each of these instances one i s concer-ned with a more general problem of assessing needs and since both vendors and buyers may be involved, a general category l i k e 'assessing c l i e n t s ' needs' i s needed to describe the more i n c l u s i v e behavior. c) This * c r i t i c a l behavior' then i s combined with other c r i t i c a l behaviors such as: Making contacts with c l i e n t s , using high pressure methods on c l i e n t s , selecting the best prospects, etc. to form the more in c l u s i v e ' c r i t i c a l requirement' v i z . dealings involving c l i e n t s . d) This i n turn i s combined with other ' c r i t i -c a l requirements' v i z . dealings involving 9 salesmen and dealings involving tenants to form a general major 'behaviour area 1 v i z . dealings involving people. The technique i n the present instance was further amplified by requesting that p a r t i c i p a n t s report on s p e c i f i c types of information and s p e c i a l knowledge which they regarded to be of v i t a l importance i n the f i e l d of r e a l estate s e l l i n g . This l a t t e r feature was added p r i n c i p a l l y as a safeguard to insure that any information which might be of importance i n t r a i n i n g would not be overlooked. Fur-thermore, i t i s considered that t h i s extension i s i n keeping with the proposal made by Flanagan that the p r i n c i p l e s should be adapted to the s p e c i f i c s i t u a t i o n at hand. CHAPTER IV EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE 10 The data f o r the project were gathered during the summer of 1956 from 86 volunteer registered salesmen whose names had been randomly selected (13) from a master f i l e containing approximately 990 names. A t o t a l of 3 1 ^ useable reports y i e l d i n g 327 actual incidents and 88 items of general information were gathered and r e c l a s s i f i e d accor-ding to the method described. Agreement by two judges served as a check on the v a l i d i t y of the sorting and c l a s s i -f i c a t i o n of each incident and item of information. The o r i g i n a l sample that had been randomly selected f o r interview consisted of 200 salesmen, but due to lack of co-operation from i n d i v i d u a l salesmen i t was possible to include i n the study only the 86 who volunteered to appear f o r interview. After permission of the Real Estate organiz-ation had been obtained to conduct the study, a l e t t e r (see appendix I) was sent to a l l members of the organization i n -forming them of the purpose of the proposed study. In addi-t i o n , a further l e t t e r (see appendix I I ) was sent to each subject i n the sample asking f o r t h e i r time and co-operation and suggesting that they would be contacted by telephone i n order to arrange an appointment with the interviewer. 11 Another l e t t e r (see appendix III) was sent, requesting them again to appear at a c e r t a i n time and place to be interviewed, to those subjects who couldn't be contacted af t e r repeated telephone c a l l s and those who f a i l e d to keep t h e i r appoint-ments. The interviewees, who never exceeded twelve i n number, were given an i n s t r u c t i o n sheet (see appendix IV and V) which explained the instructions that were to be followed. Before the subjects began to record any material they were given the opportunity to ask f o r any c l a r i f i c a t i o n of instructions that might be required. They were asked to record incidents r e l a t i n g to good and poor r e a l estate s e l l i n g on d i f f e r e n t sheets of paper (see appendix VI). The only deviation from Flanagan's conditions (25) was that the interviewees were not t o l d what the aims and objectives of the a c t i v i t y of r e a l estate s e l l i n g were since i t i s f e l t that i f the subject had been t o l d exactly what the aims and purposes were he may have tended to report only those incidents which conformed to the stated aims and purposes. Another deviation of the usual method was the opportunity given to the subject to report on items of general information and on incidents which depended upon the having or not having of c e r t a i n knowledge. This freedom was permitted i n order to ensure that no aspect of t r a i n i n g needs 12 would be overlooked. After the incidents had been collected they were classified according to Flanagan*s method as outlined above. 13 CHAPTER V RESULTS As one check on the adequacy of the data, Flanagan's procedure was followed of noting whether the proportion of 'Incidents' varied i n successive hundreds of reports. The analysis showed that the r a t i o f o r consecu-t i v e hundreds of reports was 1 .09: . 9 8 : 1 .05 . As regards •General Information 1 i n consecutive hundreds of reports, the r a t i o was . 2 9 : . 1 8 : . 3 5 . In keeping with Flanagan*s suggestion that the termination of the c o l l e c t i o n of 'Incidents' be deter-mined on the basis of whether more than three or four new 'Incidents* appear i n consecutive hundreds of incidents, i t was found that these data do not meet the c r i t e r i o n l a i d down by Flanagan i n terms of incidents. However, analysis at the l e v e l of ' c r i t i c a l behaviors' indicated that there are less than four new c r i t i c a l behaviours i n the t h i r d con-secutive hundred of incidents. In order to f a c i l i t a t e an understanding of the main trends i n the data, the r e s u l t s summarized i n the tables below are presented i n reverse order from that which was followed i n setting them up. Thus, the sequence i s from the more general to the more s p e c i f i c d e t a i l . Ik TABLE I* Summary: Major Areas: Incidents (I) and General Information (GI) Number Percent Nmnber . Percent Wnmh«w Percent AREAS I* I- TOTAL I* L> TOTAL GX GI I & GI I & GI Dealings in-volving 59 86 145 38*3 49.7 44*3 32 36.4 177 42.6 property Dealings in-volving people 67 56 123 43*5 32.4 37*6 40 s 45.4 163 39*3 Dmlings in-volving 28 31 59 1B«2 17.9 18.1 16 1B.2 75 18.1 monetary considerations T O T A L 154 173 327 100.0100.0100.0 88 100.0 415 100.0 % 47*1 52*9100 Colnmn No. I 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 * ih this study each person was allowed to report as many incidents as he could think cf resulting in an unequal distribution of positive and negative Incidents per person. Thus, in visw of the fact that the incidents which appear in the various, categories in this study are influenced by QLfferent orders of correlation with other incidents in the sane categories the use of the available tests of significance of differences of percentages is of questionable value. Accordingly, no such evaluations have been made. 15 The results of Table I show that i n respect to the Incidents (I) data, the frequency of those incidents •dealing with property* exceeds those 'dealing with people' and 'monetary considerations' i n an approximate r a t i o of 2.5*2:2 (column 6). The p a r a l l e l r a t i o f o r the General Information (Gl) data i s 2: 2 . 5 : 1 (column 8) . Although the combination of the two types of data s t i l l gives a s l i g h t advantage to the 'property' area over the 'people' area i n frequency of occurrence, i t i s nevertheless c l e a r that incidents (I) and General Information (Gl) data f o r both of these areas greatly exceed that f o r dealings i n -volving monetary considerations (column 10). TABLE II Table II shows a breakdown of each major area in t o i t s component c r i t i c a l requirements. The CRs shown are described by t i t l e s which compare with the main kinds of a c t i v i t i e s involved i n the s e l l i n g of r e a l estate and were arrived at from the c l a s s i f i c a t i o n of the more s p e c i f i c c r i t i c a l behaviours shown i n Table I I I . TABLE I I I TABLE n Breakdown of V&ior Areas: Jreqv-ency of C r i t i c a l Requirements IIL1-J3SR PBRCEHT HUIBER PERCENT HO. 1» 1- TOTAL 1* 1- tfOTAL til til 1. Dealings involving property -Representing property -Valuating property 33 1*5 78 55.9 52.3 £ . 8 U* to.s 12 17 29 20.3 19.8 20.0 14 12.5 -Transferring property 9 13 22 15.3 15.1 15.2 11 3l*.l* -Dealing l i t h listings 2 7 9 3.1. 8.1 6.2 2 6.2 -Dealing with legal prob- 3 Ii 7 5.1 h.7 1*.8 1 3.1 lens. T 6 T A 1 59 US 100.0 100.0 16o.tt -32— lbo.6 2. Dealings involving people -Dealings with clients 1*3 38 86 71.6 67.8 69.9 13 32.5 -Dealings involving salesmen 18 17 35 26.9 30. 1* 28.5 27 67.5 -Dealings involving tenants 1 1 2 1.5 1.8 1.6 0 0.0 T O T A L 6V 56 123 100.0 loo.o 100.0 100.0 3. Dealings involving .Monetary ponsideratlons -Financial transactions 20 23 1*3 71. h 71..2 72.9 11 68.8 -Investment C p p o r t u n i t i o 3 C • 3 11 2S.6 9.7 16.6 l 6.2 - C o r i j n i 3 S i o n s 0 5 5 0.0 16.1 8.5 1* 25.0 T 6 T A I 28 100.0 100.0 100.0 16 100.0 , GRA:<D TOTAL " 3Sh 175 3=7 1*7.1 55.9 loo.6 W 100.0 Column ihinber 1 2 3 1* 5 6 7 8 IABIE HI Critloal Hequiroaonta by order of Frequency! Incidents (I) and General Information (QI) Number Biribor Percent Bo. Critical fiBQatrenBSt Area* I* If Total •i*. > Total, OX 01 • 1*"-. Psalinga Involving clients P I|8 38 86 33*2 22.0 26.3 ;» 14.8 .2., ^ Representing propertor Pr 33 hS 78 21.ll 26.0 23.9 *4 15.9 3. -. Financial transactions M 20 23 43 ' 13.0 13.3 1 33.1. ;n its-li.-. Dealings Involving talesmen P 18 17 35 U.7 9.8 10.7 27 30.7 Si Valnating property. Pr 12 17 29 7.8 9.8 8.9 U •1..6 6* .' Transferring property Pr . 9 13 22 5.8 7.5 6.7 U 12.5 .?• Dnrostnent opportunities M 8 3 11 5.2 1.7 3.2i l ; 1.1 8* Dealing with listings Pr 2 7 9 1*3 Iwl 2.8 . 2 2.2 9« .Dealing' with legal probleno Pr 3 k 1 1.9 20 2.1 1 1.1 10, Caxdsslons M- 0 5 5 2.9 3.5 4 4.6 lis Dealings involving tenants P 1 1 2 .7 .6 .6 — T O T A L S 151. 173 327 100.0 100.0 100.0 88 100.0 Column Number 1 2 3 u 5 6 7 8 *Pr. - Property P. - People H, - Monetary considerations 18 Table I I I , i n contrast to Table I I , shows a breakdown of a l l c r i t i c a l requirements i n order of impor-tance i n r e l a t i o n to each other rather than i n order of importance within each major area only. As one might ex-pect, the r e s u l t s i n t h i s table p a r a l l e l somewhat the gross trends noted i n Table 1. Approximately 50% of a l l i n c i -dents reported seem to have been focussed on a combination of dealings involving c l i e n t s and those concerned with the representation of property (column 6). Insofar as general information data are concerned, i t seems that more mention was made of material involving dealings with salesmen than was made of any other CR shown. TABLE IV TABLE V TABLE VI Tables IV, V, and VI are refinements of Table I I I . These tables show a breakdown of each c r i t i c a l requirement i n t o c r i t i c a l behaviours, the l a t t e r being arranged i n order of importance. The CRs i n turn are ar-ranged under each major area. 19 T~1Z TI Critical Sehsvioars, 'aj rreroncy, ISUsr "ach Critical r^oilronorrt :SUOP. u a irerai Kncx? vcz^ P^ STJET stirs rscaa Healings Involving Proporty • - TOTAL • - Total 3Z GX I & CI It O CE Ro?rc3crtinr- Property -Description of property 18 29 hi Shm5 &'-*S 6CW3 6 h^m9 53 57.6 -3tauinr of property J U 20 27.3 2 U 5 2$Jb 6 IZ^ 26 26^ -Advertising 3 2 5 5.1 U 6JJ l 7*1 6 & -Showing mt district 2 1 3 6.1 2 ^ 3-8 3 3*3 -Description ef district 1 1 2 2.2 2.6 2 2^ -Selling .-ore than oos lint 1 1 2^2. 1*3 1 7.1 2 2.2 TOTAL 33 16 78 100 .0 100.0 100.0 l a 200*0 92 200*0 CH Valusting Property -Appraising prupeitj -Dealing with vendor** asking price 10 2 16 1 26 6JO 3 16.7 5Xtol 5*9 89.7 1 200*0 30 3 904 9a TOTAL 22 27 29 100*0 100.0 200*0 1 100*0 - 33 200*0 CE Transferring Property -Closing deals ' -Conveyance of property —Bargaining -Dealing with interla receipts 8 1 9 3 1 27 C3rf 3 1 l U 1-6?.2 23«1 7*7 77*2 W6 2 3 6 1E.2 27.3 5U5 29 6 1 7 57*6 18*2 3.0 22a TOTAL 9 13 22 100*0 100.0 200*0 22 200*0 33 200*0 CE Dealing with lagal Pro'clcaa •Zoning regulations 3 -amership -Transferring leases -Seeking legal lnformtlon • £ 1 5 3 rove nents 2 1 1 3 10O.O-2 1 1 50*0 25.0 25.0 L 2 . 3 2S.6 r*3 ilia 1 100,0 | 2 1 1 X its u s 22*$ TOTAL 3 ll 7 20M) 100.0 200*0 1 2004 e 200*0 CP. Soalinpo iath Iistlnra -Cooporr tion on noltlpia listings -Llotlng rental pro; tarty WJslne a^l* to provide lnfor-Nation ; 1 •roinc alert for possible listings 1 3 tl !. 50.0 1 50 .0 57a VU9 1 1 . : 1 1 50.0 50.0 1 1 s X 16U 9a TOTAL •a 7 9 1 0 0 . 0 100.0 10C . 0 2 100*0 XI 200*0 c c i v 1 2 3 li 5 6 7 e 9 20 : 2 C TABLE V C r i t i c a l Behaviours, by Frequency, Under l i c h C r i t i c a l Bequiranent IAJ0R AREA ITOI1B2R mn P3RC3H ran KECSNT Dealings Involving People • - T o t a l • - T o t a l C I CI I & CI I t GI • Dealings Involving C l i e n t s -Assessing c l i e n t s ' needs 20 10 30 10.6 26^ 32*8 ii 30.8 31. 31*3 -Contacts with c l i e n t s 8 8 16 16.6 23*1 18.6 2 ISaJ 18 18.2 - P r o v i d i n g a r t r a service 15 15 31.3 17.1* 1 7.7 16 16.2 -Using high pressure nethods 15 15 35.5 17.2; 1 7.7 16 16.2 - E t h i c s i n r e l a t i o n s with c l i e n t s 1> 30.8 h k l -Dealings w i t h d i s t r e s s e d * buyers 2 l 3 1*2 2.6 3^ 3 3.0 -Dealing w i t h e l d e r l y buyers .3 3 7.9 3.5 • 3 3.0 -Dealing w i t h husband and wif e problems 1 1 2.1 3*2 1 3*0 -Giving information about 2.6 buyer t o vendor 1 1 3*2 1' 1*0 - S e l e c t i n g l i s t i n g s to s u i t prospects 1 1 2J. 3*2 1 1*0 - S e l e c t i n g the best pros-pects 1 1 2.1 1*2 1 1*0 - S o l i c i t i n g l i s t i n g s 1 7.7 1 3*0 T O T A L 2j6 38 86 100.0 100.0 100.0 ¥ 1O0.0 99 100.0 CR Dealings Involving Salcsnen -Relations between salesmen 13 7 20 72.2 10.2 57a 2 7.2. 22 35.5 - P e r s o n a l i t y c h a r a c t e r i s -3C^6 t i c s o f salesmen 5 li 9 27.8 23.5 25.7 10 37a i -Tampering w i t h occlusives li It 23.5 nji 1 6.5 -Opinions about salesmen 6 22.2 6 M -Kanaging R.2. O f f i c e ll 1U.8 1 6.5 - Q u a l i f i c a t i o n of salesmen l 1 5.9 2.9 2 7Ji 3 U.8 -Contacting salesmen 1 1 US 2.9 1 1*6 - L i c e n s i n g of salesmen 1 3.7 1 3*6 -Misrepresentation of salesmen 1 3.7 1 3*6 -Recognizing occlusives 1 3.7 1 1*6 T O T A L 18 17 35 100.0 100.0 100.0 27 100.0 62 100.0 3t Dealings Involving Tenants •Giving consideration to tenants 1 1 2 100.0 100.0 100.0 2 100.0 T O T A L 1 1 2 100.0 100.0 100.0 2 l o c o C 0 I. U K II 1 2 3 1 . 5 6 7 8 9 30 23 TAEL: TI C r i t i c s ! Behaviours, t y Trcqieacy, Under 3ach C r i t i c a l Raqjirenent HUQR xsa YZ'.ZITL PffiCHJT KQCasl PSP.CTIT roalinc3 Involving Honetary Considerations • •> Total • - Total CI Gl I & 01 I & QI CR Financial Transactions -Financing of property IB -Dealing with buyer»s deposits 2 22 1 W> 3 90.0 10.0 95.7 14.3 93.0 7.0 11 100.0 51 3 9UT 5.6 T O T A L 20 23 1*3 100.0 100.0 100.0 11 100.0. a 100.0 CR Investment Opportunities • -Salesmen's opportunities 5 -Buyer's opportunities 3 - P r o f i t e e r i n g 1' 2 6 3 2 62.5 37.5 33*3 66.7 51*.? 27.3 15.2 1 100.0 6 1 2 50.0 S3 T O T A L 8 3 11 100.0 100.0 100.0 1 100.0 12 100.0 CS Commissions -Salary plus c o n r i s s i o n •Interest only i n co m i s s i o n s •Sharing Coasissions 5 • * 100.0 100.0 2 1 1 504 25.0 25.0 2 1 6 22.2 n a 66.7 T O T A L 5 5 100.0 100.0 ll 100.0 9 1004 C O L U M N 1 2 3 5 6 7 8 9 10 CRITICAL 8SHAVI0UKJ BT wcioans (i) ud GENERAL upomnai (a) _2£2fflB EBSBO. CBITICAL BEHAVIOURS* 1' 1_ Total I* I- Total Describing property Finarrlng of property Assessing of client's needs Appraising property Shoving property Relations between Closing deals fcJdng contact* with clients Dele,- high netlmds ?xvri/Aag loting personali ty acter.'..-.tie» of i noting i - 1 — * • t on l t i ee Adror tUing property Sharing -—•<—<— &o] Tampering w l t t anluslTee L i s t i n g Being able t a formttoB oo fllHts («) Dealing wltt J pries trorUSaf U W I M nore than one llneuj Bar»ining (&) 1 Dealing with IjaSSsVi loasee Dealing with legal prob-lem la tapn••ill (f) •slag alert far pwslhli * it I Is it _ ion* (10) a M 7 tfenaging I.E. offioe U) rthlo* in relation* wit* client* a) Opinion* abou salary 4 Oooporatlan luting* on c u l t i p l * 1 lei) Soliciting li*tings (l) 1 IA) Seeking legal inforaatlon (9 1 1*1) Licensing of w l m n u) 1 1.1) feeognislni exclusive* U) 1 1U) ) 1 1*1) M l S T c p r o s s a l s e n e r . t a t l o n o f Interest only i s oon-nisslon (10) 1 1*13 T O T A L 154 17) J27 100.0 100.0 100.0 S) 100.0 C o l u m No. 1 2 ) « ) » f » 23 Table VII shows c r i t i c a l behaviours arranged by order of frequency. CHAPTER VI DISCUSSION OF RESULTS Table I shows that incidents involving the 'property' and 'people* area exceed those involving 'monetary* considerations. Thus, i t would seem from t h i s trend that from a salesman's point of view, e f f i c i e n t and i n e f f i c i e n t s e l l i n g i s i n r e a l i t y i d e n t i f i e d more with dealings involving property and people than with monetary considerations. Other points of i n t e r e s t i n t h i s table are found i n columns k- and 5 where i t i s seen that e f f i c i e n t s e l l i n g seems to be more frequently associated with i n c i -dents involving people than with incidents involving either property or monetary considerations whereas i n e f f i c i e n t or poor s e l l i n g seems to be more frequently associated with incidents involving property. The observation that approxi-mately 50$ of the incidents that r e l a t e to f a i l u r e i n the s e l l i n g of r e a l estate are found i n the property area i n i t s e l f suggests that more emphasis i n the t r a i n i n g of r e a l estate salesmen might be placed i n t h i s area. However, t h i s observation should not minimize the importance of dealings involving people where approximately 33$ of the negative incidents occur. This l a t t e r f a c t together with the related f a c t that successful s e l l i n g seems to be most frequently 25 associated with incidents involving people, stresses the importance of t r a i n i n g i n human r e l a t i o n s i n the f i e l d of r e a l estate s e l l i n g . The number of reports concerning people i n these findings raises the question as to whether t h i s has not been one of the major oversights or whether i t has been dealt with i n a more casual manner than have those areas involving property and monetary considerations, i n e xisting t r a i n i n g programs. The observation that the area pertaining to monetary considerations seems to occupy the p o s i t i o n of least importance i n these data should not be interpreted as in d i c a t i n g that knowledge and s k i l l s pertaining to the f i n -a n c i a l aspects of r e a l estate s e l l i n g i s of no consequence. Rather, these findings may be interpreted as r e f l e c t i n g either that present t r a i n i n g practices meet the need i n t h i s area reasonably well, or that t h i s need i s being met by s p e c i a l i s t s provided by various firms to deal with f i n a n c i a l matters so that salesmen have less opportunity to Identify success and f a i l u r e i n s e l l i n g with such matters, or that salesmen's learning i n t h i s area i s more highly motivated because of i t s proximity to the monetary rewards i n r e a l estate s e l l i n g , or a combination of a l l of these influences. Whatever the explanation, the r e s u l t s seem to indicate that success and f a i l u r e i n r e a l estate s e l l i n g i s generally much less frequently i d e n t i f i e d with incidents involving monetary 26 considerations. Table II i s of s p e c i a l i n t e r e s t since i t shows the r e l a t i v e importance of each of the CR s within each major area (see columns k, 5> 6). These re s u l t s may serve a u s e f u l purpose i n the development of a t r a i n i n g program i n that they give some i n d i c a t i o n of the proportion of t r a i n i n g time one might spend on each CR. Columns h and 5, show the d i s t r i b u t i o n of p o s i t i v e and negative incidents. Both p o s i t i v e and negative incidents seem to be equally represented i n most CR s with the exception of three, namely: "Dealing with l i s t i n g s " , "Investment opportunities", and "Commissions". The CR "Dealing with l i s t i n g s " has more reported negative incidents. An examination of these i n c i -dents suggests that many salesmen do not seem to r e a l i z e the importance of dealing with l i s t i n g s and as a r e s u l t have d i f f i c u l t y i n such matters. In the case of the "Investment opportunities" CR, more p o s i t i v e than negative incidents are reported. In view of the small number of incidents reported f o r th i s CR t h i s r e s u l t may be interpreted as in d i c a t i n g that the few salesmen who notice investment opportunities seem to be able to deal with them i n a favorable manner. I t Is i n t e r e s t i n g to notice that f o r the CR pertaining to "Commissions" only negative incidents were reported. An examination of the incidents suggests that 27 there may be considerable f r i c t i o n among salesmen i n regard to the sharing of commissions. Columns 7 and 8 show the d i s t r i b u t i o n of items pertaining to information. I t should be noted that the r e s u l t s i n column 8 d i f f e r i n c e r t a i n respects from those i n column 6 . Thus the CRs: "Transfering property", "Dealings involving salesmen", and "Commissions", show a s h i f t i n emphasis from column 6 to column 8 . Inspection of the incidents suggests that there may be problems i n these areas with which salesmen cannot cope d i r e c t l y and which they may not be able to define i n exact terms, re-s u l t i n g i n an i n a b i l i t y to describe incidents, and secondly, that these areas may be f e l t to be "sore spots" about which the salesman i s unwilling to t a l k , or both. In Table I I I , 50$ of a l l incidents reported seem to have been focussed on a combination of dealings i n -volving c l i e n t s and those concerned with the representation of property (co lumn6). These CRs assume added importance when i t i s considered that kQ% of the negative incidents are also ascribed to them (column 5 ) . C r i t i c a l Requirements numbers 3 , ^> 5> and 6 , i n terms of reported p o s i t i v e and negative incidents, can be said to assume a p o s i t i o n of medium importance i n the present findings while the remaining CRs may be characterized as having a generally lower s i g n i -ficance. 28 In the general information data, more i n c i -dents are reported involving CR "dealings with salesmen" than of any other CR reported. An evaluation of the i n c i -dents suggests that salesmen seem to have strong opinions and feelings about other salesmen but as a rule are more reluctant to describe what the actual incidents might be from which such feelings a r i s e . A combination of the I n c i -dent (I) and General Information (Gl) data would place the CR "Dealings involving salesmen" i n a p o s i t i o n of t h i r d im-portance i n Table I I I . Therefore, i t appears that greater importance may be ascribed to t h i s CR than the incidents data i t s e l f suggest. In terms of t r a i n i n g program planning the CRs noted might serve as a u s e f u l t o p i c a l breakdown of subject matter, since s i m i l a r behavioural a c t i v i t i e s have been i n -cluded under each of them. I t i s f e l t that a degree of economy i s effected when s i m i l a r a c t i v i t i e s are treated to-gether i n t r a i n i n g . Thus, f o r example, "Dealings involving c l i e n t s " embraces dealings with both buyers and vendors since the basic problem of understanding buyers may be re-garded as being no d i f f e r e n t from that of understanding vendors. Both are concerned with the assessment of needs, the evaluation of personal attributes and the maintenance of e t h i c a l r e l a t i o n s with them. The salesman thus should acquire a basic understanding of people through t r a i n i n g i n 29 human re l a t i o n s i n order to help him meet the human problems he w i l l encounter i n h i s dealings with various i n d i v i d u a l s . The p r a c t i c a l d i v i s i o n s of buyers, vendors, tenants, and salesmen should not lead one to believe that the psychology and ethics directed toward each group are e s s e n t i a l l y d i f -ferent. In Table V I I the data are arranged according to c r i t i c a l behaviours so as to show how the t r a i n i n g need may be met i n more concrete terms. As i n previous tables the degree and locus of t r a i n i n g need i s best indicated by the percentage shown i n columns 5 and 6. In in t e r p r e t i n g these results one may a r b i t r a r i l y designate those behaviours which have a percentage incidence of Q% or more as being very important and those having a percentage incidence of from 2 to 8$ as being of medium Importance while those below 2% dan be described as being of low importance as a r e f l e c t i o n of t r a i n i n g need. A further point of general i n t e r e s t i n t h i s table i s seen i n the observation that there i s a degree of agreement between what i s regarded as impor-tant i n the incidents and the general information data. However, there are a few s t r i k i n g discrepancies which should be noted. Thus, f o r c r i t i c a l behaviours 'providing extra services' and 'using high pressure methods 1, there i s a high degree of reporting of incidents and a low reporting of general information. Conversely, there i s a noticeable 30 reporting of general information on the c r i t i c a l behaviours: 'dealing with interim r e c e i p t 1 , 'giving opinions about sales-men', 'managing a r e a l estate o f f i c e ' and 'ethics In r e l a t i o n with c l i e n t s ' and l i t t l e or no report of actual incidents. These discrepancies would seem to j u s t i f y the use of the general information supplement to the c r i t i c a l incident technique. The reports that are given as general informa-t i o n do seem to y i e l d data about t r a i n i n g needs that may not be covered by the more li m i t e d c r i t i c a l incident approach. A more det a i l e d study of t h i s table shows that of the eleven c r i t i c a l behaviours that may be described as very im-portant or of medium importance according to the c r i t e r i a described above, s i x of them r e l a t e to c r i t i c a l requirements located i n the 'dealings involving people' area: v i z . Assessing c l i e n t s ' needs (1) Relations between salesmen (^f) Making contact with c l i e n t s ( l ) Using high pressure methods(l) Providing extra services (1) Noting personality charac-t e r i s t i c s i n salesmen (*+) Four others r e l a t e to c r i t i c a l requirements located i n the property area: v i z . Describing property (2) Appraising property (5) Showing property (2) Closing deals (6) and the reamining one, v i z . Financing of property (3) relates to CR ' f i n a n c i a l transactions' i n the area concerned^ 31 with monetary considerations. The foregoing eleven c r i t i c a l behaviours taken together account f o r 78 .1$ of a l l incidents reported and of the negative incidents. In r e l a t i o n to main areas these figures break down as follows: PR. P. M. TOTAL Tota l incidents 33 .7 32 .2 12.2 78.1 Negative incidents 36. h 25.3 12.7 71+.1+ Thus, i n terms of t o t a l number of incidents, most of the im-portant c r i t i c a l behaviours are found i n the property and people areas; but i n terms of negative incidents the impor-tant c r i t i c a l behaviours r e l a t e to the major areas i n a r a t i o of approximately 3 * 2 : 1 . Taking a l l trends into account, i t seems that more of the important c r i t i c a l behaviours per-t a i n to dealings involving property, with dealings involving people i n second order of importance. The results of the present study suggest that a good many of the problems i n s e l l i n g arise i n connection with dealings involving people. Moreover, the more s p e c i f i c problems of assessing c l i e n t s ' needs, noting personality c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s of salesmen and interpersonal r e l a t i o n s be-tween salesmen would suggest that a better understanding of the more basic features of such matters might help to resolve the many problems that a r i s e . Since r e a l estate s e l l i n g seems to depend upon the successful handling of two basic components v i z . property and people, there i s l i t t l e j u s t i f i -32 cation f o r the usual practice of s e l l i n g salesmen short on a more fundamental understanding of people. Although the present study has drawn atten-t i o n to the greater number of f a i l u r e s i n s e l l i n g that may be attributed to the inadequate dealings with property rather than to other areas and i n view of the large repre-sentation of technical material pertaining to property a l -ready contained i n present courses, one might well question whether such material i s being assimilated to the degree expected of prospective salesmen. I t i s possible that such material may be either f a r too technical for the c a l i b r e of person who seeks a career i n the s e l l i n g of r e a l estate, or i t i s not being presented according to p r i n c i p l e s that favor optimal learning and retention, or too many persons are tryi n g to become r e a l estate salesmen without having the necessary aptitude for i t . In view of the f a c t that the Incident data did not meet the c r i t e r i o n of adequacy l a i d dom by Flanagan, and i n view of the f a c t that the sample from which the data were drawn did not meet the sampling s p e c i f i c a t i o n s o r i g i -n a l l y intended, i t i s thought that the r e s u l t s obtained should be evaluated with such l i m i t a t i o n s i n mind. . However, despite these l i m i t a t i o n s i t i s f e l t that the p r a c t i c a l con-clusions that have been drawn are not altogether without merit and they might s t i l l serve some p r a c t i c a l use as a _____ guide i n the development of a t r a i n i n g program. 33 CHAPTER VII CONCLUSIONS Subject to unavoidable sampling l i m i t a t i o n s the analysis of the data of t h i s study permits the following conclusions: 1. More incidents are reported which pertain to dealings involving property than to either dealings involving people or monetary considerations. 2. More negative incidents i n the s e l l i n g of r e a l estate occur i n regard to dealings involving property than to either dealings involving people or monetary consider-ations . 3. More p o s i t i v e incidents i n the s e l l i n g of r e a l estate occur i n regard to dealings involving people than to dealings involving property or monetary considerations. h. The detailed breakdown of the incidents data as i t re-lates to each major area provides a concrete basis f o r planning a course of study f o r r e a l estate salesmen, f o r the development of a rating scale to assess s e l l i n g performance and to e s t a b l i s h a code of Ethics for r e a l estate salesmen. 5. Items of 'general information* concerning s p e c i a l knowledge required and f o r s k i l l s which salesmen deem to be important i n r e a l estate s e l l i n g proved to be a u s e f u l supplement to the C r i t i c a l Incident Technique. 3^ CHAPTER VIII SUGGESTIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH In the o r i g i n a l design of the project i t had been planned to determine the relationship between i n -cident data and certain other variables such as: 1. Income range 2. Age 3. Sex Mar i t a l status 5. Type of Real Estate s e l l i n g 6. Area i n which the salesman operated 7. T i t l e (salesman, agent, other) 8. Length of Real Estate s e l l i n g experience 9. Approximate occurrence of the incident Due to the incompleteness of the sample i t i s f e l t that an analysis of the data f o r t h i s purpose would have had only a limi t e d and incomplete value. However, i t might prove to be of in t e r e s t and value to determine such relationships i n a set of more adequate data. Flanagan proposes that i n the evaluation of the data the time of occurrence of the incidents should be taken into account ( 25 ) . He considers an 'old' Incident one that has taken place over t h i r t y days ago. Since r e a l estate s e l l i n g i s the kind of occupation where the average salesman may make only a few sales per month, i t i s f e l t that f o r t h i s p a r t i c u l a r occupation a 'new' incident should be defined as one that has occurred w i t h i n the l a s t s i x months. I t would be in t e r e s t i n g to est a b l i s h i f there would be any s i g -35 n i f i c a n t difference i n the type of incidents reported hetween the old and new incidents i n f i e l d s where the subject has to think back f o r a considerable period of time i n order to get any incidents at a l l . Data covering incidents reported by the public, i n p a r t i c u l a r buyers and vendors might prove to be of impor-tance i n the better understanding of the l i k e s and d i s l i k e s of the public with whom the salesman deals. I t might well prove to be the case that data of t h i s nature might r e s u l t i n the i d e n t i f i c a t i o n of some d i f f e r e n t c r i t i c a l behaviours and c r i t i c a l requirements from those reported i n the present study. A further elaboration of t h i s study might be made i n the d i r e c t i o n of u t i l i z i n g the present findings f o r devising a rating scale f o r r e a l estate salesmen. In addi-t i o n , the incident data may be used as a beginning f o r the development of a code of ethics f o r r e a l estate salesmen. REFERENCES 37 REFERENCES 1. American I n s t i t u t e for Research: Evaluating the perfor-mance of research personnel« a manual f o r supervisors. Pittsburgh, August 1951. 2 . American I n s t i t u t e f o r Research: Manual f o r the use of performance record f o r research personnel. Pittsburgh, February 1950. 3 . American I n s t i t u t e f o r Research: Manual f o r the use of the observational record form f o r research personnel. Pittsburgh, June 19^9. h, American I n s t i t u t e f o r Research: Observational record form f o r research personnel« Pittsburgh, June 19H-9. 5. American I n s t i t u t e for Research: Technical appendix f o r the development of .1ob analysis procedures for a i r -crew positions. Pittsburgh/January 1950. 6 . American I n s t i t u t e f o r Research: Technical appendices fo r evaluating research personnel using a performance record of c r i t i c a l incidents < June 1950. 7 . American I n s t i t u t e f o r Research: Technical appendices for the development of a tes t f o r selecting research personnel T Pittsburgh, January 1950. 8. American I n s t i t u t e for Research: Technical appendices f o r c r i t i c a l requirements f o r research personnel. Pittsburgh, March 19^9. 9 . Anonymous: How to save materials by t r a i n i n g operators. Modern Industry, XV, No.2 (19^8), 128-130. 10. Erickson, S.C., A review of the l i t e r a t u r e of methods of measuring p i l o t p roficiency. Human. Resour. Res. Cent., USAF, Res. B u l l . 52-25, August 1952. 11 . Erickson, S.C., Development of an objective p r o f i c i e n c y check for private p i l o t c e r t i f i c a t i o n . C i v i l Aero-nautics Administration Project Planning Staff Report, No. 95 , May 1951. 12. Erickson, S.C., Development of a l i g h t plane p r o f i c i e n c y check predicting m i l i t a r y f l y i n g success. USAF, Human. Resour. Res. Cent. Tech. Rep., 1952, No. 52-6 . 13 . Fisher, R.A., and ¥ates, Frank., S t a t i s t i c a l Tables T London Oliver & Boyd, Table XXIII, III+-II9. 38 lh. Flanagan, J.C., A new approach to evaluating personnel. Personnel, 19^9, 26, 3 5 - ^ 2 . 15. Flanagan, J.C., C r i t i c a l requirements for research personnel T American I n s t i t u t e for Research, 191+9. 16. Flanagan, J.C., C r i t i c a l requirements: a new approach to employee evaluation, Personnel Psychology, 19*+9. 2 , hl$-h25. 17. Flanagan, J.C., Improving Personnel s e l e c t i o n . Public Personnel Review, 1953, 1^, 107-112. 18. Flanagan, JI.C, Job requirements, i n Denis, W., Current Trends i n I n d u s t r i a l Psychology. Pittsburgh, University of Pittsburgh Press, 19^9 , 32-y+, 19. Flanagan, J.C., and M i l l e r , R.B., Performance record handbook f o r foremen and supervisors of hourly employees. Chicago, Science Research Associates, 1955. 20. Flanagan, J.C., and M i l l e r , R.B., Performance record: Administrator's Manual, Chicago, Science Research Associates, 1955. 21 . Flanagan, J.C., and M i l l e r , R.B., Performance Record handbook f o r supervisors of nonsupervisory s a l a r i e d employees. Chicago, Science Research Associates, 1955. 22. Flanagan. J.C., and M i l l e r , R.B., Performance record f o r superintendents and general foremen, Chicago, Science Research Associates, 1955. 23. Flanagan, J.C., P r i n c i p l e s and procedures i n evaluating .job performance. Personnel f 1952, 28, ^7^-^86. 2h. Flanagan, J.C., Psychological requirements of the a i r -plane p i l o t T J. Aviat. Med., 19^7, 18, 521-527. 25. Flanagan, J.C., The c r i t i c a l incident technique. Psych. B u l l . , 1 9 5 S 51, 327-358. 26. Flanagan, J.C., The c r i t i c a l incident technique i n the study of i n d i v i d u a l s . Modern Educational Problems: Report on the seventeenth educational conference, New York, American Council on Education, October 1952, 61-70. 27. Flanagan, J.C., The c r i t i c a l incident technique, School and Society, 1950, 7 1 , 321-32*4-. '. 39 28. Gardiner, G., Hov to create .job s a t i s f a c t i o n , a manpower maintenance manual f o r foremen, New York: E l l i o t Service Co., 19*+3. 29. Gordon, Thomas, The a i r l i n e p i l o t : a survey of the c r i t i c a l requirements of h i s .job and of p i l o t evalu- ation and se l e c t i o n procedures. A.I.R.. November 19^7. 30. Gordon, Thorn., The a i r l i n e p i l o t ' s job, J . APPI. Psychol.. 19^9, 33, 122-131. 31. Gordon, Thorn., The development of a standard f l i g h t check fo r the a i r l i n e transport rating based on the c r i t i c a l requirements of the a i r l i n e p i l o t ' s job, Washington: C i v i l Aeronautics Administration, 19^9. (Div. of Res., Rep. No.85). 32. Gordon, Thorn., The development of a method of evaluating f l y i n g s k i l l , Personnel Psychol.. 1950, 3, 71-8^. 33« Hahn, CP., The i d e n t i f i c a t i o n and description of sone c r i t i c a l aircrew .lob requirements. USAF School of Aviation Medicine, 195S Project No. 21-29-01^, 3^. K e l l y , R.W. & Ware, H.F., An experiment i n group dynamics, Adv. Manag., 19*+7, 12, 116-119. 35. Kruram, R.L., The development of a measure of p i l o t i n s t r u c t o r proficiency based on the c r i t i c a l require- ments of the instructor's job. Research B u l l e t i n , X 195*+, Mrfbrce Training and Personnel Research Center, Tech. Rep., 5 * t - l l l . 36. Lawshe, C H . J r . , Eight ways to check the value of a tr a i n i n g program. Factory Manag. and Maint., Wh*. 103, 117-120. 37. Marley, F.W., Individual differences i n c r i t i c a l aircrew requirements. 1. The determination of c r i t i c a l p r o f i c i e n c y requirements f o r B-29 combat crews, USAF Sch. Aviat. Med., Proj. No. 21-29-011+, No.l, 19^2T"~ 38. Nagay, J.A., The a i r l i n e trvout of the standard f l i g h t -cheiSk f o r the a i r l i n e transport r a t i n g . Washington: C i v i l Aeronautics Administration, 19^9 (Div. of Res., Rep. No. 88). 39. Preston, H.O., Analysis of CAA records on a i r l i n e trans-port p i l o t s . CAA, D i v i s i o n of Research, Washington, D.C, Report No. 72, August 19^7. hO hO. Preston, H.O., The development of a procedure f o r evaluating o f f i c e r s In the USAF, Pittsburgh: American I n s t i t u t e f o r Research, 19*4-8. hi. Real Estate Correspondence Course of the Canadian I n s t i -tute of Realtors,Director of Correspondence Courses, Department of U n i v e r s i t y Extension^University of Toronto. h2. Realty Training Correspondence Course, Realty Training Bureau Limited, Vancouver, Canada. h$. Schultz, Richard S., How to develop successful o f f i c e supervisors, Personnel J . 19^7, 25 , 273-281 hh. Smith, R.G., and Shandohar, F.T., C r i t i c a l requirements of basic t r a i n i n g t a c t i c a l i n s t r u c t o r s . A i r Force Personnel and Training Research Center, Tch. Rep., No. 55 -5 , 1955. •+5. Vernon, H.M., Prevention of accidents, B r i t . J . Industr. med., 19^5 , 2 , 1-9. h6. Wagner, R.F., c r i t i c a l requirements f o r d e n t i s t s , J . Appl. Psychol.« 1950. 3 S 190-192 ( f o r microfilm see A.D.I, document 2826) . h7. Wagner, R.F., Development of standardized procedures f o r defining requirements of aircrew jobs i n terms of testable t r a i t s , USAF Sch. Aviat. med.. Proj. No. 21 -29-010, No. 1, 19^lT hS. Weislogel, Mary H., Development of a t e s t f o r selecting research personnel, Pittsburgh: American I n s t i t u t e f o r Research, 1950. APPENDICES 1+2 APPENDIX I COPY FIRST LETTER SENT TO GENERAL MEMBERSHIP TO: A l l Members FROM: Secretary The Department of Psychology of the University of B.C. has expressed an int e r e s t i n the a c t i v i t y of Real Estate S e l l i n g . They are planning to conduct a study of the c r i t i c a l requirements of Real Estate Salesmen. Such a study involves the compilation of a large number of a l l kinds of d e t a i l s regarding our profession by s o l i c i t i n g opinions from many of our members who w i l l be chosen to re-present every kind of Real Estate Salesman i n every d i s t r i c t i n Vancouver. These data w i l l be analyzed by the University. From the r e s u l t s , i t w i l l be possible to es t a b l i s h the c r i t i c a l requirements of Real Estate Salesmen. I t i s f e l t that t h i s study w i l l be of great benefit to our profession. I t w i l l undoubtedly be a help i n improving the a c t i v i t y of Real Estate S e l l i n g . The re s u l t s of t h i s study w i l l a s s i s t i n improving our t r a i n i n g program for Real Estate Salesmen. Mr. DeVries of the Psychology Department of the University of B r i t i s h Columbia, w i l l be personally contacting some of you by telephone i n the near future. h3 I t i s hoped that a l l of you, and expecially those members who w i l l be contacted, w i l l f e e l duty bound to do your share i n giving your assistance and time to t h i s study and thereby helping our profession reach the status for which we are a l l s t r i v i n g . June 1st, 1956. Iflf APPENDIX II COPY LETTER SENT TO SAMPLE Dear Member: Mr. A l Qevries of the Psychology Department of the University of B r i t i s h Columbia, i n co-operation with our organization, i s making a study of the c r i t i c a l require-ments of the profession of Real Estate Salesman The r e s u l t s of t h i s study are thought to be invaluable, as guides i n setting up a t r a i n i n g program f o r the Real Estate Board i n p a r t i c u l a r and f o r the profession as a whole. This study requires that several hundred c a r e f u l l y chosen representative Real Estate Salesmen be interviewed by Mr. DeVries. The representative sample of Real Estate Salesmen w i l l be chosen from the Vancouver area. As you w i l l know, many o f f i c e s are not suited f o r a quiet uninterrupted interview, nor are Real Estate Salesmen, due to the nature of t h e i r work, easy to contact. Hence our organization and Mr. deVries for various reasons have thought i t most advantageious for the success of the study to conduct the interviews at our own o f f i c e . Our organization would appreciate i t i f you, as one of the s p e c i a l l y chosen representative Real Estate Salesmen, would give your f u l l e s t co-opefation i n a s s i s t i n g t h i s important study. h5 Mr. DeVries w i l l contact you by telephone to make an appointment f o r you to v i s i t our o f f i c e at a time that i s mutually convenient. I t i s planned to hold t h i r t y to f o r t y minute interviews i n small groups of three to ten persons i n our Vancouver o f f i c e . Respectfully, Secretary. 1+6 APPENDIX III COPY SECOND LETTER SENT TO SAMPLE Dear Member: As explained i n our previous l e t t e r of June 1 s t , Mr. Devries, of the University of B r i t i s h Columbia,, i s making a study of the c r i t i c a l requirements of Real Estate Salesmen. Since t h i s study i s very impor-tant to our profession, please give your complete cooperation. I regret to say that although Mr. Devries has t r i e d several times to contact you by telephone, he has been unable to get i n touch with you personally. I would appreciate i t i f you would v i s i t our o f f i c e on at Yours very t r u l y , Secretary. h7 APPENDIX IV INSTRUCTIONS You have been asked to take part i n a study-on Real Estate s e l l i n g . Those of you who have been asked to come here are part of the sample that i s being studied. S p e c i f i c a l l y , you are being asked to provide us with a description of the important or c r i t i c a l incidents of behavior which you personally would i d e n t i f y with good and poor Real Estate s e l l i n g . Thus, we are asking you to describe actualy experiences, whether your own or someone else's, which to you i l l u s t r a t e good and poor Seal Estate s e l l i n g . An example, pertaining to bus d r i v i n g , may i l l u s t r a t e the point more c l e a r l y . An incident associated with good bus driv i n g might be that the bus dri v e r helped an old lady o f f the bus, or that he drove h i s bus c a r e f u l l y , or that he knew the name of the street you were looking f o r . These examples represent actual incidents of behavior or knowledge which are associated with good bus d r i v i n g . On the other hand such incidents as the bus driver t r i e s to beat the red l i g h t , or has unusual d i f f i c u l t y i n re-placing a displaced t r o l l e y pole, or i s unable to give correct street information, describe poor bus d r i v i n g . Notice that i n these examples incidents appear that r e l a t e both to behavior and knowledge. 1+8 You are to think about any actual incidents that apply to the f i e l d of Real Estate s e l l i n g . Remember that an incident may feature either a d i r e c t l y observable action or i t may have to do with the having, or not having, of c e r t a i n knowledge or information. SOME OF THE THINGS YOU SHOULD KEEP IN MIND.WHEN DESCRIBING INCIDENTS ARE: 1. Describe the circumstances that led up to the incident. 2. Describe exactly what the salesman d id. 3. Do you consider his action j u s t i f i e d ? Why? i+. Did the incident lead to a successful or an unsuccessful r e s u l t ? 5. What was the res u l t ? APPENDIX V INSTRUCTION »*9 1. A l l information i s c o n f i d e n t i a l . 2. In no way w i l l your name be mentioned or associated with any of the information you supply. 3. Do not discuss any questions or information you give with others, since they might be interviewed l a t e r and any knowledge of what i s being asked before the actual interview w i l l a f f e c t the study adversely. *f. Please write l e g i b l y . 5. Under the Heading "Age" (next page) please write down: under 30, 30 - ho, over *+0. 6. I f you have any questions please f e e l free to ask them. 7. I t might be a help i n remembering incidents i f you s t a r t to think about the most recent successful or unsuccessful r e s u l t s you had. 50 APPENDIX VI COPY FORM No. Income: 0 -3 ,000 : ; if-B.OOO: ; 9 -12 ,000 : ; over 12 ,000 : Age: Sex: Married: Single: Other: Length of Real Estate S e l l i n g Experience: In what D i s t r i c t : Type of S e l l i n g : Residential ; Revenue: ; I n d u s t r i a l : Other: Are you a Salesman: ; Agent: ; Other: DESCRIPTION OF INCIDENTS RELATING TO GOOD REAL ESTATE SELLING Indicate approximate time when each incident occurred, i . e . , whether i t occurred two weeks, one month, s i x months, or a year ago, etc. 1. 2. 3. 51 5. ( I f required, ask f o r additional paper) 52 No. DESCRIPTION OF INCIDENTS RELATING TO POOR REAL ESTATE SELLING Indicate approximate time each incident occurred. 1. 2. 3 53 5. 6. ( I f required, ask for additional paper)
Thesis/Dissertation
eng
Psychology
Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
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Graduate
A study of training needs in the selling of real estate through the use of the critical incident technique
Text