CODESP Job Analysis and Description 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: The 'job family' concept in classification systems groups positions based on:
- Geographic location of worksites
- Similar occupational fields and related KSAOs (Correct answer)
- Pay grade levels only
- Number of direct reports
Correct answer: Similar occupational fields and related KSAOs
A job family clusters positions that share common occupational characteristics, similar KSAOs, and related functions across different levels or specializations.
Question 2: In content validity studies for selection tests, the link between test content and job content is established primarily through:
- Criterion-related validity coefficients
- Systematic job analysis identifying critical KSAOs (Correct answer)
- Normative score distributions
- Adverse impact statistics
Correct answer: Systematic job analysis identifying critical KSAOs
Content validity requires a documented, systematic job analysis that identifies the critical tasks and KSAOs that the selection test content mirrors.
Question 3: Which term describes the process of reviewing and updating job descriptions to reflect changes in technology or organizational structure?
- Job enrichment
- Job analysis maintenance (Correct answer)
- Workforce planning
- Classification audit
Correct answer: Job analysis maintenance
Job analysis maintenance involves periodically reviewing and revising job descriptions to ensure they accurately reflect current duties, KSAOs, and working conditions.
Question 4: A CODESP-style job analysis report for a public sector position typically must demonstrate compliance with which federal guidelines for employee selection?
- OSHA Hazard Communication Standard
- Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection Procedures (UGESP) (Correct answer)
- FLSA overtime exemption rules
- EEOC pay equity standards
Correct answer: Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection Procedures (UGESP)
The Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection Procedures (UGESP) govern how public employers must conduct and document job analyses to justify their selection procedures.
Question 5: Which rating scale asks subject matter experts to judge how important each task is to overall successful job performance?
- Relative time spent scale
- Task importance scale (Correct answer)
- Frequency of occurrence scale
- Difficulty of learning scale
Correct answer: Task importance scale
The task importance scale asks SMEs to rate how critical each task is to overall job success, helping prioritize which tasks are essential versus marginal.
Question 6: In the context of job descriptions, 'distinguishing characteristics' of a position refer to:
- The physical attributes of the employee
- Features that differentiate this position from similar ones in the same class (Correct answer)
- The salary range for the position
- The number of years of experience required
Correct answer: Features that differentiate this position from similar ones in the same class
Distinguishing characteristics identify what makes a specific position unique compared to other positions within the same job classification or class series.
Question 7: The concept of 'span of control' is most relevant to which section of a job description?
- Knowledge and abilities
- Supervision received and exercised (Correct answer)
- Working conditions
- Education and experience requirements
Correct answer: Supervision received and exercised
Span of control — the number of subordinates a supervisor oversees — belongs in the supervision section of a job description.
CODESP Job Analysis and Description 3
The 'job family' concept in classification systems groups positions based on: