Nathan R Kuncel
Biographic Data
| ID | 1659289 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Nathan R Kuncel |
| GIVEN NAMES | Nathan R |
| FAMILY NAME | Kuncel |
| SIGNATURE | KUNCEL N R |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Minnesota |
| VERIFIED | No |
| TOTAL WORKS | 16 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 126 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 16 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 1998 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2025 |
| H-INDEX | 5 |
Collegiate Honor Codes and Mandatory Reporting: Have We Gone Too Far
Academic dishonesty and counterproductive student behaviors are an ongoing concern in higher education. Over the years, multiple methods to promote student integrity have been proposed, including the use of honor codes. Collegiate honor systems, which make students collectively responsible for campus integrity, are sometimes paired with mandatory reporting policies, which have both advocates and critics. After a broad literature search, a review …
What Was Not Said and What to Do About It
The Woo et al. review (this issue) provides a foundation for considering the larger goals of higher education. We step back to consider the broader goals and ideals of higher education. Fundamentally, we want to admit a diverse set of students into graduate school and then produce the most accomplished scientists, artists, leaders, and innovators. In a world with inequality in preparation and finite resources, these ideals end up in tension witho…
Some Roads Lead to Psychology, Some Lead Away: College Student Characteristics and Psychology Major Choice
Understanding which students enter and leave psychology majors in college is critical to understanding the pipeline into the field. In this study, we compared psychology majors with nonpsychology majors on the basis of demographic, degree planning, academic preparedness, and academic performance variables using a unique longitudinal sample of nearly a million college students at 249 colleges and universities. Guided by prior research, we examined…
Personality, attitude, and demographic correlates of academic dishonesty: A meta-analysis
Over a century of research has focused on the relationship between student characteristics and academic dishonesty. Here we conduct a meta-analysis of this extensive literature across three broad domains: personality, academic attitudes, and historical information including demographic and prior accomplishments. After analyzing correlations from over 27,000 participants across 75 samples, several relationships stand out. Although measures of cons…
The relation between parents' involvement in children's schooling and children's adjustment: A meta-analysis
This quantitative synthesis of 448 independent studies including 480,830 families revealed small positive associations (rs = .13 to .23) between parents' naturally occurring involvement in children's schooling and children's academic adjustment (i.e., achievement, engagement, and motivation) that were maintained over time. Parents' involvement was also positively related to children's social (r = .12) and emotional adjustment (r = .17) and negati…
Communicating Research Findings
All too often, practically useful psychological interventions and assessments are dismissed because effects are quantified with statistics that are unfamiliar to audiences. Communicating the value of psychological interventions and assessments can be aided by alternative statistical and graphical displays. Here, we discuss “What to Say” and “What to Show” to improve the communication of research findings. Specifically, we discuss the use of ratio…
The Validity of the Graduate Record Examination for Master’s and Doctoral Programs: A Meta-Analytic Investigation
Extensive research has examined the effectiveness of admissions tests for use in higher education. What has gone unexamined is the extent to which tests are similarly effective for predicting performance at both the master’s and doctoral levels. This study empirically synthesizes previous studies to investigate whether or not the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) predicts the performance of students in master’s programs as well as the performance…
Does socioeconomic status explain the relationship between admissions tests and post-secondary academic performance
Critics of educational admissions tests assert that tests measure nothing more than socioeconomic status (SES) and that their apparent validity in predicting academic performance is an artifact of SES. The authors examined multiple large data sets containing data on admissions and related tests, SES, and grades showing that (a) SES is related to test scores (r = .42 among the population of SAT takers), (b) test scores are predictive of academic p…
Study Habits, Skills, and Attitudes: The Third Pillar Supporting Collegiate Academic Performance
Study habit, skill, and attitude inventories and constructs were found to rival standardized tests and previous grades as predictors of academic performance, yielding substantial incremental validity in predicting academic performance. This meta-analysis ( N = 72,431, k = 344) examines the construct validity and predictive validity of 10 study skill constructs for college students. We found that study skill inventories and constructs are largely …
The Power of Personality: The Comparative Validity of Personality Traits, Socioeconomic Status, and Cognitive Ability for Predicting Important Life Outcomes
The ability of personality traits to predict important life outcomes has traditionally been questioned because of the putative small effects of personality. In this article, we compare the predictive validity of personality traits with that of socioeconomic status (SES) and cognitive ability to test the relative contribution of personality traits to predictions of three critical outcomes: mortality, divorce, and occupational attainment. Only evid…
Noncognitive Variables in College Admissions: The Case of the Non-Cognitive Questionnaire
The Non-Cognitive Questionnaire (NCQ) is a 23-item measure assessing eight noncognitive variables that are thought to predict the performance and retention of students in college. The NCQ is widely used in research and practice. This study is a meta-analytic review of the validity of scores on the NCQ across 47 independent samples for predicting academic outcomes ( N = 9,321). Across all analyses, none of the scales of the NCQ are adequate predic…
The Validity of Self-Reported Grade Point Averages, Class Ranks, and Test Scores: A Meta-Analysis and Review of the Literature
Self-reported grades are heavily used in research and applied settings because of the importance of grades and the convenience of obtaining self-reports. This study reviews and meta-analytically summarizes the literature on the accuracy of self-reported grades, class ranks, and test scores. Results based on a pairwise sample of 60,926 subjects indicate that self-reported grades are less construct valid than many scholars believe. Furthermore, sel…
Academic Performance, Career Potential, Creativity, and Job Performance: Can One Construct Predict Them All
This meta-analysis addresses the question of whether 1 general cognitive ability measure developed for predicting academic performance is valid for predicting performance in both educational and work domains. The validity of the Miller Analogies Test (MAT; W. S. Miller, 1960) for predicting 18 academic and work-related criteria was examined. MAT correlations with other cognitive tests (e.g., Raven's Matrices [J. C. Raven, 1965]; Graduate Record E…
A comprehensive meta-analysis of the predictive validity of the Graduate Record Examinations: Implications for graduate student selection and performance
Validity of the Graduate Record Examination: Estimated or tacitly known
Nathan R. Kuncel, John P. Campbell, and Deniz S. Ones University of Minnesota, Twin Cities Campus Although Stemberg and Williams (June 1997) addressed an important topic, they pur- posely did not use what are now widely accepted procedures for estimating predic- tive validities. Their failure to use appropri- ate parameter estimation techniques pro- duced inaccurate results and misleading con- clusions. Their key errors are as follows. Failure to…
Validity of the Graduate Record Examination: Estimated or tacitly known
The relation between parents' involvement in children's schooling and children's adjustment: A meta-analysis
This quantitative synthesis of 448 independent studies including 480,830 families revealed small positive associations (rs = .13 to .23) between parents' naturally occurring involvement in children's schooling and children's academic adjustment (i.e., achievement, engagement, and motivation) that were maintained over time. Parents' involvement was also positively related to children's social (r = .12) and emotional adjustment (r = .17) and negati…
Academic Performance, Career Potential, Creativity, and Job Performance: Can One Construct Predict Them All
This meta-analysis addresses the question of whether 1 general cognitive ability measure developed for predicting academic performance is valid for predicting performance in both educational and work domains. The validity of the Miller Analogies Test (MAT; W. S. Miller, 1960) for predicting 18 academic and work-related criteria was examined. MAT correlations with other cognitive tests (e.g., Raven's Matrices [J. C. Raven, 1965]; Graduate Record E…
A comprehensive meta-analysis of the predictive validity of the Graduate Record Examinations: Implications for graduate student selection and performance
Does socioeconomic status explain the relationship between admissions tests and post-secondary academic performance
Critics of educational admissions tests assert that tests measure nothing more than socioeconomic status (SES) and that their apparent validity in predicting academic performance is an artifact of SES. The authors examined multiple large data sets containing data on admissions and related tests, SES, and grades showing that (a) SES is related to test scores (r = .42 among the population of SAT takers), (b) test scores are predictive of academic p…
Personality, attitude, and demographic correlates of academic dishonesty: A meta-analysis
Over a century of research has focused on the relationship between student characteristics and academic dishonesty. Here we conduct a meta-analysis of this extensive literature across three broad domains: personality, academic attitudes, and historical information including demographic and prior accomplishments. After analyzing correlations from over 27,000 participants across 75 samples, several relationships stand out. Although measures of cons…
Validity of the Graduate Record Examination: Estimated or tacitly known
Nathan R. Kuncel, John P. Campbell, and Deniz S. Ones University of Minnesota, Twin Cities Campus Although Stemberg and Williams (June 1997) addressed an important topic, they pur- posely did not use what are now widely accepted procedures for estimating predic- tive validities. Their failure to use appropri- ate parameter estimation techniques pro- duced inaccurate results and misleading con- clusions. Their key errors are as follows. Failure to…
Validity of the Graduate Record Examination: Estimated or tacitly known
A comprehensive meta-analysis of the predictive validity of the Graduate Record Examinations: Implications for graduate student selection and performance
Academic Performance, Career Potential, Creativity, and Job Performance: Can One Construct Predict Them All
This meta-analysis addresses the question of whether 1 general cognitive ability measure developed for predicting academic performance is valid for predicting performance in both educational and work domains. The validity of the Miller Analogies Test (MAT; W. S. Miller, 1960) for predicting 18 academic and work-related criteria was examined. MAT correlations with other cognitive tests (e.g., Raven's Matrices [J. C. Raven, 1965]; Graduate Record E…
The Validity of Self-Reported Grade Point Averages, Class Ranks, and Test Scores: A Meta-Analysis and Review of the Literature
Self-reported grades are heavily used in research and applied settings because of the importance of grades and the convenience of obtaining self-reports. This study reviews and meta-analytically summarizes the literature on the accuracy of self-reported grades, class ranks, and test scores. Results based on a pairwise sample of 60,926 subjects indicate that self-reported grades are less construct valid than many scholars believe. Furthermore, sel…
The Power of Personality: The Comparative Validity of Personality Traits, Socioeconomic Status, and Cognitive Ability for Predicting Important Life Outcomes
The ability of personality traits to predict important life outcomes has traditionally been questioned because of the putative small effects of personality. In this article, we compare the predictive validity of personality traits with that of socioeconomic status (SES) and cognitive ability to test the relative contribution of personality traits to predictions of three critical outcomes: mortality, divorce, and occupational attainment. Only evid…
Noncognitive Variables in College Admissions: The Case of the Non-Cognitive Questionnaire
The Non-Cognitive Questionnaire (NCQ) is a 23-item measure assessing eight noncognitive variables that are thought to predict the performance and retention of students in college. The NCQ is widely used in research and practice. This study is a meta-analytic review of the validity of scores on the NCQ across 47 independent samples for predicting academic outcomes ( N = 9,321). Across all analyses, none of the scales of the NCQ are adequate predic…
Study Habits, Skills, and Attitudes: The Third Pillar Supporting Collegiate Academic Performance
Study habit, skill, and attitude inventories and constructs were found to rival standardized tests and previous grades as predictors of academic performance, yielding substantial incremental validity in predicting academic performance. This meta-analysis ( N = 72,431, k = 344) examines the construct validity and predictive validity of 10 study skill constructs for college students. We found that study skill inventories and constructs are largely …
Does socioeconomic status explain the relationship between admissions tests and post-secondary academic performance
Critics of educational admissions tests assert that tests measure nothing more than socioeconomic status (SES) and that their apparent validity in predicting academic performance is an artifact of SES. The authors examined multiple large data sets containing data on admissions and related tests, SES, and grades showing that (a) SES is related to test scores (r = .42 among the population of SAT takers), (b) test scores are predictive of academic p…
The Validity of the Graduate Record Examination for Master’s and Doctoral Programs: A Meta-Analytic Investigation
Extensive research has examined the effectiveness of admissions tests for use in higher education. What has gone unexamined is the extent to which tests are similarly effective for predicting performance at both the master’s and doctoral levels. This study empirically synthesizes previous studies to investigate whether or not the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) predicts the performance of students in master’s programs as well as the performance…
Communicating Research Findings
All too often, practically useful psychological interventions and assessments are dismissed because effects are quantified with statistics that are unfamiliar to audiences. Communicating the value of psychological interventions and assessments can be aided by alternative statistical and graphical displays. Here, we discuss “What to Say” and “What to Show” to improve the communication of research findings. Specifically, we discuss the use of ratio…
The relation between parents' involvement in children's schooling and children's adjustment: A meta-analysis
This quantitative synthesis of 448 independent studies including 480,830 families revealed small positive associations (rs = .13 to .23) between parents' naturally occurring involvement in children's schooling and children's academic adjustment (i.e., achievement, engagement, and motivation) that were maintained over time. Parents' involvement was also positively related to children's social (r = .12) and emotional adjustment (r = .17) and negati…
Some Roads Lead to Psychology, Some Lead Away: College Student Characteristics and Psychology Major Choice
Understanding which students enter and leave psychology majors in college is critical to understanding the pipeline into the field. In this study, we compared psychology majors with nonpsychology majors on the basis of demographic, degree planning, academic preparedness, and academic performance variables using a unique longitudinal sample of nearly a million college students at 249 colleges and universities. Guided by prior research, we examined…
Personality, attitude, and demographic correlates of academic dishonesty: A meta-analysis
Over a century of research has focused on the relationship between student characteristics and academic dishonesty. Here we conduct a meta-analysis of this extensive literature across three broad domains: personality, academic attitudes, and historical information including demographic and prior accomplishments. After analyzing correlations from over 27,000 participants across 75 samples, several relationships stand out. Although measures of cons…
What Was Not Said and What to Do About It
The Woo et al. review (this issue) provides a foundation for considering the larger goals of higher education. We step back to consider the broader goals and ideals of higher education. Fundamentally, we want to admit a diverse set of students into graduate school and then produce the most accomplished scientists, artists, leaders, and innovators. In a world with inequality in preparation and finite resources, these ideals end up in tension witho…
Collegiate Honor Codes and Mandatory Reporting: Have We Gone Too Far
Academic dishonesty and counterproductive student behaviors are an ongoing concern in higher education. Over the years, multiple methods to promote student integrity have been proposed, including the use of honor codes. Collegiate honor systems, which make students collectively responsible for campus integrity, are sometimes paired with mandatory reporting policies, which have both advocates and critics. After a broad literature search, a review …
Psychology (15 works) · Social Psychology (9 works) · Clinical Psychology (5 works) · Medical Education and Admissions (5 works) · Pedagogy (5 works) · Academic achievement (4 works) · Applied Psychology (4 works) · Computer Science (4 works) · Developmental psychology (4 works) · Higher Education Research Studies (4 works)