RESEARCH REPORTS Self-Monitoring Personality at Work: A Meta-Analytic Investigation of Construct Validity

The validity of self-monitoring personality in organizational settings was examined. Meta-analyses were conducted (136 samples; total N 23,191) investigating the relationship between self-monitoring personality and work-related variables, as well as the reliability of various self-monitoring measures. Results suggest that self-monitoring has relevance for understanding many organizational concerns, including job performance and leadership emergence. Sample-weighted mean differences favoring male respondents were also noted, suggesting that the sex-related effects for self-monitoring may partially explain noted disparities between men and women at higher organizational levels (i.e., the glass ceiling). Theory building and additional research are needed to better understand the construct-related inferences about self-monitoring personality, especially in terms of the performance, leadership, and attitudes of those at top organizational levels. The Self-Monitoring (SM) Scale (Gangestad & Snyder, 1985; Snyder, 1974) is one of the most widely used personality measures for research purposes (Briggs & Cheek, 1988). An underlying assumption of the SM construct is that people differ in the extent to which they monitor (observe, regulate, and control) the publi