Diabetes and Job Performance: An Empirical Investigation

Abstract

There are approximately 11 million people in the United States with diabetes, and the numbers are increasing by 6% annually. Still, the relationship between diabetes and job performance remains unclear and marked by bias. To help clarify this relationship, a multicriterion job-performance rating scale was developed to rate task behaviors, interpersonal behaviors, dowr-time behaviors, and hazardous behaviors.

A volunteer sample of 53 subjects was selected from people with insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) and non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM). All subjects were rated individually by a supervisor; who also rated the norm for the work group. The norm rating was used to determine a norm-referenced control group.

The subjects were rated better than the norm in all categories and on all criteria: composite job performance (P<.001), task behaviors (P<.01), interpersonal behaviors (P<.01), down-time behaviors (P<.05), and hazardous behaviors (P<.001).

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