Development and Cross-Cultural Application of a Competency Assessment Questionnaire.

This paper addresses the cross-cultural development and use of the Behavior Description Index (BDI). The development of culturally-transportable scales; cross-cultural comparisons of results for 12 Spanish, 15 Hungarian, 15 Indonesian, and U.S. managers; and the transportability of competencies as constructs are considered. A competency is an underlying characteristic of an individual that is causally related to effective or superior performance on the job; competencies are the critical success factors that are demonstrated by superior performers. Nineteen core compet-,ncies, which pertain to self-management, cognition, achievement, influence, and management, help predict success in professional and managerial jobs. The BDI includes 218 items and 2 validity scales (frankness and behavioral consistency). Core competencies that drive successful managerial performance are relevant across cultures. Respondent instruments, as represented by the BDI, may provide self-assessment data that are reliable, culturally transportable, and congruent with construct validity. Managers in capitalist economies have similar competency profiles. Managers in socialist economies have different competency profiles from capitalistic managers. Cross-cultural, self-assessment competency/personality instruments may be applied if linguistic and cultural relativism, cross-cultural item and scale development, and item translation have been sufficiently addressed. Nine handouts are included. (RLC)