Cl. Grote et al., Disclosure of negative information in letters of recommendation: Writers' intentions and readers' experiences, PROF PSYCH, 32(6), 2001, pp. 655-661
Do letters of recommendation contain accurate information about applicants
for psychology internships? A 2-part national survey was conducted to inves
tigate how writers of letters of recommendation for applicants for internsh
ips in psychology deal with negative characteristics of applicants when the
y are thought to exist. One hundred seventy-five psychologists who had rece
ntly written letters of recommendation generally claimed in their responses
that they would disclose information about some negative characteristics.
In contrast, a 2nd sample of 116 psychologists who had recently read letter
s of recommendation indicated in their responses that negative characterist
ics are infrequently described in letters of recommendation. Therefore, one
cannot presume that letters fully disclose applicants' limitations and pro
blems, and mechanisms to enhance disclosure are needed.