Justifications for ratings of old and young job applicants: an exploratory content analysis

This study explored the content of 324 managers' written statements justifying their ratings of a hypothetical older or younger job applicant's interpersonal skills, economic worth, and likelihood of being interviewed for an upper level clerical position. Age-related concerns were more often elicited in rating the older applicant than the younger applicant, and importantly, most of these concerns were related to economic issues. Implications for these findings for research and practice are discussed.