| Course | PSYC 651 Personnel and Performance Management (PSYC651) |
|---|---|
| Module/Week | 1 |
| Assignment | Weekly Reading Summary 1 |
| Paper type | Weekly reading summary in APA style with subheadings |
| Length | about 490 words, 2 double-spaced pages plus title page and references. Course guide: per the course guide, a 1.5 to 2 page summary in current APA format with subheadings, a cover page and a reference page, containing an introduction that summarizes the module's reading, 3 to 5 paragraphs each on a major theme and a conclusion that summarizes the themes and applies them to a business setting |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| Points | 25 |
| School | Liberty University Online |
| Program | MS in Industrial/Organizational Psychology |
| Where it sits | Module/Week 1 in Liberty's published PSYC 651 course guide; current sections can differ |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for PSYC 651 Week 1
Weekly Reading Summary 1: Performance Management Versus Appraisal, Its Purposes and the Rewards It Connects To
[Student Name]
School of Behavioral Sciences, Liberty University
PSYC 651: Personnel and Performance Management
Weekly Reading Summary 1
[Instructor Name]
[Date]
The writer and the workplace example are composites; the textbook and the journal articles are real and described from their published sources; the requirements follow Liberty's public course guide for PSYC 651.
Weekly Reading Summary 1: Performance Management Versus Appraisal, Its Purposes and the Rewards It Connects To
Introduction
Chapter 1 of Aguinis (2013) argues that performance management is far more than the annual review most employees dread. It is a continuous process through which organizations identify, measure and develop the performance of individuals and teams and align that performance with strategic goals. This summary examines four themes from the chapter: the difference between performance management and appraisal, the purposes a well-designed system serves, the costs of a poorly implemented system and the connection between performance management and reward systems.
Management, Not Just Appraisal
Aguinis (2013) distinguishes performance management from performance appraisal. Appraisal is the periodic evaluation of an employee's strengths and weaknesses, often once a year, while performance management is ongoing and tied to the organization's strategy. An organization can have an appraisal form without having a performance management system. Pulakos and O'Leary (2011) make a similar argument from the research side, contending that many systems fail because they treat formal procedures as the point, when what matters is the everyday communication between managers and employees about expectations and feedback.
Six Purposes
A strong system serves several purposes at once. Aguinis (2013) identifies strategic purposes, linking individual goals to organizational goals; administrative purposes, supplying information for decisions about pay and promotion; informational purposes, telling employees how they are doing; developmental purposes, guiding growth; organizational maintenance purposes, supporting workforce planning; and documentation purposes, recording decisions that may later be reviewed. A system that serves only one purpose, such as justifying raises, wastes most of the value performance management can offer.
The Cost of Doing It Badly
The chapter warns that poorly implemented systems can do real harm: lowered self-esteem, employee burnout and turnover, damaged relationships, wasted time and money, unclear performance standards and increased legal exposure. DeNisi and Murphy (2017), reviewing a century of research on appraisal and performance management, conclude that researchers have learned a great deal about rating formats and rater errors but much less about how systems actually improve performance, which helps explain why so many employees see them as bureaucratic rituals.
Part of a Total Rewards System
Finally, Aguinis (2013) places performance management within a broader reward system. Total rewards include base pay, cost-of-living and contingent pay, short- and long-term incentives, benefits that protect income and support work-life balance and relational returns such as recognition and learning opportunities. Performance management provides the information needed to distribute these rewards fairly and to connect them to the behaviors and results the organization values.
Conclusion
The chapter presents performance management as a strategic, continuous process with multiple purposes, real risks when done poorly and close ties to rewards. In a regional bank where I once worked, the annual review consisted of a single rating that determined a small raise and was rarely discussed again. Applying this chapter would mean setting goals linked to the bank's strategy each January, holding brief quarterly conversations about progress, using the information for development as well as pay and documenting decisions carefully. Such a system would cost managers time, but it would turn an empty ritual into a tool for improving performance.
References
Aguinis, H. (2013). Performance management (3rd ed.). Pearson.
DeNisi, A. S., & Murphy, K. R. (2017). Performance appraisal and performance management: 100 years of progress? Journal of Applied Psychology, 102(3), 421-433. https://doi.org/10.1037/apl0000085
Pulakos, E. D., & O'Leary, R. S. (2011). Why is performance management broken? Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 4(2), 146-164. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1754-9434.2011.01315.x
What the PSYC 651 Week 1 instructions ask
Each module of PSYC 651 begins with a Weekly Reading Summary, and the first, worth 25 points, is due in Module/Week 1 with the content presentation and discussion, Case Study 1, Research Article Review 1 and the course checklist, after chapter 1 of Aguinis and a presentation. The guide asks for one and a half to two pages in current APA format, organized under subheadings; the cover sheet and the references are extra and do not count. An introductory paragraph summarizes the reading, three to five body paragraphs each develop one major theme and a concluding paragraph sums up the themes and explains how they apply in a business setting.
How this PSYC 651 Week 1 example is built
The introduction states the chapter's main claim, that performance management is an ongoing process aligned with an organization's goals, and previews four themes. The first theme paragraph contrasts performance management with performance appraisal, using Aguinis's definition and Pulakos and O'Leary's argument that systems fail when they become paperwork. The second lists the strategic, administrative, informational, developmental, organizational maintenance and documentation purposes. The third covers the costs of poorly implemented systems, from lowered self-esteem to legal risk, with DeNisi and Murphy's review on what a century of research has and has not achieved. The fourth places performance management inside total rewards, and the conclusion applies the themes to a regional bank.
PSYC 651 Week 1 grading rubric: where the points go
Grading for the first summary rests on four things: whether chapter 1 is represented accurately, whether the introduction, theme paragraphs and applied conclusion are all present, whether subheadings make the themes easy to follow and whether the APA formatting, cover sheet and references are in order within the length limit. Accuracy means representing the chapter's definitions and arguments in the writer's own words. Theme paragraphs should each develop one idea rather than listing several. The conclusion earns credit when it applies the reading to a specific business situation instead of restating the chapter. Adding a research source, though not required, can strengthen a summary that will later become the weekly presentation.
PSYC 651 Week 1 help: mistakes that cost points
Students often summarize the chapter in page order, which produces a list rather than themes. Instead, identify the three to five ideas the chapter keeps returning to and give each its own subheading. Write the introduction last, once you know what your themes are. Keep quotations to a minimum; a summary shows understanding through paraphrase. Make the practical application concrete by naming a workplace and a decision the reading would change. Remember that this summary becomes your narrated presentation in any week you present, so clear organization now saves work later, and the same themes can anchor your answers in the week's discussion. Proofread the reference page too; a missing DOI or an unformatted textbook entry costs points in a short paper.
Related PSYC 651 sample papers
Other PSYC 651 weeks
- PSYC 651 Week 2: Reading Summary 2: The PM Cycle
- PSYC 651 Week 3: Summary 3: Strategy and Goals
- PSYC 651 Week 4: Reading Summary 4: Measuring It Well
- PSYC 651 Week 5: Summary 5: Development and 360s
- PSYC 651 Week 6: Summary 6: Coaching and Feedback
- PSYC 651 Week 7: Reading Summary 7: Pay and the Law
- PSYC 651 Week 8: Appraisal Project: Pharmacy Techs
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PSYC 651 Week 1 questions, answered
What is the PSYC 651 Weekly Reading Summary?
A 25-point paper due every module of PSYC 651, one and a half to two pages in APA format with subheadings, summarizing the week's Aguinis reading in an introduction, three to five theme paragraphs and an applied conclusion.
Where can I find a free PSYC 651 Week 1 sample paper?
The full PSYC 651 Week 1 reading summary on performance management versus appraisal, its purposes and its link to total rewards is on this page.
What is the difference between performance management and performance appraisal?
For Aguinis, appraisal is a periodic judgment of an employee's work, while performance management is the ongoing effort to define, measure and develop that work in line with the organization's strategy, of which appraisal is only one piece.
What are the purposes of a performance management system?
Aguinis lists six: strategic, administrative, informational, developmental, organizational maintenance and documentation, which together link individual work to organizational goals and to decisions about pay, promotion and growth.
What textbook does PSYC 651 use?
Aguinis's Performance Management, read one chapter per module except Module/Week 4, which assigns four chapters on measuring performance, gathering information and implementing a system.
Use it as a model, or ask for your own
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