Which appraisal method relies heavily on the rater's ability to articulate thoughts in writing?

The trait rating method is characterized by its focus on evaluating employees based on specific traits or characteristics deemed essential for job performance. This method typically requires raters to provide written evaluations of an employee's attributes such as communication skills, teamwork, leadership, and other relevant traits. The emphasis on the rater's capacity to articulate these observations effectively in writing is what makes this method distinctive.

In trait rating, the effectiveness of the appraisal largely depends on how well the rater can convey their insights and judgments about an employee’s performance regarding those traits. This method can be subjective and relies heavily on the personal impressions and judgments of the rater, making written articulation a critical aspect of the process. Clear and well-articulated written feedback helps in ensuring that the evaluations are meaningful and actionable for employee development.

Other methods, such as behavior observation scales (BOS) or critical incidents, while also focused on appraising performance, do not place as strong an emphasis on the rater's writing skills. BOS, for instance, is focused more on specific observable behaviors than on the articulation of traits. Similarly, the critical incident method typically records specific instances of effective or ineffective behavior rather than relying on descriptive trait assessments. The balanced scorecard takes a broader organizational perspective