Since When Is No News Good News? The Relationship Between Performance and Response Rates in Multirater Feedback

Despite the popularity of multirater feedback in practice and research, few studies have examined the issue of response rates in these efforts. This study explored the relationship between performance, vis‐á‐vis a measure of service quality, and feedback response rates in a large‐scale developmental multirater feedback initiative using data from 538 senior service providers, 4,446 coworkers and supervisors, and 1,617 clients. The number of rater responses that the focal individual received was largely unrelated to his or her performance level as rated by his or her clients. More specifically, less than 2% of the variance in response rates was explained by the focal individual's performance. Data representativeness and feedback acceptance implications are discussed.