Supervisor ratings of students' academic potential as predictors of citizenship and counterproductive behavior

The educational psychology literature has recently discussed the implications of university citizenship behavior - activities that go beyond the primary student role - and counterproductive academic behavior - behaviors that run counter to academic values and objectives. This study investigated whether supervisor ratings of students' academic potential can serve as a valuable predictor of those criteria. The sample included 115 international students enrolled in a master's degree program at a university in the Netherlands. Results revealed that supervisor ratings of students' academic potential provided incremental validity above and beyond undergraduate grade point average (U-GPA) in predicting self-ratings of university citizenship and counterproductive academic behavior. The usefulness of supervisor ratings as supplement to traditional predictors of study success, and implications for student selection are discussed.