What question type evaluates if a person’s performance varies compared to different activities?

The correct answer is distinctiveness. This question type specifically evaluates how a person's performance may change when faced with different situations or activities. In other words, distinctiveness looks at whether the individual behaves differently in various contexts, which can indicate if their performance is influenced by the specific characteristics of those activities.

For example, if an employee excels in one type of task but struggles with another, this variation in performance across activities can be attributed to the distinctiveness of the tasks themselves. Understanding distinctiveness is important in performance management as it highlights the potential impact of situational factors on behavior and performance outcomes.

In contrast, consistency focuses on whether the person's performance is stable over time and across similar situations. Recency pertains to the tendency to recall recent events more easily, affecting evaluations based on the most current information rather than overall performance. Attributions involve the explanations individuals give for behavior, such as whether they perceive performance as a result of internal traits or external circumstances. While all these concepts relate to performance evaluation, distinctiveness specifically addresses the variation across different activities.