There are three forms of criticism such as constructive and non-constructive:
- Constructive criticism is a form of critique that establishes an objective geared towards improving performance and/or productivity levels. For example, a monthly evaluation given from an immediate supervisor to a subordinate. Constructive criticism is a careful approach an issue that is meant to be helpful and edifying to the recipient of the critique.
- Subjective criticism is based on an individual's feelings regarding the work performed rather than the actual evidence in support of the action (Encarta, 2005). For example, coworkers discussing another coworkers performance in a negative manner without evidence to prove their claims.
- Objective Criticism is critique primarily based on bias. For example, giving an employee a negative evaluation based on gender specific limitations.
The most important thing to keep in mind when giving constructive criticism is to focus on valid and unbiased feedback. By valid feedback we're talking about feedback that is tangible, credible, and well-founded. By unbiased feedback we're talking about feedback that is free of individual opinion or personal tastes. The theory behind this is that your criticism is focused on concrete feedback instead of personal tastes or opinions because let's face it, everyone has a different opinion on how something should be done. Ultimately you want to give criticism that is going to offer a potential for improvement, and avoid criticism that is geared towards satisfying a personal desire (Carillo, 2008).