External Selection.pptx

The topics we are going to cover: Preliminary Issues Initial Assessment Methods Substantive Assessment Methods Contingent Assessment Methods  Preliminary Issues Logic of prediction Nature of predictors Development of the selection plan Selection se...

The topics we are going to cover: Preliminary Issues Initial Assessment Methods Substantive Assessment Methods Contingent Assessment Methods  Preliminary Issues Logic of prediction Nature of predictors Development of the selection plan Selection sequence Logic of Prediction: Past Performance Predicts Future Performance Not specific enough to make selection decisions – Job titles – Number of years of experience What counts is the specific types of experiences required and the level of success at each  Nature of Predictors Content – Sign: A predisposition thought to relate to performance (e.g., individual characteristics such as personality traits) – Sample: Observing behavior thought to relate to performance – Criterion: Actual measure of prior performance Form – Speed vs. power: How many versus what level – Paper / pencil vs. performance: Test in writing or in behavior – Objective vs. essay: Much like multiple-choice vs. essay course exam questions – Oral vs. written vs. computer: How data are obtained  Nature of Predictors: Form Speed versus Power – A speed test is used when speed of work is an important part of the job, and a power test is used when the correctness of the response is essential to the job. Paper and Pencil versus Performance – Paper and pencil tests are frequently used when psychological abilities are required to perform the job; performance tests are used when physical & social skills are required to perform the job.  Objective versus Essay Objective paper and pencil test should be used to measure knowledge in specific areas. Essays are best used to assess written communication, problem- solving, and analytical skills.  Oral vs. Written vs. Computer The appropriate form depends on the nature of the job. If the job requires a high level of verbal skill, oral responses should be obtained. If the job requires a large amount of writing, written responses should be required. If the job requires constant interaction with the computer,  Development of the Selection Plan: Steps Involved A selection plan describes which predictors will be used to assess the KSAOs required to perform the job. 1. Develop list of KSAOs required for job – KSAOs are provided by job requirements matrix 2. For each KSAO, decide if it needs to be assessed in the selection process Initial Assessment Methods Also referred to as pre-employment enquiries – used to reduce the number of people assessed. Predictors used to screen candidates from applicants include application forms, biographical information, reference reports, and initial interviews.  Example of Assessment Methods by Applicant Flow Stage Initial assessment methods Minimize the costs associated with substantive assessment methods by reducing the number of people assessed Resumes and Cover Letters Information provided is controlled by applicant – Information needs to be verified by other predictors to ensure accuracy and completeness Major issues – Large number received by organizations – Falsification and misrepresentation of information Lack of research exists related to – Validity or reliability – Costs – Adverse impact Overview of Application Blanks/Forms Request in written form the applicant’s background in regard to educational experiences, training, and job experiences. Areas covered – Educational experience – Training – Job experience Key advantage -- Organization dictates information provided Major issue -- Information requested should – Be critical to job success and – Reflect KSAOs relevant to job  Application Blanks/Forms Areas of special interest – Educational requirements Level of education CGPA Quality of school/university Major field of study Extracurricular activities (the usefulness of extracurricular activities as a predictor depends on the job) – Training and experience requirements – Licensing, certification, and job knowledge Weighted application blanks  Biographical Information / Biodata Personal history Biodata compared information of with background applicant’s checks background and – Background check interests examines an – “Best predictor of applicant’s future behavior is background past behavior” conducted through – Past behaviors may records checks and conversations with reflect ability or references motivation – Biodata Issues used to predict – Generalizability beyond future performance first group? information is – Although predictive collected by survey validity exists, it is not clear what these Example of Biodata Items  Reference Reports: Letters of Recommendation Problems – Inability to discern more-qualified from less-qualified applicants – Lack of standardization Suggestions to improve credibility – Use a structured form – Use a standardized scoring key  Reference Reports: Reference Checks Approach involves verifying applicant’s background via contact with – Prior immediate supervisor(s) or – HR department of current of previous companies Roughly 8 of 10 companies conduct reference checks Problems – Same as problems with letters of recommendation – Reluctance of companies to provide requested information due to legal concerns  Reference Reports: Background Testing Method involves assessing reliability of applicants’ behavior, integrity, and personal adjustment Type of information requested – Criminal history – Credit information – Educational history – Employment verification – Driver license histories – Workers’ compensation claims Key issues – Limited validity evidence – Legal constraints on pre-employment inquiries  Evaluation of Reference Reports Validity depends on source providing information – HR department, coworker, or relative – Supervisors – What sources do you think work best? Cost vs. benefit of approach must be considered  Initial Interview Characteristics – Begins process of necessary differentiation – Purpose -- Screen out most obvious cases of person / job mismatches – Limitation -- Most expensive method of initial assessment Video and computer interviews – Offers cost savings  Evaluation of Initial Interview Minimal evidence exists regarding usefulness Guidelines to enhance usefulness – Ask questions assessing most basic KSAOs – Stick to basic, fundamental questions suitable for making rough cuts rather than subjective questions – Keep interviews brief – Ask same questions of all applicants  Substantive Assessment Methods Determining who among the minimally qualified will likely be the best performers on the job  Substantive Assessment Methods Personality Tests Ability Tests Emotional Intelligence Tests Performance Tests and Work Samples Situational Judgment Tests Integrity Tests Interest, Values, and Preference Inventories Structured Interview Choice of Substantive Assessment  Overview of Personality Teststests e.g., role of Big Current role of personality Five – Describe behavioral, not emotional or cognitive traits – May capture up to 75% of an individual’s personality – Big Five factors (Personality Characteristics Inventory etc.) Emotional stability-calm, optimistic, and well adjusted Extraversion-sociable, assertive, active, upbeat, and talkative Openness to experience-imaginative, attentive to inner feelings, have intellectual curiosity and independence of judgment Agreeableness-altruistic, trusting, sympathetic, and cooperative  Big Five Personality Characteristics  Measures of Personality Tests Surveys – Personal Characteristics Inventory (PCI) – NEO Personality Inventory – Hogan Personality Inventory (HPI) Administration options – Paper-and-pencil – Interviews – Online forms  Sample Items from the Personal Characteristics Inventory Conscientiousness – I can always be counted on to get the job done. – I am a very persistent worker. – I almost always plan things in advance of work. Extraversion – Meeting new people is enjoyable to me. – I like to stir up excitement if things get boring. – I am a “take-charge” type of person.  Sample Items from the Personal Characteristics Inventory Agreeableness – I like to help others who are down on their luck. – I usually see the good side of people. – I forgive others easily. Emotional Stability – I can become annoyed at people quite easily (reverse-scored). – At times I don’t care about much of anything (reverse-scored). – My feelings tend to be easily hurt (reverse- scored). Openness to Experience – I like to work with difficult concepts and ideas. – I enjoy trying new and different things. – I tend to enjoy art, music, or literature. Implications of Big Five Personality Traits at Work  Criticisms of Personality Trivial validities Tests – Correlations for any individual trait with job performance are typically low (around r=.23) – However, when all traits are used simultaneously, correlations are higher Faking – Individuals answer in a dishonest way – However, tests still have some validity, and it may be that being able to “act” conscientiously may be related to real job performance Negative applicant reactions – Applicants, in general, believe  Overview of Ability Tests Definition -- Measures that assess an individual’s capacity to function in a certain way 15 to 20% of organizations use ability tests in selection Two types – Aptitude - Assess innate capacity to function – Achievement - Assess learned capacity to function Four classes of ability tests Cognitive: perception, memory, reasoning, verbal, math, expression Psychomotor: thought/body movement coordination Physical: strength, endurance, movement quality Sensory/perceptual: detection & recognition of stimuli  Evaluation of Cognitive Ability Tests Validity approaches.50 Research findings – Among the most valid methods of selection – Often generalizes across organizations, job types, and types of applicants – Can produce large economic gains for organizations and provide major competitive advantage – Validity is particularly high for jobs of medium and high complexity but also exists for simple jobs – A simple explanation for validity: those with higher cognitive ability acquire and use greater knowledge  Limitations of Cognitive Ability Tests Concern over adverse impact and fairness of tests – Equally accurate predictors of job performance for various racial & ethnic groups – Blacks and Hispanics score lower than whites – This gap is narrowing somewhat over time – Alternative presentation formats (e.g., verbal tests) decrease differences in scores dramatically while producing nearly equivalent scores Applicants’ perceptions – Reactions to concrete vs. abstract test items (mix reactions) – Applicants perceive cognitive ability tests to be more valid than personality tests but less valid  Other Types of Ability Tests Psychomotor ability tests – Reaction time, arm-hand steadiness, control precision, and manual and digit dexterity Physical abilities tests – Muscular strength, cardiovascular endurance, and movement quality Sensory/perceptual abilities tests – Ability to detect and recognize environmental stimuli Note: Increasingly, ability tests are being computer administered  Emotional Intelligence The ability to monitor one’s own and others’ feelings, to discriminate among them, and to use this information to guide one’s thinking and action – Self-awareness: Good at recognizing and understanding one’s own emotions – Other awareness: Good at recognizing and understanding others’ emotions – Emotion regulation: Good at Emotional Intelligence Tests A review of 59 studies indicated that, overall, EI correlated moderately with job performance Some critics argue that because EI is so closely related to intelligence and personality, once you control for these factors, EI has nothing unique to offer Still not clear whether these tests are useful  Performance Tests and Work Samples Definition -- Assess actual performance (e.g., fix a car, teach a class, type a document) Types of tests (should focus on relevant KSAOs) – Performance test vs. work sample (all or some) – Motor vs verbal work samples (action or thought) – High- vs. low-fidelity tests (level of realism) use realistic equipment and scenarios to simulate the actual tasks of the job – Computer interaction performance tests vs. paper-and-pencil tests including  Situational Judgment Tests Place applicants in hypothetical, job- related situations. Applicants are then asked to choose a course of action from several alternatives Capture the validity of work samples and cognitive ability tests in a way that is cheaper than work samples and that has less adverse impact than cognitive ability tests  Integrity Tests Two types – Clear purpose / overt Do you think most people would cheat if they thought they could get away with it? Do you believe a person has a right to steal from an employer if he or she is unfairly treated? – Personality-based/veiled purpose Would you rather go to a party than read a newspaper? How often do you blush? Scores appear to reflect conscientiousness, agreeableness, and emotional stability  Integrity Tests Validity can be useful – Clear purpose as high as.55 predicting bad behaviors – General purpose as high as.32 predicting bad behaviors – Can predict performance as well (as high as.30)  Interest, Values, and Preference Inventories Assess activities individuals prefer to do on & off the job; do not attempt to assess ability to do these Not often used in selection Can be useful for self-selection into job types Types of tests – Strong Vocational Interest Blank (SVIB) – Myers-Briggs Type Inventory (MBTI) Evaluation – Unlikely to predict job performance directly – May help assess person-organization fit & subsequent job satisfaction,  Typical Unstructured Interviews Relatively unplanned and “quick and dirty” Questions based on interviewer “hunches” or “pet questions” to assess applicants Casual, open-ended, or subjective questions Often contains blunt (insensitive) questions Often contains highly speculative questions  Structured Interviews Questions based on job analysis Same questions asked of each candidate Response to each question numerically evaluated Detailed anchored rating scales used to score each response Detailed notes taken, focusing on interviewees’ behaviors Validity may be r=.30 or better Surprisingly uncommon in organizations  Structured Interviews (continued) Situational - Experience-based Assess applicant’s - Assess past ability to project behaviors that are his / her behaviors linked to to future prospective job. situations. Assumes past Assumes the performance will person’s predict future goals/intentions performance Experience-based interviews may only be relevant for will predict future individuals behavior who have had significant job experience. Situationalinterviews are worse than experience-based interviews when the job is complex. Selection for Team Environments Types of teams – Problem-solving teams – Self-managed work teams – Cross-functional teams (from different work areas) – Virtual teams Establish steps for selection in team-based environments Who should make the hiring decision? – Self-directed work team decide who becomes a member Critical to ensure proper context is in place – require modifications from the traditional  Contingent Assessment Methods “We offer you this job contingent upon ….” Contingent methods always used in Malaysia – Depends on nature of job and legal mandates Might involve confirmation of – Drug test results – Medical exam results  Drug Testing The average drug user – was 3.6 times more likely to be involved in an accident – received 3 times the average level of sick benefits – was 5 times more likely to file a workers’ compensation claim – missed 10 times as many work days as nonusers – 31% of all fatal truck accidents were due to alcohol or drugs Drug testing has decreased in recent years because so few people test positive Features of an effective drug testing program Emphasize drug testing in safety-­sensitive jobs Use only reputable testing laboratories, and ensure that strict chain of custody is maintained. Ask applicants for their consent, and inform them of test results Use retesting to validate positive samples from the initial screening test Ensure that proper procedures are followed to maintain the applicant’s right to privacy Review the program and validate the results against relevant criteria (accidents,  Medical Exams Identify potential health risks in job candidates Usually lack validity as procedures vary by doctor Not always job related Often emphasize short- rather than long-term health One way to make medical exams more reliable and valid is to ensure that the exam is based on job-related medical standards (i.e., the exam focuses on the specific diseases and health conditions that prohibit adequate functioning on specific