What is determined by administering a test to present employees and correlating the test scores with the present employee performance on the job?

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Employment testing is the practice of administering written, oral, or other tests as a means of determining the suitability or desirability of a job applicant. The premise is that if scores on a test correlate with job performance, then it is economically useful for the employer to select employees based on scores from that test.

Legal context (United States)

The United States Supreme Court has decided several cases clarifying the place of employment testing in the context of discrimination law. In particular, these cases have addressed the discriminatory use of tests when promoting employees by requiring tests beyond the education required for the job. A central finding in Griggs v. Duke Power Co. was that the employer must demonstrate (or be prepared to demonstrate) that its selection process is related to the job being filled.[1]

Test types used

Different types of assessments may be used for employment testing, including personality tests, intelligence tests, work samples, and assessment centers. Some correlate better with job performance than with others; employers often use more than one to maximize predictive power.

Performance assessment tests

Performance-based assessment testing is a process to find out if applicants can do the job for which they are applying. It is done through tests, which are directly administered and judged by Hiring Managers who will be supervising the potential hire.

The tests are peer-to-peer and reflect real business tasks that candidates have to perform, should they be selected for the role. The tests are open ended, time bound, business related questions which applicants need to submit their responses for in order to prove their abilities.

Personality tests

Personality tests may potentially be useful in personnel selection. Of the well-known Big Five personality traits, only conscientiousness correlates substantially with traditional measures of job performance, and that correlation is strong enough to be predictive.[2] However, other factors of personality can correlate substantially with non-traditional aspects of job performance, such as leadership and effectiveness in a team environment.[3] The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) is also used.

The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) is a highly validated psychopathology test that is generally used in a clinical psychology setting and may reveal potential mental health disorders.[4] However, this can be considered by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission as the employer having knowledge of a medical condition prior to an offer of employment. This is an illegal basis for a hiring decision in the United States. Employers considering personality tests should focus on tests designed for job purposes and do not provide any information regarding an applicant's mental health or stability.

Notable situations in which the MMPI may be used are in final selection for police officers, fire fighters, and other security and emergency personnel, especially when the employees are required to carry weapons. An assessment of mental stability and fitness can be reasonably related and necessary in the performance of the job.

Employment integrity testing is used to determine an applicant's honesty and integrity.

Cognitive ability tests

Tests of cognitive ability can assess general intelligence and correlate very highly with overall job performance.[5] Individuals with higher levels of cognitive ability tend to perform better on their jobs. This is especially true for jobs that are particularly intellectually demanding.

Job-knowledge tests

Employers administer job-knowledge tests when applicants must already possess a body of knowledge before being hired.[6] Job-knowledge tests are particularly useful when applicants must have specialized or technical knowledge that can only be acquired through extensive experience or training. Job-knowledge tests are commonly used in fields such as computer programming, law, financial management, and electrical or mechanical maintenance.

Licensing exams and certification programs are also types of job-knowledge tests. Passing such exams indicates competence in the exam's subject area. Tests must be representative of the tested field, otherwise, litigation can be brought against the test-giver.

Situational judgment tests

Situational judgment tests are commonly used as employee-selection and employee-screening tools and have been developed to predict employment success.[7] These tests present realistic hypothetical scenarios in a multiple-choice format. Applicants are asked to state what they would do in a difficult job-related situation.[8]

Situational judgment tests measure the suitability of job applicants by assessing attributes such as problem solving, service orientation, and striving for achievement.[9]

See also

• Civil Rights Act of 1964
• Industrial and organizational psychology
• Objective test
• Projective test
• Psychological testing
• Situational judgement test
• Watson v. Fort Worth Bank & Trust, 487 U.S. 977 (1988)
• Wards Cove Packing Co. v. Atonio, 490 U.S. 642, 657 (1989),

References

1. ^ Griggs v. Duke Power Co. :401 U.S. 424 (1971)
2. ^ Barrick, M. R., & Mount, M. K. (1991). The big five personality dimensions and job performance: A meta-analysis. Personnel Psychology, 44, 1-26.
3. ^ Hogan, R. (2006). Personality and the fate of organizations.
4. ^ Official MMPI-2 Description
5. ^ Schmidt, F.L., & Hunter, J. (2004). General Mental Ability in the World of Work: Occupational Attainment and Job Performance. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 86(1), 162–173.[1]
6. ^ U.S. Office of Personnel Management "Assessment Decision Guide". Retrieved on 2008-08-14.
7. ^ Ployhart, R. E. (2006). Staffing in the 21st century: New challenges and strategic opportunities. Journal of Management, 32, 868-897.
8. ^ Lievens, F., Peeters, H., & Schollaert, E. (2008). Situational judgment tests: A review of recent research. Personnel Review, 37, 426-441.
9. ^ Whetzel, D. L., & McDaniel, M. A. (2009). Situational judgment tests: An overview of current research. Human Resource Management Review, 19, 188-202.

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Work Sample Tests: Designed to have high content validity through a close relationship with the job.

Work Sample tests are based on the premise that the best predictor of future behavior is observed behavior under similar situations. These tests require the examinee to perform tasks that are similar to those that are performed on the job.

high reliability high content validity since work samples are a sample of the actual work performed on the job low adverse impact because of their relationship to the job, these tests are typically viewed more favorable by examinees than aptitude or personality tests difficult for applicants to fake job proficiency which helps to increase the relationship between score on the test and performance on the job Work Sample tests use equipment that is the same or substantially similar to the actual equipment used on the job

costly to administer; often can only be administered to one applicant at a time although useful for jobs where tasks and duties can be completed in a short period of time, these tests have less ability to predict performance on jobs where tasks may take days or weeks to complete less able to measure aptitudes of an applicant thus restricting the test to measuring ability to perform the work sample and not more difficult tasks that may be encountered on the job

Tips

Job Analysis Critical for identifying the content of the job from which samples will be developed. The Critical Incident Technique would be useful for identifying job duties/tasks that, if sampled on the test, would result in high predictive validity (criterion related validity).

High Content Validity The test should be constructed with the intent of developing a highly content valid test. The content validity is build into the test.

Equipment If specific equipment is used by incumbents on the job, try to incorporate all or some of that equipment on the test. Of couse, the safety of the applicant should take precedence over use of dangerous or unfamiliar tools or machines.

Types of Work Sample Tests

1. Work-Sample Tests of Trainability These are tests through a period of instruction when the applicant is expected to learn tasks involved in a work sample. The work-sample tests of trainability are suitable for untrained applicants with no previous job experience. The predictive validity of this technique is low relative to other techniques and there is evidence the validity of the instrument may attenuate over time.
2. Simulation of an Event These tests present the candidate with a picture of an incident along with quotations from those involved. The candidates then respond to a series of questions in which they write down the decisions they would make. The test is scored by subject matter experts.
3. Low Fidelity Simulations These tests present applicants with descriptions of work situations and five alternative responses for each situation. Applicants choose the responses they would most likely and least likely make in each situation.
4. Work-samples Applicants perform observable, job-related behaviors as predictors of criterion performance. It is not feasible to adapt certain work behaviors for testing. Work samples often are not conducive to group administration and, therefore, were dropped from consideration because of concerns regarding test security.

Validating Work Sample Tests

1. Content Validity The most direct relationship between the test and job would be shown through content validation. The tasks and duties performed on the test would be compared to the tasks and duties performed on the job. The test should encompass significant (in quantity or in importance) tasks/duties of the job.
2. Criterion Validity To measure this validity, you must first determine what criteria will be used. Two common forms of criteria are:
   • Supervisory ratings of the incumbent's job performance. The disadvantage of using supervisory ratings as criteria is that they typically lack sufficient reliability to be used for statistical analysis. The reliability of these measures is attenuated by rater errors such as 'halo' or 'leniency'. These ratings alto tend to lack the variability necessary to show a correlation between predictor and criterion.
   • Production measures such as quantity or quality of work. Production measures are not available for some jobs.
   The predictor measures used with work sample tests include:
   • Number of work samples completed (using a time limit)
   • Time to complete work samples (using a limit on the number of work samples to be completed on the test)
   • Number and type of errors