Assessing Individuals Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Chapter 4 Assessing Individuals Alistair Berg/Getty Images Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Module 1: Foundations of Assessment Past & present of testing 1890 – Cattell & “mental test” WWI: Over million soldiers tested During WWII: full employment After WWII: little control over testing 1960s – constraints on testing Criticism by social observers Civil Rights Act of 1964 Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. What is a Test? Objective & standardized procedure for measuring a psychological construct using a sample of behavior Attributes to be assessed CONTENT Ways to assess attributes PROCESS Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Two Attributes Measured Using Two Different Procedures Figure 4.1 Two Attributes Measured Using Two Different Procedures Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Tests (cont'd) What is the meaning of a test score? Norming & norm groups used to interpret & give meaning to a score Test users & test interpretation Importance of training test administrators to correctly understand & interpret results Test battery Collection of tests assessing variety of different attributes Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Administrative Test Categories Speed vs. power tests Speed tests have rigid & demanding time limits Provide greater variability among candidates Issue of relevance to job May increase the risk of legal challenges Power tests have no rigid time limits Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Administrative Test Categories (cont'd) Group vs. individual tests Individual tests useful in assessing a candidate’s style of problem solving Group testing is valuable in reducing costs Paper & pencil vs. performance tests Performance tests assess skill in performing tasks & knowledge of how to carry out actions Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Administrative Test Categories (cont'd) Where to find tests Textbooks Mental Measurements Yearbook (Buros Institute) Tests In Print (Buros Institute) Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Testing & Culture Bias Situation in which a given test results in statistical errors of prediction for a subgroup Fairness Value judgment about actions or decisions based on test scores Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Testing & Culture (cont'd) System in which individuals share meanings & common ways of viewing events & objects Influence of culture & subculture on test scores Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Module 2: Traditional Assessment Procedures Procedures for assessing abilities Cognitive ability tests Allow individuals to demonstrate what they know, perceive, remember, understand, or can work mentally Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Cognitive Ability Tests (cont'd) Tests that produce a single score Wonderlic Personnel Test (WPT) Tests of specific abilities Bennett Test of Mechanical Comprehension Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Cognitive Ability Tests (cont'd) Cognitive test batteries General Aptitude Test Battery Knowledge tests Tomi/PhotoLink/Getty Images Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Tests of Physical Abilities Physical ability tests Psychomotor abilities Coordination, dexterity, reaction time Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Personality Screen-out tests → Identify psychopathology Generally used for positions of public trust May only be administered after offer of employment Screen-in tests → Identify normal personality May be administered as pre-employment tests e.g., Occupational Personality Questionnaire (OPQ32) Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Occupational Personality Questionnaire (OPQ32) Figure 4.5 What the OPQ32 Looks Like Source: Occupational Personality Questionnaire (OPQ32). Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Personality (cont'd) Emotional intelligence Controversial construct: Little agreement on definition or how to measure it Interests & values Strong Vocational Interest Bank (SVIB) Candidate’s score compared to various occupational norm groups Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Module 3: Additional Assessment Methods Content vs. process Important distinction for showing validity Validity depends more on content of gathered information Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Individual Assessment Only one candidate (or very few) is assessed on many different attributes Likely to include ability & personality tests, personal history statement, & interviews May include simulation exercises Criticisms of individual assessment Issues of validity, reliability, & ethics Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Interviews Interview content Structured interview Situational interview Unstructured interview Tend to cover job knowledge, abilities, skills, personality, & person-org. fit Steve Cole/Getty Images Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Candidate Comparison Matrix Figure 4.7 Candidate Comparison Matrix Source: Executive Success Profile. Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Potential Influences on Employment Interviews Nature of information Placement of information Presence of interviewer stereotypes Interviewer knowledge of job Method used by interviewer to combine information Nonverbal behavior of candidate Attitudinal/racial/gender similarity of candidate & interviewer Quality of competing candidates Interviewer experience Applicant physical appearance Attention to factual detail by interviewer Extent to which interview is structured Note taking by interviewer Use of same interviewer(s) for all candidates Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Assessment Centers Collection of procedures for evaluation Typical characteristics Assessment done in groups Assessment done by groups Multiple methods of assessment employed Assessment centers have “feel” of relevance Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Work Sample Tests Measure job skills by taking samples of behavior under realistic job-like conditions Examples: Rudder control test for pilots Speech interview for foreign student Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Situational Judgment Tests Present candidate with written scenario, then ask candidate to choose best response from series of alternatives Important characteristics: Job-related Well-accepted by test takers Reduced adverse impact compared to other devices Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Biographical Data Biodata Includes type of information collected on an application blank e.g., previous jobs, education, & special training Ecology model Events constituting person’s history represent choices made by individual to interact with his/her environment Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Biographical Data (cont'd) Distinguishing characteristics of biodata Historical External Objective Discrete Control Relevant & noninvasive Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Grades & Letters of Recommendation May be able to predict job offers, but not job success Little serious research on validity & fairness of these devices Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Module 4: Special Topics in Assessment Incremental validity Value in terms of increased validity of adding a particular predictor to an existing selection system Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Controversial Assessment Practices Graphology Assumes traits can be assessed from various characteristics of a person’s handwriting Polygraph Machine that measures person’s physiological reactions & signals deception Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. The Polygraph Physiological responses assessed by the polygraph Figure 4.10 Physiological Responses Associated by the Polygraph Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Special Topics in Assessment Drug & alcohol testing Issues with acceptance by employees & prospective employees Legal Issues Drug Free Workplace Act Integrity testing Overt integrity test Personality based integrity test TRBfoto/Getty Images Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Computer-Based Assessment Are we measuring same thing as we are with paper & pencil test or interview? Yes AND No Computer Adaptive Testing (CAT) Based on preliminary routing test; allows for test to be “tailored” to test-taker’s approximate level of ability Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Permissions Slide 1: McGraw-Hill Education Digital Image Library, Alistair Berg/Getty Images, Source Image ID: AA032522, Filename: 109041.JPG Slide 12: Figure 4.2 from Bennett Mechanical Comprehension Test, Form BB, Item Y. Copyright © 1942, 1967-1970, 1980 by The Psychological Corporation, a Harcourt Assessment Company. Reproduced by permission. All rights reserved. Slide 13: McGraw-Hill Education Digital Image Library, Tomi/PhotoLink/Getty Images, Source Image ID: ED000238, Filename: 24257.JPG Slide 14: Figure 4.4 from Crawford Small Parts Dexterity Test. Copyright © 1946, 1956, 1998 by The Psychological Corporation, a Harcourt Assessment Company. Reproduced by permission. All rights reserved. Slide 16: Figure 4.5 from Occupational Personality Questionnaire (OPQ32). Boulder, CO: SHL. © SHL Group PLC. Used by permission of Saville Holdsworth Limited: www.shgroup.com/home.asp Slide 20: McGraw-Hill Education Digital Image Library, Steve Cole/Getty Images, Source Image ID: AA042827, Filename: 109067.JPG Slide 21: Figure 4.7 from Competency Factors, THE PROFILER® for Executives. Copyright © 1991 Personnel Decisions International Corporation. Used by permission. Slide 27: Figure 4.9 from Mumford, M. D., & Stokes, G. S. (1991). Developmental determinants of individual action: Theory and practice in applying background measures. In M. D. Dunnette & L. M. Hough (Eds.), Handbook of industrial and organizational psychology, 2nd ed., Vol. 3, p. 84. Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press. Modified and reproduced by special permission of the Publisher, CPP, Inc., Palo Alto, CA 94303. Copyright 1992 by CPP, Inc. All rights reserved. Further reproduction is prohibited without the Publisher’s written consent. Slide 33: McGraw-Hill Education Digital Image Library, TRBfoto/Getty Images, Source Image ID: AA000573, Filename: SS36041.JPG Slide 35: Figure 4.11 from Murphy, K. R., & Davidshofer, C. O. (2001). Psychological testing: Principles and application, 5th ed., p. 242. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. © 2001. Reprinted by permission of Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ.