The document discusses different selection techniques used in hiring, including interviews and psychological testing. It notes that structured interviews using job-related questions are better predictors than unstructured interviews. Psychological testing can measure a candidate's knowledge, skills, intelligence, trainability, and personality traits. The Big Five personality factors that can be assessed include extraversion, neuroticism, conscientiousness, agreeableness, and openness to experience.

1. Selection Techniques

2. The Interview
 Most popular method in UK — >80% of
organizations say they always use them,
cf. only 60% in Germany.
 Analysis shows that unstructured
interviews are very unreliable. Structured
interviews using job related questions only
are better predictors. This is probably
because it forces the interviewer to
concentrate on the job and there is
therefore less room for biased questioning.
 Evidence shows that interviewers often
make up their minds in the first few
minutes, and spend the rest of the time
confirming those first impressions.

3. Negatives of Interview
 Halo or horns effect — a single good or bad
characteristic is given disproportionate weight.
 Interviewer treats candidates better/worse on
basis of similarity/dissimilarity to themselves.
 Positive or negative expectancy — if interviewer
has prior access to personal information re candidate.
 Stereotypical assumptions.
 Regency effect — the influence of earlier candidates
clouds proper assessment of the current candidate.
 Risk aversion — interviewer guards against making
the wrong decision and places more emphasis on
negative indicators at expense of positive.

4. Things to do
 Structured Interview
 Fixed Time Limit
 Panel Interview

5. Psychological Testing
 Attainment tests — measure current
levels of knowledge and skills.
 General intelligence tests — measures
intellectual capacity for thinking and
reasoning.
 Specific cognitive ability tests — e.g.
verbal reasoning.
 Trainability test — responsive to
instruction.
 Personality questionnaire — to infer
individual’s personality traits.

6. Big Five Personality Factors
 Extraversion—introversion
 Neuroticism
 Conscientiousness
 Agreeableness
 Openness to experience