2. History of BEI
• Evolved from Critical Incident Method
originally proposed by J Flanagan in 1954.
• McClelland combined Critical Incident Method
and Thematic Apperception Test to create
BEI
• McClelland analyzed the BEI transcripts with
CAVE (Content Analysis of Verbal
Expression)
• BEI for assessment was a development of
McBer and Company.
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3. What is a BEI?
• A procedure for collecting direct
observation of human behavior through
the process of recording the the actor’s
narration of a critical event.
• Event is an observable human activity
sufficiently complete in itself to permit
inferences and predictions about the
person performing the act.
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4. Critical Event
• Critical event is an occurrence in a
situation where the purposes and the
intent of the action is reasonably clear
to the interviewer, and the event results
in a definite outcome.
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5. Elements of a Behavioral Event
Interview
• Introduction
• Trigger
• Event
• Event structure
• Probing and details
of the event
• Closure of the interview
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6. Introduction of the Interview
(preparing the candidate)
• Develop rapport with the interviewee.
• Clear the purpose of the interview.
This is done to reduce the anxiety of the
interviewee and make the interviewee
comfortable.
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7. What is a trigger?
• The trigger is a
question which is referenced to what
the person does at work and seeks to
elicit from the interviewee evidence of
the
behavior in context’ that the interviewer
is looking for.
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9. Some Examples of Triggers
• Think of a time when you achieved some
thing significant and challenging on your own.
.
• Think of a time when you did something well
despite encountering difficulties.
.
• Think of a time when you were called upon to
work in a team and you performed well.
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10. Structure of the Event
• The event must have a beginning and
an end.
• The event is divided into two or more
significant stages. (Usually four or five
maximum).
• Stages are chronological.
• Each stage is sequentially probed for ‘in
context behavior’ or target data.
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11. Probing
• Probing is the method of eliciting details
from the interviewee of all that he did, said,
felt or thought during the Event.
• A leading question is one that directs the
interviewee to a particular topic or desired
response. In other words the desired
answer is in the question itself.
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12. Some Valid probes
• What were you thinking at that
time?
• What were you feeling at that time?
• What exactly was the sequence of
your thoughts?
• What was the key thing you did?
• What was your role in this?
• Who else was involved in this?
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13. Avoid ‘Leading Qs’
• You must have found this task difficult,
tell me how difficult was it?
• Did you find the task challenging?
• Your boss must have appreciated your
performance, could you recount what
exactly he said to you?
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14. Closure
• To give an opportunity to the interviewee to
add any other data related to the event
which may be important but has been
missed in his narration.
• The closure of the interview is to thank the
interviewee for giving the information.
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Editor's Notes
The critical Incident Interview is divided into Introduction, Trigger, Event Structure, Probing and details of the interview and the closure of the interview. Each stage is has to be followed strictly. Please remember that a CII is a structured biographical interview. The looked for competencies are criterion referenced. No step should be missed in the conduct of the interview.
This is the first step and often the most crucial step. This step often sets the tone of the interview. It is also the first interaction between the interviewee and the interviewer. This interaction can be comfortable or ridden with anxiety. The interviewee is often not familiar with the form and structure of the CII. Hence, it is important to explain the purpose of the interview and set to rest the anxieties that may arise due to unfamiliarity of the form and the structure. Often the interviewees come with pre-set beliefs. Some of the pre-set beliefs can create anxieties and also bring into doubt the interview process.
The delivery of the trigger is the most crucial.It is often advisable to stick to the given script. The trigger is the only ‘leading statement’ in the entire interview. The interview also has to make a quick assessment of the event narrated by the interviewee. The event has to be meaty enough for the interviewee to show some of the looked for competencies. The trigger has to be modified depending on the sought for competencies.
