Reliability Of Psychometric Tests And Their Accuracy As An Employment Tool

The Reliability of Psychometric Tests and their Accuracy as an Employment Tool

Psychometric Selection Tests can be defined as the process of measuring a candidate’s relevant strengths and weaknesses (Psych Press, 2014). These tests generally fall into two categories: Personality Tests and Aptitude/Ability tests. Companies pick and choose different topics to test potential candidates before the interview stage, this increases their efficiency as it aids them in reducing the time it takes to interview all applicants as the tests eliminate a large proportion of them that are deemed unfit for the job. The tests generally measure people’s problem solving abilities and their motivation, values, priorities and opinions in regard to different situations and tasks (Michael Page, 2014). In terms of personality, the tests can give the employer an indication of the candidate’s preferred learning style and character traits, which help the company place the candidate in job that is ideal for them. Using personality tests, employers can predict patterns of behaviour. For example, a person who is an extrovert is commonly social, confident and gregarious. As a result of these characteristics, they would probably be best suited to work as a salesman, receptionist or in customer services. Choosing the right candidate for a job is a critical decision. When placed in the wrong position, employees can be frustrated and it can lead to poor performance that puts the company in jeopardy (Buchanan & Huczynski, 2003). The tests themselves are taken under a strict time limit and most tests are completed at the candidates’ homes at their leisure. It has been argued that these tests are not a precise way of testing candidates since a lot of errors can occur. ...

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... company time and money as well as wasting the time of the individual. Additionally, it is unreliable as jobs change over time to fit in with changes and advances in the business world therefore predictions based on current measures are defective (Buchanan and Huczynski, 2003). In my opinion, it is in the best interest of the companies to interview their candidates face-to-face. Although this takes a far greater amount of time, it is considerably more accurate as structured interviews have a predictive validity of 62% according to Anderson and Shackleton (1993). If companies choose to continue to use psychometric testing, they should improve the questions and make them relevant to their particular industry. Also, they would benefit from allowing candidates to take tests in an assessment centre in a proctored environment, as this will improve the predictive validity.