Human Resource Management
Gaining a Competitive Advantage
Chapter 6
Selection and Placement
McGraw-Hill/Irwin Copyright © 2008 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, All Rights Reserved.
1-1
Reliability
• Reliability is the degree to which a measure of
physical or cognitive abilities, or traits, is free
from random error.
– Knowing how scores on the measure at one time
relate to scores on the same measure at another time
refers to test-retest reliability.
6-2
Validity
• Validity is the extent to which a performance
measure assesses all the relevant—and only
the relevant—aspects of job performance.
• Criterion-related validation is a method of
establishing the validity of a personnel selection
method by showing a substantial correlation
between test scores and job-performance
scores. The types include:
– Predictive validation
– Concurrent validation
6-3
Criterion-Related Validity
Predictive
Test
Applicants
Measure
Performance
of those Hired
TIME
Concurrent
Test
Existing
Employees
Measure
their
Performance
TIME
6-4
Content Validation
• Content validation is a test-validation
strategy performed by demonstrating
that the items, questions, or problems
posed by a test are a representative
sample of the kinds of situations or
problems that occur on the job.
– Best for small samples
– Content validity is achieved primarily through
a process of expert judgment
6-5
Generalizability
• Generalizability is the degree to which
the validity of a selection method
established in one context extends to
other contexts.
• Three contexts include:
– different situations
– different samples of people
– different time periods
6-6
Utility
• Utility is the degree to
which the information
provided by selection
methods enhances the
effectiveness of selecting
personnel in organizations.
• It is impacted by reliability,
validity, and generalizability.
6-7
Legality
• All selection methods must conform to
existing laws and legal precedents.
• Three acts have formed the basis for a
majority of the suits filed by job
applicants:
– Civil Rights Act of 1964 and 1991
– Age Discrimination in Employment Act of
1967
– Americans with Disabilities Act of 1991
6-8
Types of Selection Methods
Interviews
Honesty Tests
and Drug Tests
Work Samples
Personality
Inventories
References and
Biographical Data
HR
JOBS
Physical Ability
Tests
Cognitive Ability Tests
6-9
Interviews
• Selection interviews are defined as a dialogue
initiated by one or more persons to gather
information and evaluate the qualifications of an
applicant for employment.
• The utility of an interview can be increased by the
following suggestions:
– Interviews should be structured, standardized, and
focused on goals oriented to skills and behaviors that
are observable.
– Interviewers should plan to come out of each
interview with a quantitative rating.
– Interviewers should also have a structured note-taking
system that will aid recall when it comes to satisfying
the ratings.
6-10
Situational Interview
• A situational interview
confronts applicants on
specific issues,
questions, or problems
that are likely to arise on
the job.
• These interviews consist
of:
– experience-based
questions
– future-oriented questions
6-11
Other Selection Methods
• References, Biographical data, and
Application Blanks gather background
information on candidates.
• Physical ability tests are relevant for
predicting not only job performance but
occupational injuries and disabilities.
Types of physical ability tests include:
–
–
–
–
–
muscular tension, power, and endurance
cardiovascular endurance
flexibility
balance
coordination
6-12
Other Selection Methods
• A cognitive ability test differentiates
individuals based on their mental rather
than physical capacities. Abilities most
commonly assessed are:
– verbal comprehension
– quantitative ability
– reasoning ability
• Personality inventories categorize
individuals by their personality
characteristics.
• Work samples simulate the job in
miniaturized form.
6-13
“Inside the Head of an Applicant”
• 89 of Fortune 100 use Myers-Briggs
Personality Type Indicator in hiring and
promoting
– Experts concede test seems to capture
valid aspects of personality, but say it’s too
‘blunt’
• “Most people are blends”
6-14
“Inside the Head of an Applicant”
• Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)
widely used for substance abuse, other symptoms of
social maladjustment
– Psychologists say test has value, but tends to flag otherwise
normal test takers as pathological (false positives)
• 60% of U.S. police depts use it, as do industries ranging from
banking to retail
• In June 2005, 7th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in class-action
suit that Rent-A-Center violated ADA by requiring applicants to
take MMPI – “likely had the effect of excluding employees with
(mental) disorders from promotions”
– In 1996, test measuring trustworthiness withstood claim against
Borg-Warner Protective Services, as judge ruled test was not
medical examination under ADA
6-15
“Inside the Head of an Applicant”
• More accurate generation of personality tests has
now hit market, derived from empirical studies about
how types of people behave in certain situations
– Unlike MMPI, designed to measure normal personalities
• Scientists digging even deeper, focusing on genetic
and neural predictors of personality
– Brain scans have shown people differ profoundly in their
brain ‘wiring’
• EEOC guidelines indicate er can use construct
validity studies as evidence that specific test
measures personality traits identified as important to
performance of specific job
– Hiring consultants also recommend concurrent validation
» Source: Newsweek, 2/21/05; Workforce Management, 9/05
6-16
Honesty Tests
• The Polygraph Act of 1988
banned the use of polygraph
tests for private companies
except pharmaceutical and
security guard suppliers.
• Paper-and-pencil honesty
testing attempts to assess the
likelihood that employees will
steal.
– Since these tests are new,
there is little evidence on their
effectiveness.
6-17
Drug Tests
• Drug-use tests tend to be reliable and valid.
• The major controversies of drug tests includes:
– Is it an invasion of privacy
– Is it an unreasonable search and seizure
– Is it a violation of due process
• Tests should be administered systematically to all
applicants applying for the same job.
• Testing is likely to be more defensible when there
are safety hazards associated with the failure to
perform.
• Test results should be reported to the applicant, who
should have an avenue to appeal.
6-18
“For Some, Online Persona
Undermines Resume”
• When small Chicago consulting Co was looking to hire summer
intern, Co president went online to check on promising
candidate who had just graduated from U of Illinois
– At Facebook, found web page that described candidate’s interests
as “smokin’ blunts,” shooting people, and obsessive sex, all
described in vivid slang
• Candidate was done
– “What kind of judgment does this person have?”
• Orgs looking for ‘red flags’
» Source: New York Times, 6/11/06
• USI mngt major, Jr., 3.1 GPA
– Facebook picture shows student holding a beer with two beer cans
balanced on her head
– Interests: “going to bars, drinking beer, drinking whiskey,
drinking any alcohol, partying with my friends, going to the
haute, beer pong, beer bonging, edward 40 hands, drinking
games with cards or any we make up randomly, so pretty
much anything that involves drinking”
6-19
“For Some, Online Persona Undermines
Resume”
•
According to survey of 3,100 Ers by CareerBuilder.com, 22% of hiring
Ers say they use Web sites such as Facebook and MySpace to
research job candidates
– Double the percentage in 2006
•
Of the respondents who used a social networking site to check
candidates, 34% said they found information that caused them to
remove candidate from consideration
– Candidate posted information about drinking or using drugs, provocative or
inappropriate pictures or information, poor communication skills, bad-mouthed
former Er or co-worker, used discriminatory remarks, screen name was
unprofessional, was linked to criminal behavior, revealed confidential information
about previous Ers
•
24% of hiring managers said they found content that gave candidate an
edge
– Great communication skills, person was good fit for Co’s culture, personal site
illustrated professional image, showed wide range of interests, personal profile
was creative
»
Source: WorldatWork, 9/12/08
6-20
“As Background Checks Proliferate,
Ex-Cons Face a Lock on Jobs”
• More businesses using criminal-background checks
to guard against negligent-hiring lawsuits, theft of
company assets, even terrorism
– About 80% of big Ers in U.S. now do such checks (up from
56% in 1996)
– Some 630,000 people get out of state and federal prisons
each year w/ criminal records
• Almost 30% of adult Americans had state criminal arrest record
in 2003
• Ethical and legal implications
– Minorities in particular could experience adverse impact
• Black males incarcerated at five times rate of white males,
Hispanics two times
• Blacks w/ criminal records pay bigger penalty in job market (see
research cited in Understanding Equal Opportunity and the
Legal Environment)
» Source: Wall Street Journal, 8/26/04; MSNBC.com, 8/14/05
6-21
Reference Checking
• 36 states (including IN) have laws that grant
ers some form of civil immunity when they
disclose information about current or past ee
in response to request for reference
– But, suggested that many state laws contain
loopholes that plaintiff lawyers can attack when
pursuing defamation lawsuit
– Although truth is a defense, ers must still be
careful about what information is provided and
how
• There is both a duty to be accurate and a duty not to
misrepresent information
» Source: HR News, 6/24/05
6-22