Tutorial 7
– Solutions
Group Activity
1. Prepare and give a short presentation titled, “How to Be Effective As an Interviewer.”
There are several things you can do to prepare to be an effective interviewer. Some of the responses the students should give include: structure the interview; prepare for the interview; establish rapport; ask questions; close the interview; and review the interview. (LO 7.4;
AACSB: Communication Abilities; Learning Outcome: Describe effective interviewing techniques)
2. Use the Internet to find employers who now do preliminary selection interviews via the Web. Print out and bring examples to class. Do you think these interviews are useful? Why or why not?
How would you improve them?
The students should use the Internet to search the
Web sites of various companies to find examples of companies that use the Web for preliminary selection interviews. They should provide the pros and cons of using the Web for preliminary selection interviews. Challenge students to identify ways to improve the examples they have presented based on what has been discussed in this chapter. (LO 7.1; AACSB: Use of Information Technology; Learning Outcome: Describe effective interviewing techniques)
3. In groups, discuss and compile examples of “the worst interview I ever had.” What was it about these interviews that made them so bad? If time permits, discuss as a class.
Based on their experiences, the students should come up with various examples. They should also discuss their suggestions for improving the interview. (LO 7.2; AACSB:
Analytic Skills; Learning Outcome: Describe effective interviewing techniques)
Discussion Questions
1. Explain and illustrate the basic ways in which you can classify selection interviews. Interviews can be classified according to: (1) degree of structure. This is the extent to which interviews are, or are not, structured with previously designed questions so that each candidate must answer the same questions. (2) purpose. Interviews may be designed to accomplish several purposes, including selection, performance appraisal, and feedback. (3) content. The content of the questions may be situational, job-related, or psychological. (4) the way the interview is administered. Interviews might be conducted by a panel of interviewers, sequentially or all at once, computerized, or personally. Students should also provide some illustrations of each. (LO 7.1; AACSB: Analytic Skills;
Learning Outcome: Describe effective interviewing techniques)

2. Briefly describe each of the following possible types of interviews: unstructured panel interviews; structured sequential interviews; jobrelated structured interviews.
In the unstructured panel interview, the panel of interviewers asks questions as they come to mind. They do not have a list of questions or points that need to be covered but may follow many different directions. The structured sequential interview consists of the candidate being interviewed one by one with several different interviewers. Each interviewer conducts a structured interview that consists of pre-determined questions and a structured evaluation form to complete. The job-related structured interview consists of pre-determined questions, all of which are designed to assess the applicant's past behaviors for job-related information. (LO 7.1; AACSB: Communication
Abilities & Reflective Thinking Skills; Learning Outcome: Describe effective interviewing techniques)
3. For what sorts of jobs do you think computerized interviews are most appropriate? Why?
The computerized interview can be used as a screening device for virtually any type of position that may generate a large number of applicants. It is less likely to be used for managerial positions. However, if there are large numbers of applicants, it could certainly be just as useful there as in skilled, professional, and unskilled positions. (LO 7.1; AACSB: Analytic Skills; Learning Outcome: Describe effective interviewing techniques)
4. Why do you think situational interviews yield a higher mean validity than do job-related or behavioral interviews, which in turn yield a higher mean validity than do psychological interviews?
The situational interview allows the candidate to answer situational questions based on past experiences in which he or she might have made mistakes but learned from them. The job-related (or behavioral) interview focuses primarily on past situations, but it does not allow for changes in the candidate due to the lessons that he or she might have learned from those experiences. The psychological interview tends to be more speculative regarding traits that are difficult to measure. (LO 7.3; AACSB: Analytic
Skills; Learning Outcome: Describe effective interviewing techniques)
5. Similarly, how do you explain the fact that structured interviews, regardless of content, are more valid than unstructured interviews for predicting job performance?
The structured interview helps to keep the interviewer focused on the types of behaviors, traits, or answers that are desired and that are good predictors of job performance. Unstructured interviews allow interviewers to become sidetracked with things like common interests and other items that are not good predictors of job success. (LO 7.3; AACSB: Analytic Skills; Learning Outcome: Describe effective interviewing techniques)
6. Briefly discuss and give examples of at least five common interviewing mistakes. What recommendations would you give for avoiding these interviewing mistakes?

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Snap Judgments : This is where the interviewer jumps to a conclusion about the candidate during the first few minutes of the interview. Using a structured interview is one way to help avoid this, as well as training interviewers.
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Negative Emphasis : When an interviewer has received negative information about the candidate, through references or other sources, he or she will almost always view the candidate negatively. The best way to avoid this is to keep references or other information from the interviewer. If possible, have different people perform the reference checks and the interviews and not share the information until afterwards.
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Misunderstanding the Job : When interviewers do not have a good understanding of the job requirements, they do not make good selections of candidates. All interviewers should clearly understand the jobs and know what is needed for success in those jobs.
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Pressure to Hire : Anytime an interviewer is told that they must hire a certain number of people within a short time frame, poor selection decisions may be made. This type of pressure should be avoided whenever possible.
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Candidate-Order (Contrast) Error : When an adequate candidate is preceded by either an outstanding, or a poor candidate, by contrast he or she looks either less satisfactory or much better. This can be countered by training interviewers, allowing time between interviews, and structuring interviews with structured rating forms.
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Influence of Nonverbal Behavior : Candidates who exhibit stronger nonverbal behavior, such as eye contact and energy level, are perceived as stronger by the interviewers. This can be minimized through interviewer training and structured interviews.
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Telegraphing : An interviewer might "give" the right answers to candidates that they hope to hire. This can be combated through structured interview questions, multiple interviewers, and interviewer training.
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Too Much / Too Little Talking : On either end of these extremes, the interviewer may not gather all the information that is really needed to make an appropriate selection decision. Structured interviews help keep this from happening.
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Playing District Attorney or Psychologist : Some interviewers misuse their power by turning the interview into a game of "gotcha" or by probing for hidden meanings in everything the applicants say.
Structured interviews help keep this from happening.
(LO 7.2; AACSB: Communication Abilities; Learning Outcome: Describe effective interviewing techniques)
7. Briefly discuss what an interviewer can do to improve his or her performance.
The students should refer to the section in the chapter on designing and conducting the effective interview to form his/her suggestions for how an interviewer can improve his/her perfomance. (LO
7.4; AACSB: Communication Abilities; Learning Outcome: Describe effective interviewing techniques)