Chapter 6

Selection and Placement

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Learning Objectives1. Establish basic scientific properties of personnel selection

methods, including reliability, validity and generalizability.

2. Discuss how particular characteristics of job, organization or applicant affect the utility of any test.

3. Describe government’s role in personnel selection decisions, particularly in areas of constitutional law, federal laws, executive orders and judicial precedent.

4. List common methods used in selecting HR.

5. Describe the degree to which common methods used in selecting HR meet the demands of reliability, validity, generalizability, utility and legality.

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5 Evaluation Selection Method Standards

1. Reliability

2. Validity

3. Generalizability

4. Utility

5. Legality

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Reliability

Reliability is the degree to which a measure of physical or cognitive abilities or traits is free from random error.

Correlation coefficient is a measure of the degree to which two sets of numbers are related. A perfect positive relationship equals +1.0 A perfect negative relationship equals - 1.0

Test-retest reliability is knowing how scores on the measure at one time relate to scores on the same measure at another time.

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ValidityValidity is the extent to which a performance

measure assesses all and only the relevant aspects of job performance.

Criterion-related validation is a method of establishing validity of a personnel selection method by showing a substantial correlation between test scores and job-performance scores. The types include:

Predictive validationConcurrent validation

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Criterion-Related Validity

Predictive

TIME

TestApplicants

MeasurePerformanceof Those Hired

MeasureTheir Performance

TestExisting Employees

Concurrent

TIME

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Concurrent Validation

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Predictive Validation

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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 Achieved primarily through expert judgment

Generalizability

Generalizability - degree to which the validity of a selection method established in one context extends to other contexts.

3 Contexts:1. different situations (jobs or organizations)2. different samples of people3. different time periods

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Utility

Utility is the degree to which information provided by selection methods enhances the effectiveness of selecting personnel.

Utility is impacted by reliability, validity and generalizability.

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Legality

All selection methods must conform to existing laws and legal precedents.

Three acts form the basis for a majority of suits filed by job applicants:Civil Rights Act of 1991 and 1964Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967Americans with Disabilities Act of 1991

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Civil Rights Act of 1991

Protects individuals from discrimination based on race, color, sex, religion and national origin.

Differs from the 1964 act in three areas:Establishes employers' explicit obligation to

establish neutral-appearing selection method.

Allows a jury to decide punitive damages.Explicitly prohibits granting preferential

treatment to minority groups.

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Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967

Covers over age 40 individuals.

No protection for younger workers.

Outlaws almost all “mandatory retirement” programs.

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Americans with Disabilities Act

Protects individuals with physical or mental disabilities (or with a history of the same).

Reasonable accommodations are required by the organization to allow the disabled to perform essential functions of the job. An employer need not make accommodations

that cause undue hardship.

Restrictions on pre-employment inquiries.

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Executive Orders

Executive Order 11246 parallels the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and goes beyond by: requiring affirmative action to hire qualified

protected group applicants and allowing the government to suspend all business

with a contractor during an investigation.

Office of Federal Contract Compliance and Procedures (OFCCP) issues guidelines and helps companies comply.

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Types of Selection Methods

JOBS

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Interviews

Selection interviews-a dialogue initiated by one or more persons to gather information and evaluate the applicant’s qualifications for employment.

To increase an interview’s utility: Interviews should be structured, standardized, and focused

on goals oriented to skills and observable behaviors. Interviewers should be able to quantitatively rate each

interview. Interviewers should have a structured note-taking system

that will aid recall to satisfying ratings.

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Situational Interview

A situational interview confronts applicants on specific issues, questions, or problems likely to arise on the job.

Situational interviews consist of:experience-based questionsfuture-oriented questions

Motivating employeesResolving conflictOvercoming resistance to change, etc.

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Experience-Based Situational Interview Items Table

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Experience Based

Motivating employees: “Think about an instance when you had to motivate an employee to perform a task that he or she disliked but that you needed to have done. How did you handle that situation?”

Resolving conflict: “What was the biggest difference of opinion you ever had with a co-worker? How did you resolve that situation?”

Overcoming resistance to change:

“What was the hardest change you ever had to bring about in a past job, and what did you do to get the people around you to change their thoughts or behaviors?”

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Future OrientedSituational Interview Items Table

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Future Oriented

Motivating employees: Suppose you were working with an employee who you knew greatly disliked performing a particular task. You needed to get this task completed, however, and this person was the only one available to do it. What would you do to motivate that person?”

Resolving conflict: ““Imagine that you and a co-worker disagree about the best way to handle an absenteeism problem with another member of your team. How would you resolve that situation?”

Overcoming resistance to change:

“Suppose you had an idea for change in work procedures that would enhance quality, but some members of your work group were hesitant to make the change. What would you do in that situation?”

Other Selection Methods

Individuals should manage their digital identity the same way they manage their résumé.

References, biographical data, and applications gather background information on candidates.

Physical ability tests are relevant for predicting job performance, occupational injuries and disabilities.

muscular tension, power, and endurance cardiovascular endurance flexibility balance coordination

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Other Selection Methods

A cognitive ability test differentiates individuals based on mental rather than physical capacities.

Commonly assessed abilities:verbal comprehensionquantitative abilityreasoning ability

Personality inventories categorize individuals by personality characteristics.

Work samples simulate a job in miniaturized form.

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Cognitive Ability Tests

3 Dimensions Cognitive Ability Tests:1. Verbal Comprehension - a person’s capacity to

understand and use written and spoken language.

2. Quantitative Ability - speed and accuracy with which one can solve arithmetic problems.

3. Reasoning Ability - a person’s capacity to invent solutions to diverse problems.

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Physical Ability Tests

Two Questions to Ask:1. Is physical ability essential to perform the job?2. Is it mentioned prominently enough in the job

description?Tests Measure:

muscular power and endurance cardiovascular endurance flexibility balance coordination

Big 5 Dimensions of Personality Inventories

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Emotional Intelligence

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Work-Sample Tests

Work-sample tests attempt to simulate the job in a pre-hiring context to observe how the applicant performs.

Assessment center-is a process in which multiple raters evaluate employees’ performance on exercises.

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Honesty Tests

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.

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Drug Tests Drug-use tests tend to be reliable and valid.

Major controversies about drug tests include:1. Is it an invasion of privacy?2. Is it an unreasonable search and seizure?3. 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 with safety hazards associated with failure to perform.

Test results should be reported to applicants, who should have an avenue to appeal.

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Summary of Selection Methods

JOBS

Summary

Job applicants and an organization’s viability are affected by decisions regarding who is accepted and rejected for positions.

Five standards should conform: reliability, validity, generalizability, utility and legality.

Managerial assessment centers use many different forms of tests over a two or three day period to learn as much as possible about candidates for important executive positions.

Validity associated with judicious use of multiple tests is higher than for tests used in isolation.

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