Types of psychometric tests used in the recruiting process

Types of psychometric tests used in the recruitment and selection process

 

In the continuous globalisation of institutions and organizations recruiting and selecting employees have also faced a new generation of processes. As such , psychometric tests play a major role in the latter process now a days. According to Carless (2007) , there is a growing awareness that attracting and retaining talented employees can provide organizations with a sustained competitive advantage. Studies in the domain of HRM have shown that organizations that have adopted selection best practices have increased organizational profitability (Huselid, 1995).

 

Psychometric tests can be divided mainly in to two as Ability tests and Personality tests (Carless,2007). Let’s contrast these two types of tests. Ability tests are typically used to assess verbal, numeric and spatial abilities. Ability test scores are usually reported to client organizations in the form of percentile scores which are based on published norms and/ or norms computed by the provider (Ryan & Sackett 1987). According to Warren (1922), “ personality is the entire mental organization of a human being at any stage of development”. Personality tests are used to examine the candidates behaviour at the work place, interpersonal skills, teamwork and leadership traits (Arthur, Woher & Graziana. 2001).

As described by Bryon (2012) some of the generally used methods are as follows;

1.     Verbal reasoning.

2.     Numerical analysis.

3.     Technical and mechanical reasoning.

4.     Personality questionares.

5.     Situational awareness questionares.

6.     Fault diagnosis.

7.     IQ tests.

8.     Diagrammatic and abstract analysis.

Psychometric tests can be designed according to the job description of the vacant post and can be accessed via online. They are also carried out at assessment centers and even at the organization’s interviewing center. There are some institutions which  provides psychometric testing as a service. Even in Sri lanka there are several such institutions which can be contacted and arrange the psychometric testing of their candidates accordingly   As mentioned by Carless (2007) a key activity that is crucial for firm performance is recruitment and selection.  Hence hiring an employee with a high IQ and good personality traits will eventually carry the organization to its goals with high profitability and sustainability.

 

Reference list:

1.     1. Arthur W, Woher D & Garziana W (2001). Personality testing in employment settings, problems and issues in the application of typical selection practices. Personal review.30. pp  656-676.

2.     2. Byron.M (2012). Ultimate psychometric tests.2nd ed. Kogan Page Ltd, London.

3.     3. Carless S.A (2007), Graduate recruitment and selection in Australia, International journal of selection and assessment, 15,pp 153-166.

4.     4. Huselid, M.A. 1995. The Impact of Human Resource Management Practices on Turnover, Productivity, and Corporate Financial Performance. Academy of Management Journal, 38: 635–672. 

5.     5. Ryan, A.M. and Sackett, P.R. 1992. Relationships between Graduate Training Professional Affiliation, and Individual Psychological Assessment Practices for Personnel Decisions. Personnel Psychology, 45: 363–387. 

6.     6. Warren H.C (1922), Elements of Human psychology. Cambridge the Riverside press, Cambridge.

Comments

  1. Nilushi FernandoApril 18, 2022 at 9:49 AM

    Hi Dr. Udhana, Agree with your post. Personality tests are done to test whether the candidate is capable of doing the job to be assigned and frequently assessed personality aspects are the conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, openness to experience and emotional stability of candidates (Pulakos, E., 2005).

    ReplyDelete
  2. Chamara GunarathneApril 19, 2022 at 5:34 AM

    Dr. Udana, as you have clearly mentioned, also as described by Ahmed, Anannya and Rahman, (2015), phychometric assessments are considered as a fair and objective way of measuring a variety of post-employment attributes such as personality traits, cognitive ability and soft skills. Based on research done by Bateson, Wirtz, Burke and Vaughan, (2014) recruitment process can be significantly improved by using psychometric tests at the start of the selection process as such tests effectively weed out unsuitable candidates before they even enter the recruitment process, resulting in a smaller, more qualified pool of candidates for possible recruitment.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Polwattage Dinith Tharushika PereraMay 2, 2022 at 12:16 AM

    Hi Dr. Udhana, the points you have mentioned here is very valid and clear. Further to support the topic I would like to add few more things to it. Through the use of a psychometric test for the recruitment process, an organization can get a better understanding of the IQ level of the employees being recruited into the organization and the company can get a better idea for what kind of learning and development programs the organization can be implement for those new employees (Rust and Golombok, 2014).

    ReplyDelete
  4. Pavani Damsara SamarasingheMay 5, 2022 at 9:36 AM

    This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Pavani Damsara SamarasingheMay 5, 2022 at 10:04 AM

    Hi Udana. I agree with your blog. suggested an automated job recruiting strategy that included psychometric testing. The emphasis here has been on automating the job application and CV processing system. Instead of the traditional job search and application process, a social networking website for job seekers and employers is proposed to be developed, which will automatically forward CVs to the desired company or organizations by matching the required criteria. With the help of the website, job organizations will be able to identify the most efficient and qualified candidate for the job based on psychometric analysis, as well as boost employee job satisfaction. (Ahmed, F., Anannya, M., Rahman, T. and Khan, R.T., 2015)

    ReplyDelete
  6. Mohamed ShamranMay 16, 2022 at 8:58 AM

    Hi Dr. Udhana, I agree with your blog. To further support the topic I would like to suggest 'five-factor model' as an explanation of the factors that determine a person’s personality (Wiggins, 1996). sometimes called the ‘big five’ model of personality – proposes that differences between people can be measured in terms of degrees of:
    1 - Emotional stability
    2 - Extroversion
    3 - Openness to experience
    4 - Agreeableness
    5 - Conscientiousness

    ReplyDelete
  7. Dileksha Harshani Magedara VithanageMay 19, 2022 at 8:56 AM

    Hi Udana, I agree with you. If psychometric tests are handled with insight and sensitivity, they remain the most effective way predicting behavior (Mittner, 1998).

    ReplyDelete

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