In addition to the Big 5 factors, there are other specific
aspects of your character that are of particular interest to
employers. People applying for jobs in retail, banking, or the
security services industries are often asked to take an integrity
test which claims to predict if they will lie, cheat, or steal on
the job. These tests are administered by an estimated 6,000 US
organizations and taken by as many as 5 million people each year.
These tests may be either self-contained or the questions may form
part of a general personality questionnaire.
There is concern in the testing industry regarding some of the
companies who have recently entered this particular sector of the
psychometric test market. The American Psychological Association
found that more than half of integrity-test publishers do not
require any training or other qualifications of people who
administer their tests and many of these tests simply aren't
valid. A review conducted by the US federal government's 'Office
of Technology Assessment' found that over 95% of people who fail
integrity tests are incorrectly classified as dishonest.
In addition, these tests may also invade your privacy,
inquiring into your beliefs about politics, law enforcement, drug
use, and corporate ethics. Such tests are not seeking to
understand your personality so much as to enforce conformity, and
while test takers are told that ''there are no right or wrong
answers" to these questions, this is obviously untrue.
In addition, some companies selling these tests have opted to use
sales messages which cultivate distrust and suspicion. Some of the
marketing material is extremely inflammatory and it is disturbing
that these companies can actually find a market for their product.
Many of these same companies have put minimal effort into the
development of their tests, most of which are not based on any
worthwhile psychological research. Unsurprisingly, these two
factors have made many people suspicious of and hostile to this
type of test and some of this negative feeling has unfortunately
and unfairly transferred itself to personality questionnaires
generally.
The increasing use of integrity tests begs the question, are
employees more likely to be dishonest nowadays than in the past?
Unfortunately, the answer to this question is probably ‘yes’. The
reasons are not hard to fathom, organizational loyalty has largely
disappeared as a result of companies’ willingness to restructure
or downsize at home and move jobs offshore where labor costs are
cheaper. The increase in so-called ‘McJobs’, where investment in
staff training and development are minimal and the job itself is
unrewarding and stressful have further eroded employee’s loyalty
to their employer.
In some jobs the results of employee dishonesty, whether it
involves the theft of goods or time, may go unnoticed for long
enough to be very costly. Organizations are therefore likely to
err on the side of caution and reject you if there is any doubt
about your integrity, however unfounded this doubt may be. It is
therefore vital that you recognize these integrity questions and
respond to them appropriately.
Testing for Workplace Stress
Stress is a prevalent and costly problem in today's workplace. About thirty percent of workers report high levels of stress. Twenty five percent view their jobs as the number one stressor in their lives and seventy five percent believe the worker has more on-the-job stress than a generation ago. Evidence also suggests that stress is the major cause of turnover in organizations.
Stress-related disorders commonly include:
* Depression
* Anxiety
* Dissatisfaction
* Fatigue
* Aggression
* Concentration Problems
These conditions often lead to poor work performance. Stress is also associated with various biological reactions that may lead to compromised health, such as cardiovascular disease and various cancers. Problems at work are more strongly associated with health complaints than are any other life stressor, more so than even financial problems or family problems.
There are four Main physiological reactions to stress:
* Blood is shunted to the brain and large muscle groups.
* An area of the brain known as the reticular activating system sharpens hearing and vision.
* Energy-providing compounds of glucose and fatty acids are released into the bloodstream.
* The immune and digestive systems are temporarily shut down.
Stress is regarded as a bad thing by employers. Stress is often
defined as ‘anger turned inwards’ and is implicated in a long list
of medical conditions from migraines to heart attacks. It is also
a precursor to ‘workplace rage’ (known in the US as ‘going
postal’) which along with ‘road rage’ and ‘air rage’ is a recent
and rapidly increasing occurrence. Both of these outcomes, illness
and violence, are very expensive from an employer’s point of view
and questions aimed at screening out stressed or angry candidates
are finding their way into personality questionnaires.
As is the case with integrity, organizations are likely to err on
the side of caution and reject you if there is any doubt about
your stress level, however unfounded this may be. It is therefore
vital that you recognize these stress questions and respond to
them appropriately.
Negative Aspects Personality >
Everything you need to pass
psychometric tests
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