What to consider when choosing psychometrics: Why use them in the first place?
For the next three weeks I thought I would pick psychometrics as my topic of choice to blog about.
I've worked with psychometrics for many, many years and can even remember the age of the paper and pencil test (yes, I am that old). There was also that lovely phase in the early to min-2000's, of credits being transferred to client computers via telephone codes and climbing under desks to plug in 'dongles' (nowhere near as smutty or fun as that sounds). Also, needing to arrive one-two hours early before running training workshops, to get software installed on up to 20 PCs or laptops, and panic calling the office when something didn't download correctly.
Crikey, I'm starting to sound like that 'Luke I am your father' meme, of the cassette to the iPod. Okay, let's move on!
So, over the years I've worked with many an ability test, personality questionnaire, and situational judgement test (SJTs), in the context of using, designing, and training others on their use, interpretation and feedback. What I've noticed is that the same kind of questions tend to come up when it comes to choosing psychometrics. So, I thought I'd take this opportunity to answer those and give you a bit of a guided tour around what you need to know, but also what questions you need to ask.
If you’ve never used psychometrics before journeying into this particular form of the ‘unknown’ can be a little daunting. If you are the point of seriously considering using them, and you are reading this blog, then the chances are you are already convinced of the benefits and just need to find the right ones. It may be that the task has been delegated to you (one way or another!) and you’re not too sure where to start. If this is the case, don’t worry my friend, I will talk you through the basics.
However, it maybe that you are already using some form of ability test or personality questionnaire, but still feel it is worthwhile reviewing your tools and providers every so often. If that is the case, then this series of articles is for you too.
What are the benefits?
When referring to psychometrics, I’m primarily talking about tools that will enable you to measure a person’s ability or personality, and the first step in using them as part of your selection or development activities is being convinced of the benefits of using them in the first place. If not, the chances are they will never be fully integrated with these activities in a meaningful way.
Here is a quick reminder of why use psychometrics:
They are fair and objective – administration, content and output is standardised
Cost effective – cheaper than running an assessment centre or running an interview panel
Can improve the effectiveness of selection decisions – easy to compare candidates and provides a rich source of information regarding their suitability
They can predict job performance – research shows they are more effective at doing this than interviews
Communicate positive messages about the organisation – showing that you are prepared to invest in the process. For example, the majority of graduates now expect to complete psychometrics
Effective as a sifting tool for high volume recruitment – meaning more time can be spent on the candidates with the greatest fit
What are the concerns?
“They aren’t fair”
As so much of the content, administration and interpretation of psychometrics is standardised they are often much fairer than many other forms of assessments, such as CV sift or even interviews. This is primarily because the possibility of human error is minimised as much as possible and everyone is guaranteed the same experience.
The majority of psychometrics require no prior knowledge or training, meaning that everyone has an equal chance of performing well (this is particularly the case with ability tests). It also makes them a fairer measure of someone’s suitability than attainment measures, such as the traditional educational qualifications – where their score/degree classification will have been influenced by the quality of teaching, the support available, the choice of examination methods, etc.
“You can’t stop people cheating”
Whilst it would be impossible to stop all people cheating all of the time, psychometrics have many checks and deterrents built into them to minimise this. These include:
The use of randomised items in online tests – so cheat sheets won’t work
Honesty clauses – to create a psychological obligation to not cheat
Deterrents such as advising candidates that they may be retested at a later stage
Re-test materials, such as Verify tests and paper and pencil equivalents
In reality, concerns about cheating only really apply to using psychometrics in a selection context. In addition, it is relevant to any tool used for this purpose, including assessment centre exercises and interviews. Furthermore, research has shown that only a very small percentage (approximately 5%) of candidates are seriously motivated to cheat anyway – meaning that up to 95% will complete all assessments truthfully and honestly.
“They don’t really measure someone’s ability to do a job”
Whilst an ability test or personality questionnaire or even a SJT cannot predict 100% of a person’s potential future performance, neither can any other selection tool! What research has shown though (see Schmidt & Hunter, 1998 and 2016) is that psychometrics are one of the best predictors of job performance - nearly double that of interviews (structured or unstructured).
This is primarily because psychometrics, such as ability tests, measure people’s ability to acquire job knowledge and it is this knowledge that causes their performance to be higher (Hunter, 1986). They are therefore a better predictor than gathering information via an interview about when they have performed similar tasks before.
Ultimately though, getting away from any name calling, the best way of predicting job performance is to use several selection tools together and not rely on any one method in isolation. For that reason, whilst psychometrics are a very useful source of information, hiring decisions should never be based on this information alone.
“They are expensive”
Whilst the thought of adding yet another cost into your already expensive selection or development process might make you break out into a cold sweat, in comparison to many other tools, psychometrics are very affordable, I could even go so far as to say ‘cheap’!
Psychometrics cost significantly less than putting together an interview panel or running an assessment centre – on both the time and money front. This is also magnified further the earlier in the process you use them, i.e. utilising psychometrics as a sifting tool enables you to filter in those who show the greatest potential and filter out those with the least.
“You’ve got to be good at tests to be able to pass them”
One of the fundamental principles that underlie the construction of psychometrics such as ability tests, personality questionnaires and SJTs is that they require no prior knowledge or training. This does not mean however an element of acclimatisation won't help reduce a person’s nerves, making the assessment a more comfortable experience – which in turn can improve their performance. Good test publishers will always make practice materials and example questions available for this reason.
So, there are some of the benefits of using psychometrics, as well as responses to a few of the concerns we often hear raised. Part Two and Part 3 of this article series will move onto looking at what questions should you be asking yourself, and any potential suppliers, when purchasing psychometrics.
In the meantime, if you have any questions about how Psychology Works use psychometrics as part of our work in the areas of assessment, leadership development, or talent, please do get in touch.
Find out more
If you would like to know more about talent and the services Psychology Works offer in this area, please don’t hesitate to contact us.
In the meantime, if you’ve enjoyed Maria’s ramblings why not check out some of our other blogs and thought pieces. For real time updates and insights you can also find us on LinkedIn, our social media platform of choice: @PsychologyWorks and @mariagardner