Can Job Applicants Outsmart Personality Tests?
“Faking” is probably the biggest apprehension employers have about using personality tests during the hiring process. These concerns are well founded. Job applicants are confronted by more tests all the time. They are motivated to “pass the test” and come closer to a job offer. This should be no surprise, especially in tight economic times. To get the most from your investment in tests, you need to become skilled in test administration and interpretation. Lynn McFarland, Ph.D., an assistant professor at Clemson University’s industrial/organizational psychology program and president of Human Capital Solutions, Inc., studies the “faking” phenomenon. She works primarily with self-reported measures, such as personality tests and biodata. “The [psychological] literature in general indicates that job applicants score higher on ‘social desirability’ on tests than groups we can be fairly certain are responding honestly,” she says. Social desirability refers to the tendency of test-takers to pr
