Chapter 06 Selection and Placement Human Resource Management: Gaining a Competitive Advantage Chapter 06 Selection and Placement McGraw-Hill/Irwin Copyright © 2013 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

Learning Objectives Establish the basic scientific properties of personnel selection methods, including reliability, validity and generalizability. Discuss how particular characteristics of job, organization or applicant affect the utility of any test. Describe the government’s role in personnel selection decisions, particularly in areas of constitutional law, federal laws, executive orders and judicial precedent. List common methods used in selecting HR. Describe the degree to which common methods used in selecting HR meet the demands of reliability, validity, generalizability, utility and legality. 6-2

5 Evaluation Selection Method Standards Reliability Validity Generalizability Utility Legality 6-3

Reliability Reliability is the degree to which a measure of physical or cognitive abilities or traits is free from random error. The 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. 6-4

Validity Validity is the extent to which a performance measure assesses all the relevant—and only the relevant—aspects of job performance. Criterion-related validation is a method of establishing the validity of a personnel selection method by showing a substantial correlation between test scores and job- performance scores. The types include: Predictive validation Concurrent validation 6-5

Criterion-Related Validity Predictive Concurrent Measure Performance of Those Hired Test Existing Employees Measure Their Performance Test Applicants TIME TIME 6-6

Concurrent Validation Measure all current job incumbents on attribute Measure all current job incumbents’ performance Obtain correlation between these two sets of numbers 6-7

Predictive Validation Obtain correlation between measurements. 2. Hire applicants and reject others. 3. Wait. 4. Measure all newly hired job incumbents’ performance. 1. Measure all job applicants on attribute. 6-8

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 6-9

Generalizability Generalizability is the degree to which the validity of a selection method established in one context extends to other contexts. 3 Contexts include: different situations (jobs or organizations) different samples of people different time periods 6-10

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. 6-11

Legality All selection methods must conform to existing laws and legal precedents. Three acts have formed the basis for a majority of the suits filed by job applicants: Civil Rights Act of 1964 and 1991 Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 Americans with Disabilities Act of 1991 6-12

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. 2. Allows a jury to decide punitive damages. Explicitly prohibits granting preferential treatment to minority groups. 6-13

Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 Covers over age 40 individuals. No protection for younger workers. Outlaws almost all “mandatory retirement” programs. 6-14

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. 6-15

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. 6-16

Types of Selection Methods Interviews Honesty & Drug Tests References & Biographical Data Work Samples HR JOBS Physical Ability Tests Personality Inventories Cognitive Ability Tests 6-17

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. 6-18

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 questions future-oriented questions 6-19

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. Physical ability tests include: muscular tension, power, and endurance cardiovascular endurance flexibility balance coordination 6-20

Other Selection Methods A cognitive ability test differentiates individuals based on mental rather than physical capacities. Commonly assessed abilities: verbal comprehension quantitative ability reasoning ability Personality inventories categorize individuals by personality characteristics. Work samples simulate a job in miniaturized form. 6-21

Cognitive Ability Tests 3 Dimensions Cognitive Ability Tests: Verbal Comprehension -a person’s capacity to understand and use written and spoken language. Quantitative Ability - speed and accuracy with which one can solve arithmetic problems. Reasoning Ability - a person’s capacity to invent solutions to diverse problems. 6-22

Physical Ability Tests Two Questions to Ask: Is physical ability essential to perform the job? Is it mentioned prominently enough in the job description? Tests Measure: muscular power and endurance cardiovascular endurance flexibility balance coordination 6-23

Personality Inventories Big 5 Dimensions of Personality Inquisitiveness Extroversion 5 Adjustment Agreeableness Conscientiousness 6-24

Emotional Intelligence Self-regulation Self-awareness Self-motivation Empathy Social Skills 6-25

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. 6-26

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. 6-27

Drug Tests Drug-use tests tend to be reliable and valid. Major controversies about drug tests include: Is it an invasion of privacy? Is it an unreasonable search and seizure? 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. 6-28

Summary of Selection Methods Interviews Honesty & Drug Tests References & Biographical Data Work Samples HR JOBS Physical Ability Tests Cognitive Ability Tests Personality Inventories 6-29

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. 6-30