Deck 8: Selecting Effective Employees

Question 1

At a basic level,all selection programs attempt to identify the applicants who have the highest chance of:

A) Generating a profit for the company
B) Balancing the racial profile of the company
C) Meeting the organization's standards of performance
D) Staying in the position for a long time

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Viability refers to how stable or repeatable a measurement is over a variety of testing conditions.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

Research indicates that unstructured interviews will generally be more reliable and valid than structured interviews.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

To be legal,educational standards must be related to successful performance of the job.

Question 5

Hiring on the basis of height or physical appearance is illegal unless the job involves tasks that specifically require the characteristic.

Question 6

The goal of any selection system is to accurately determine which applicants possess the knowledge,skills,and other characteristics dictated by the job.

Question 7

All of the following are Big Five personality factors except:

A) Aptitude
B) Emotional stability
C) Extraversion
D) Conscientiousness

Question 8

One of the most significant environmental influences on selection is the size,composition,and availability of local labor markets.

Question 9

Complex applicant selection systems are most often found in larger organizations.

Question 10

It is unacceptable to ask applicants to list their favorite high school subjects in the biographical information section on an application blank.

Question 11

In structurally complex organizations with many job titles but very few occupants,the number of years needed to pay back the money invested in a complex selection system almost always justifies its initial expense

Question 12

All of the following are categories of information typically used to make hiring selection decisions except:

A) Education
B) Experience
C) Political affiliation
D) Physical characteristics

Question 13

_______________ is the process by which an organization chooses from a list of applicants the person who best meets the selection criteria for the position available.

A) Selection
B) Rotation
C) Definition
D) Filtering

Question 14

Of the Big Five personality factors,conscientiousness and _______________ best predict performance across most occupational groupings.

A) agreeableness
B) extroversion
C) openness to experience
D) emotional stability

Question 15

An organization that wishes to use personality as a criterion must be certain that successful and unsuccessful employees can be distinguished in terms of their personalities.

Question 16

When unemployment rates are low,it may be difficult for an organization to identify,attract,and hire the number of people it needs.

Question 17

Content validity is not appropriate for more abstract job behaviors,such as leadership potential,leadership style,or work ethic.

Question 18

In concurrent validation,the first step is to administer the test to employees who have never performed the job.

Question 19

All states have virtually identical laws that limit an organization's ability to test applicants for drug use.

Question 20

When the selection ratio gets close to 1:1,it is called a low selection ratio.

Question 21

Organizations frequently expend the most time,effort,and money hiring ____________.

A) technical personnel
B) security personnel
C) employees at the bottom of the organizational chart
D) middle- to upper-level executives

Question 22

The California Test of Mental Maturity is a test of mental ability that is administered to groups and scored by:

A) Machine
B) Peers
C) Management
D) An outside scoring agency

Question 23

The criteria typically used by organizations for making selection decisions can be summarized in several broad categories: __________.

A) knowledge,experience and personality
B) education,experience,and personal characteristics
C) education,experience,and other personal characteristics
D) education,experience,physical characteristics,and other personal characteristics

Question 24

The text suggested all of the following interview tips except:

A) Arrive 10 to 15 minutes early
B) Avoid direct eye contact
C) Meditate before you arrive
D) Use a firm handshake

Question 25

Self-efficacy is associated with all of the following except:

A) Work-related performance
B) Career choice
C) Learning
D) Political affiliation

Question 26

_______________ addresses the questions of what a test measured and how well it measured it.

A) Reliability
B) Validity
C) Interrator reliability
D) Vindication

Question 27

_______________ refers to an ability to visualize things on paper as they appear in actual,three-dimensional space.

A) Spatial relations
B) Numerical reasoning
C) Logical reasoning
D) Special relations

Question 28

Objections have been raised to the use of the polygraph in personnel selection for all of the following reasons except:

A) It is an invasion of the applicant's privacy
B) Reliability and validity haven't been proven
C) The cost to yield ratio is too low
D) It's use can lead to self-incrimination

Question 29

The _______________ approach is the process of reaching a selection decision by requiring job candidates to meet basic minimum requirements at each stage of the process.

A) compensatory model
B) low walls
C) multiple hurdle
D) stair-step

Question 30

All of the following are errors that can occur in the employment interview except:

A) Asking the same questions that were asked of other applicants
B) Excessive talking by the interviewer
C) Stereotyping
D) First impression error

Question 31

Anyone interested in selecting a test for use in personnel selection can begin with the _______________,which summarizes many of the tests and includes a brief evaluation of their effectiveness.

A) Mental Measurements Yearbook
B) Mental Effectiveness Handbook
C) Military Measurements Workbook
D) All of the choices are correct.

Question 32

The least reliable of the employment tests are those that attempt to measure a person's _____________.

A) personality
B) manual dexterity
C) speed of limb movement
D) reaction time

Question 33

The degree to which a test,interview,or performance evaluation measures the ability to perform a job is called _______________.

A) content validity
B) construct validity
C) criterion-related validity
D) None of the above.

Question 34

Which of the following is a potential problem associated with the use of concurrent validation?

A) This method uses experienced employees,which can bias the validation
B) Present employees often balk at completing tests
C) The least skilled and least able employees have probably been terminated,demoted,or transferred,which can restrict the range of test scores
D) All of the choices are correct.

Question 35

The _______________ is a comprehensive paper-and-pencil test that generates two scores: the verbal score and the performance score.

A) Wonderlic Personnel Test
B) California Test of Mental Maturity
C) Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale
D) Psychomotor Ability Simulation

Question 36

What is the most common first step in any selection process?

A) Conducting a face-to-face interview
B) Administering initial screening tests
C) Having the applicant complete an application blank
D) Obtaining information from prior employers

Question 37

An HR specialist should be familiar with all of the following types of validity except:

A) Constitutional
B) Content
C) Construct
D) Criterion-related

Question 38

Which of the following is the last step of a typical selection decision process?

A) Employment interview
B) Physical examination
C) Employment tests
D) Reference checks

Question 39

Which of the following is an indirect cost of a selection process?

A) Interviewer's salary
B) Changes in the organization's public image
C) Drug testing
D) Equipment used in a work sample test

Question 40

A job sample performance test requires that the applicant actually do a sample of the work that the job involves.Which of the following is not an example of a valid performance test.

A) Programming test for computer programmers
B) Taste test for fast-food counter help
C) Typing test for secretarial help
D) Simulated "in basket" test

Question 41

The selection system must be capable of __________________.

A) distinguishing between characteristics that are needed at the time of hiring
B) distinguishing those characteristics that are systematically acquired during training and those that are routinely developed after a person has been placed on the job
C) accurately determine which applicants possess the knowledge,skills,abilities,and other characteristics (KSAOs)dictated by the job
D) All of the above are correct.

Question 42

The ADEA prohibits _____________.

A) all discrimination based on age
B) discrimination against people that are over the age of 40
C) discrimination on the basis of social security status
D) discrimination against those under 21

Question 43

At the core of any effective selection system is an understanding of what characteristics are essential for ______ performance

A) basic
B) average
C) high
D) EEO compliant

Question 44

As a category for selection decisions,personal characteristics include all of the following except _______.

A) age
B) gender
C) education
D) marital status

Question 45

Using a conventional tape measure to the weight of an applicant would be an issue with _______.

A) validity
B) reliability
C) repeatability
D) Both A and B are correct.

Question 46

If you were using a measuring tape you believed to marked in inches but was improperly calibrated to centimeters,this would be an issue with _______.

A) validity
B) reliability
C) intermeasure reliability
D) Both A and B are correct.

Question 47

For a measuring tool to be useful it must be ___________.

A) valid
B) reliability
C) reliable and valid
D) reliable,valid and put to the use for which it was intended

Question 48

Regardless of the method chosen for collecting information about applicants,the organization must be certain that _____________.

A) it has been approved by the EEOC
B) it is AEDA compliant
C) the information is both reliable and valid
D) All of the above are correct.

Question 49

______________ are equally good predictors of performance on a given job.

A) All previous experiences
B) Not all previous experiences
C) Years of experience
D) Internships

Question 50

The selection ratio is ________________.

A) the number of applicants/the number of applicants hired
B) the number of applicants hired/the number of applicants
C) the number of applicants selected for interviews/the number of applicants
D) The annualized wage costs of those hired/the annual selection expense

Question 51

__________ refers to how stable or repeatable a measurement is over a variety of testing conditions.

A) Evaluation stability
B) Validity
C) Redundancy
D) Reliability

Question 52

The "Big Five" describe _________________.

A) level of education,i.e.elementary,HS,College,Masters,Ph.D
B) the application of Hofsteed's factors to selection
C) personality factors
D) the general areas considered in the selection process

Question 53

Many selection specialists believe that past performance on a similar job ________ of future performance.

A) might be one of the best indicators
B) is generally a poor indicator
C) has been established as a legally endorsed and valid predictor
D) is a reliable but not valid predictor

Question 54

An organization wishing to use personality as a criterion _________________.

A) is legally protected as it has been validated for most jobs
B) must be certain that successful and unsuccessful employees can be distinguished in terms of their personalities
C) may legally do so only once confidence validity has been established
D) may be in violation of ADEA requirements

Question 55

As the number of applicants increases relative to the number who are hired,the selection ratio is said to be _________________.

A) high
B) low
C) exculpating
D) softening

Question 56

The assessment center was first used by the ________ in World War II.

A) US Navy
B) OSS
C) German military
D) RAF

Question 57

Candidates for a job ______ be screened out by arbitrary height,weight,or similar requirements.

A) can generally be
B) generally cannot
C) should
D) can legally but should not

Question 58

__________ refers to the extent to which two or more interviewers' assessments are consistent with each other.

A) The consistency factor
B) Rater validity
C) Interrater reliability
D) Assessment consistency

Question 59

It usually is safe to assume that anyone who has successfully completed high school or its equivalent __________.

A) has a "clear" criminal record
B) has basic reading,writing,arithmetic,and interpersonal skills
C) has basic reading and writing skills but may not have adequate arithmetic skills
D) Generally HR managers make no assumptions regarding HS graduations.

Question 60

An organization placed an online advertisement that received 1,000 hits.From that posting,the company received 100 applicants and hired 12.What is the selection ratio?

A) 100/1
B) 1000/100
C) 12/100
D) 100/12

Question 61

A construct is _____________.

A) a technical term for any job related criteria
B) a trait that is not typically observable
C) any observable trait
D) a criteria associated with management employees

Question 62

Identify three things upon which the choice of an employee selection test will be based.

Question 63

The use of polygraphs in employment situations is permitted by ________________.

A) government agencies
B) certain contractors of the DOD and DOE
C) business involving controlled substances
D) All of the above are correct.

Question 64

Describe how the Rorschach Inkblot Test is used in selection.

Question 65

Most good-faith drug testing programs will be legally acceptable if the organization has taken four steps.What are they?

Question 66

The extent to which a selection technique can accurately predict one or more important elements of job behavior is referred to as __________________.

A) selection validity
B) criterion-related validity
C) construct-related validity
D) predictor validity

Question 67

Identify three things that an application blank should not force applicants to reveal about themselves.

Question 68

When is it acceptable to use a physical examination to screen out unqualified applicants?

Question 69

____ items are based on an assumption that these prior behaviors and experiences will be strongly related to an applicant's future behavior.

A) BBI
B) BIB
C) BDI
D) DBI

Question 70

The types of criterion-related validity include __________.

A) predictive
B) concurrent
C) construct
D) Both A and B are correct.

Question 71

A _____ usually contains many more items than a typical application blank and asks for information related to a much wider array of attitudes and experiences.

A) BBI
B) BIB
C) BDI
D) DBI

Question 72

____________ refers to the degree to which using a selection system improves the quality of the individuals being selected by the organization.

A) Yield
B) Return
C) Utility
D) Gain

Question 73

A(n)________ is a mechanism that attempts to measure certain characteristics of individuals.

A) employment test
B) CE test
C) concurrent test
D) Both A and B are correct.

Question 74

Employment interviews vary along at least two important dimensions,the first being how structured the interview is.What is the second dimension?

Question 75

How is alternative-form reliability determined?

Question 76

The Rorschach Test is a(n)__________ test.

A) work sample
B) honesty
C) projective
D) reflective

Question 77

At the present time,the legal status surrounding reference-checking and providing recommendations ____________.

A) is well established through case law
B) has been defined in the Uniform Selection Standards Act
C) is typically interpreted on a case by case basis by the EOC
D) is just not clear at all.

Question 78

Identify four things that should be included in a written job offer.

Question 79

The reliability of drug tests is a major concern for at least two reasons.What are they?

Question 80

Define self-efficacy.