Question 1

Which of the following is NOT one of the three primary goals of recruitment?

Accepted Answer

The three primary goals of recruitment are to increase the diversity, quality, and quantity of the applicant pool. Increasing the geographic make-up of the applicant pool is not typically listed as one of the primary goals of recruitment.

Question 2

The _____ method is used to set cut-off scores using a panel of SMEs.

Accepted Answer

The Angoff method involves a panel of subject matter experts (SMEs) estimating the probability that a minimally competent candidate would answer each test question correctly. These estimates are then averaged to determine the cut-off score for passing the exam. This method is commonly used in credentialing and licensure exams.

Question 3

Accumulated evidence indicates that, around the world, applicants generally react more positively to ______.

Accepted Answer

Work samples have been found to be a more effective hiring tool than personality tests, graphology, and even some types of integrity tests. Work samples provide a direct demonstration of a candidate's job-related skills and abilities, which can be more informative and accurate than self-reported personality traits or characteristics. Additionally, work samples may also help to mitigate biases in the hiring process, such as those related to ethnicity or gender.

Question 4

One option for improving applicant reactions is to ______.

Accepted Answer

Explaining the selection procedures to applicants can increase their understanding and transparency in the hiring process, ultimately improving their reactions to the organization. While using methods that applicants like and using integrity tests may also be beneficial, they aren't as universally applicable as explaining selection procedures.

Question 5

A recent study (Harold et al., 2016) showed that applicants' perceptions of how fairly they were treated can affect ______.

Accepted Answer

The study found that applicants who perceived fair treatment during the recruitment process were more likely to accept a job offer, while those who perceived unfair treatment were less likely to accept a job offer.

Question 6

When a test's criterion-related validity is very high, there will be virtually zero ______ and ______.

Accepted Answer

Criterion-related validity refers to how well a test predicts outcomes or correlates with other measures. High criterion-related validity would mean the test accurately predicts who will do well or poorly, thus minimizing both false negatives (incorrectly predicting failure) and false positives (incorrectly predicting success).

Question 7

To fill open sales positions, a company chooses from an applicant pool of 300 applicants. 60 applicants were hired into the position. What is the selection ratio?

Accepted Answer

The selection ratio is calculated by dividing the number of hires by the number of applicants, which is 60/300 = 0.20.

Question 8

The selection ratio is ____.

Accepted Answer

The selection ratio is the number of applicants hired versus the number who applied for the job, indicating the competitiveness or selectiveness of the hiring process.

Question 9

To fill open sales positions, a company from an applicant pool of 300 applicants. In the applicant pool, there was a total of 100 Black applicants and 200 White applicants. Of those selected for the positions, 35 were Black and 70 were White. In this case, there would be _____.

Accepted Answer

There would be zero adverse impact against either group because the selection rate for Black applicants (35/100) is the same as the selection rate for White applicants (70/200). Therefore, both groups are being selected at the same rate and there is no adverse impact.

Question 10

In the U.S., executive orders govern the employment practices of _____.

Accepted Answer

Executive orders only apply to federal contractors, meaning companies that do business with the federal government. Private companies and state contractors are not directly governed by executive orders, although some state governments may choose to adopt similar policies. All organizations, including federal contractors, must also comply with other federal laws such as anti-discrimination and minimum wage laws.

Question 11

Company X uses a test to select employees. The proportion of Black candidates who pass the test, however, is unusually small in comparison to the proportion of White candidates who pass the test. This situation appears to be an example of:

Accepted Answer

Adverse impact occurs when a seemingly neutral employment practice results in a disproportionate impact on a protected group, such as racial minorities. In this scenario, the lower proportion of Black candidates passing the test suggests that the test may be having a disparate impact on this group, even though the test itself may not be intentionally discriminatory.

Question 12

The goal of __________ is to provide an organization with a large, diverse pool of qualified potential job candidates.

Accepted Answer

Recruitment is the process of attracting a pool of qualified potential candidates for a job opening. Its goal is to create a large, diverse pool of candidates to choose from when selecting the best fit for the job. Job analysis is the process of defining the duties and responsibilities of a position, while job design refers to how those duties and responsibilities are organized and structured. Selection is the process of evaluating and choosing the best candidate from the pool of qualified applicants.

Question 13

Content validity ___________.

Accepted Answer

Content validity refers to the extent to which a measure assesses the specific content or domain it is intended to measure. This is typically established through expert judgment, such as having professionals in the field review the measure and determine if it adequately covers the content it is intended to assess. Option B refers to criterion-related validity, while option C refers to construct validity. Option D refers to internal consistency reliability, which is related but distinct from content validity.

Question 14

Carmen develops a structured interview to be used for hiring baristas. Throughout the process, she gets input from SMEs and asks them to review the interview questions and scoring key. In this case, Carmen is using a _____.

Accepted Answer

Carmen is using a content validity approach, which involves gathering input from subject matter experts to ensure that the interview questions are relevant and measure the necessary knowledge, skills, and abilities for the job.

Question 15

As an HRM consultant, you have been asked to determine whether there is evidence of disparate (adverse) impact based on a company's selection data. The prior year's selection data indicate that of the 100 male applicants who applied, 80 were selected; comparatively, of the 10 female applicants who applied, 6 were selected. Based on these data ____.

Accepted Answer

The selection rate for men is 80% (80 out of 100 selected), whereas the selection rate for women is only 60% (6 out of 10 selected). This means that women were less likely to be selected than men, indicating that there is adverse impact against women.

Question 16

A selection test can be said to have _____ validity if the test items represent a comprehensive sampling of the job.

Accepted Answer

Content validity is the degree to which the content of a test represents a comprehensive sampling of the job or domain it is supposed to measure. Therefore, a selection test can be said to have content validity if its items are relevant and representative of the knowledge, skills, and abilities required to perform the job. Choice A (construct validity) refers to the degree to which a test measures the theoretical construct or trait it is designed to assess. Choice B (concurrent validity) refers to the degree to which test scores correlate with other measures taken at the same time. Choice C (convergent validity) refers to the degree to which test scores correlate with measures of similar constructs.

Question 17

When completing a test as part of a selection battery, Juan can tell that one of the tests is definitely designed to assess his integrity. To Juan, this makes sense given that the job involves regularly handling large sums of money. For Juan, this test demonstrates high ______.

Accepted Answer

Face validity refers to how well a test appears to measure what it is intended to measure. In this case, Juan can tell that the test is designed to assess his integrity, which makes sense given the job requirements, indicating high face validity. The other types of validity (concurrent, criterion-related, and construct) are not as relevant to the situation described.

Question 18

A coffee chain is assessing the validity of its test used to hire baristas. It gives the test to 200 baristas in the company and finds that the test is significantly correlated with the baristas' job performance. This is an example of _____ validation.

Accepted Answer

Concurrent validation involves assessing the test's validity by comparing it with the current job performance of employees. Since the coffee chain is comparing the test results with the job performance of its current baristas, this is an example of concurrent validation.

Question 19

A department store is assessing the validity of its test used to hire salespeople. It gives the test to 200 job applicants applying for sales jobs. It hires 100 of these applicants. It then finds that the test is significantly correlated with the employees' job performance 6 months later. This is an example of _____ validation.

Accepted Answer

This is an example of predictive validation because the test scores were used to predict job performance 6 months later. Concurrent validation would involve administering the test to current employees and correlating scores with their job performance at the same time, content validation would involve assessing whether the test measures the relevant knowledge and skills needed for the job, and construct validation would involve examining whether the test measures the underlying constructs or traits that are relevant for the job.

Question 20

The ____ approach assumes that tests will need to be re-validated when used in different contexts, while the ____ approach assumes that the validity of tests holds up across different contexts.

Accepted Answer

The first part of the statement describes the situational specificity approach, which assumes that the validity of tests is specific to the context in which they are used and may need to be validated again if used in a different context. The second part of the statement describes the validity generalization approach, which assumes that the validity of tests holds up across different contexts. Therefore, the correct answer is D.

Quiz 7: Personnel Selection