Deck 14: Integrity Testing, drug Testing, and Graphology

Question 1

Physical activity during a polygraph (lie detector)examination (such as tensing muscles or biting the tongue)can affect the interpretation of the readings.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Research has shown that the "typical" employee-thief seldom thinks about theft-related activities.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

From an employer's perspective,individuals identified as false negatives resulting from the administration of a polygraph (lie detector)test are more costly than individuals identified as false positives.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

Reactions besides guilt can trigger an emotional response in a polygraph examinee.

Question 5

A personality-based measure of integrity directly asks for information about attitudes toward theft and the occurrence of previous theft behaviors.

Question 6

Paper-and-pencil tests have been developed to accomplish the same objectives as polygraph examinations.

Question 7

Most polygraph examiners make an overall judgment of lying based solely on the polygraph information.

Question 8

Current employees can be given a polygraph (lie detector)test in conjunction with a workplace theft investigation if the employer has a "reasonable suspicion" that the employee was involved in the incident.

Question 9

Unless a polygraph test has perfect validity,a large number of false positive identifications can occur when the device is used to test for a behavior that has a low incidence in the general population.

Question 10

Research has shown that the "typical" employee-thief would punish thieves less.

Question 11

The assumption underlying polygraph (or lie detector tests)is that lying can be detected by the specialist through the detection of changes in the subject's voice modulation pattern.

Question 12

The use of polygraph (or lie detector tests)for most employment situations was made illegal by the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Question 13

The major drawback of using the polygraph in employment is the frequency of false negatives.

Question 14

Research has shown that the "typical" employee-thief attributes more theft to others.

Question 15

Research has shown that the "typical" employee-thief does not show inner-thief loyalty.

Question 16

Research has shown that the "typical" employee-thief is more tempted to steal.

Question 17

Examinees with high lability are more likely to have physiological reactions that may be interpreted as lying behavior than are respondents with low lability.

Question 18

Research has shown that the "typical" employee-thief is not more vulnerable to peer pressure to steal than is an honest employee.

Question 19

Research has shown that the "typical" employee-thief does not engage in many of the common rationalizations for theft.

Question 20

An overt integrity test does not ask about theft behaviors directly.

Question 21

An advantage of integrity tests is that applicants are unable to fake their responses.

Question 22

Most selection tests have the same social implications as integrity tests.

Question 23

Pre-employment overt-type tests in which applicants indicate their use of legal and illegal drugs are the simplest but most controversial drug tests.

Question 24

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)has specifically commented that integrity tests,even personality based ones,should not be considered a medical examination because such tests only assess the propensity for dishonest behavior.

Question 25

The most used drug test is the urine test.

Question 26

Overt integrity tests correlate more highly with honesty attitudes than personality tests.

Question 27

All drug tests that assess urine are based upon the assumption that what enters the body through ingestion,injection,or inhalation,remains in the system for several weeks.

Question 28

It is more appropriate to think of integrity tests as measuring counterproductive work behaviors rather than just predictors of theft.

Question 29

Only those applicants who possess a satisfactory level of KSAs necessary for the job should be given an integrity test.

Question 30

The relationship between integrity measures and cognitive ability may depend on which factors of integrity are measured by a test.

Question 31

The Hogan Personality Inventory (HPI)is useful for predicting several undesirable behaviors that are costly to organizations.

Question 32

Evidence indicates that integrity tests are valid predictors of general counterproductive behaviors.

Question 33

Organizations have less risk in using drug tests for existing employees than for preemployment selection.

Question 34

Evidence indicates that integrity tests are valid predictors of theft.

Question 35

General-purpose drug tests are really just adaptations of personality inventories.

Question 36

With respect to drug testing,"use" and "impairment" refer to the same construct.

Question 37

All integrity tests show a great deal of similarity in what is being measured.

Question 38

Determining the validity of integrity tests is difficult because of the problems of measuring a criterion variable.

Question 39

Evidence indicates that integrity tests are valid predictors of overall job satisfaction.

Question 40

All selection tests have false positives.

Question 41

Drug tests should be kept confidential,especially from supervisors of existing employees,unless there is a defined need-to-know.

Question 42

Graphologists use techniques similar to projective personality assessment devices to infer personality characteristics.

Question 43

Scientific evidence supports the use of handwriting analysis for inferring personality traits.

Question 44

Self-reported statistics for drug use among employees probably underestimate the actual usage.

Question 45

Drug testing is an adequate substitute for more expensive programs,such as drug education,counseling,and assistance.

Question 46

What does a "false negative" refer to in a polygraph test?

A)the identification of an individual as telling the truth who, in fact, is lying
B)the identification of an individual as lying who, in fact, is not lying
C)an individual who cannot lie effectively
D)an individual who is not sure if they are lying

Question 47

What does a "false positive" refer to in a polygraph test?

A)the identification of an individual as telling the truth who, in fact, is lying
B)the identification of an individual as lying who, in fact, is not lying
C)an individual who cannot lie effectively
D)an individual who is not sure if they are lying

Question 48

The organization should obtain the written consent of the individual before testing and provide the individual with the results afterward.

Question 49

There are many studies assessing the validity of graphology,and they tend to support its use in human resource selection.

Question 50

The use of graphology in selection is increasing.

Question 51

It is advisable to use both screening and confirmatory drug tests so that the testing results will be highly valid.

Question 52

Theoretically,because of the growth rate of scalp hair,hair analysis can detect drug use over a longer past time period than can urine testing.

Question 53

The frequency of a false positive depends upon the validity of the test and

A)the reliability of the test
B)the number of people tested
C)the base rate of the lying behavior in the population
D)the selection ratio used on the applicant pool

Question 54

Graphology is the science of inferring personality characteristics from handwriting.

Question 55

Handwriting analysis has been in widespread use in the United States for the last three decades.

Question 56

More legal risk is associated with using drug tests to screen job applicants than using drug tests to screen job incumbents.

Question 57

When the examinee is lying during a polygraph (lie detector)examination,the polygraph examiner is looking for autonomic disturbances associated with answers to which type of questions?

A)indirect questions about specific incidents
B)emotional control questions
C)irrelevant, nonemotional questions
D)questions specifically about the behavior of interest

Question 58

Estimates of the amount of theft in American business are unverifiable,but a common opinion is that theft amounts to ____ percent of each sales dollar.

A)less than one
B)two to five
C)six to ten
D)over 10

Question 59

"Liability" refers to:

A)the threshold level necessary to identify drug presence in a hair analysis
B)the characteristic of urine samples that allows drugs to attach to cells at different speeds
C)the genetic structure that allows some people to pass polygraph tests even when they are lying
D)the autonomic arousal threshold that differs from individual to individual

Question 60

It is acceptable to exempt some employees from drug testing because it is obvious that they are not taking drugs.

Question 61

Which of the following is a paper-and-pencil honesty test that does not directly ask about theft behaviors?

A)a overt-purpose honesty test
B)a clear-outcome honesty test
C)a general-outcome honesty test
D)a personality-based honesty test

Question 62

All of the following are examples of overt integrity tests EXCEPT:

A)the Personnel Selection Inventory
B)the Reid Report
C)the Stanton Survey
D)the Farkman Bureau Project

Question 63

How could handwriting analysis be integrated into a selection program? What alternative measurement devices could be used for assessing the same construct(s)? What choices would you make as a selection manager?

Question 64

What business conditions/factors would influence you to consider the use of honesty tests? What alternative actions (other than honesty tests)might you consider to address the same business conditions/factors?

Question 65

Which of the following is NOT true about how employees and applicants react to drug testing?

A)They are more favorable when an advance warning of the testing program is given.
B)They are more favorable when the company uses rehabilitation rather than termination when the presence of drugs is detected.
C)They are more favorable when the testing adheres to fair detection procedures and explanation of results
D)They are more favorable to companies that have a drug testing program because it enhances perceived worker safety.

Question 66

Which of the following is not a legal argument advanced in opposition to drug testing?

A)Testing represents an invasion of privacy.
B)It constitutes an unreasonable search and seizure.
C)Testing is a violation of due process.
D)Drug tests yield significant false positive results.

Question 67

Which of the following employers would be exempt from the Employee Polygraph Protection Act of 1988?

A)A-1 Supermarket (a large grocery store experiencing inventory shrinkage)
B)Electro-Electronics (an electronic repair shop experiencing equipment theft)
C)Sam's Security (a family-owned security service for local businesses)
D)Brenda's Boutique (a manufacturer and distributor of gift items in a high crime neighborhood)

Question 68

If polygraph tests are of such questionable reliability and validity,why would federal legislation exempt certain classes of jobs/occupations from the prohibition?
a.Make a scientific argument.
b.Make a political argument.
c.Make a societal interest argument.

Question 69

All of the following are types of questions used in a polygraph examination EXCEPT:

A)irrelevant.
B)questions about the mental state of the examinee.
C)emotional control.
D)questions about the behavior of interest.

Question 70

Based upon current evidence,which of the following is an accurate conclusion about the use of honesty tests?

A)They consistently produce adverse impact leading to numerous unfair discrimination charges.
B)All apparent validity in the tests is due to methodological artifact.
C)Use of the tests results in a larger, more qualified applicant pool.
D)Integrity tests are useful in predicting several important job behaviors.

Question 71

The courts would be likely to consider any personality test that was designed to detect mental illness and that also is used to determine dishonesty as a:

A)medical examination.
B)valid predictor of job success.
C)right to privacy violation.
D)two-fer.

Question 72

Why was the use of polygraph (lie detector tests)in employment severely restricted by federal legislation?

A)too many people were being identified as false negatives
B)the base rate of lying in the population is high
C)too many people were being identified as false positives
D)it was shown to have adverse impact

Question 73

Using the handwriting analysis of Bob Gatewood (and his reactions to it)presented in your textbook,create a personality profile of the author.
a.How valid is your assessment? Why?
b.Can Bob Gatewood's students make a more valid assessment? Why/why not?
c.How would you change the profile of Bob Gatewood if you were in his class? Why?

Question 74

How could you assess the validity of an honesty test in a small organization?

Question 75

Which of the following can be determined from a positive result of a drug test?

A)how much of the drug was used
B)how frequently the drug was used
C)when the drug was used
D)presence of the drug above the threshold level

Question 76

Based on the Frone study of drug use in the U.S.,one can conclude that:

A)cocaine is the most widely used illegal drug.
B)drug usage is rampant in the U.S.workforce.
C)drug usage is not rampant in the U.S.workforce.
D)the U.S.is a nation of stoners.

Question 77

Describe the basic features of a "good" drug testing program.What would make it legally defensible,acceptable to employees,and effective for producing desired results?