ARE WE GETTING FOOLED AGAIN? COMING TO TERMS WITH LIMITATIONS IN THE USE OF PERSONALITY TESTS FOR PERSONNEL SELECTION

We recently published an article in which we highlighted a number of issues associated with the use of self-report personality tests in personnel selection contexts ( Morgeson et al., 2007 ). Both Ones, Dilchert, Viswesvaran, and Judge (2007) and Tett and Christiansen (2007) have written responses to this article. In our response to these articles we address many of the issues raised by Ones et al. and Tett and Christiansen. In addition to a detailed response, we make the following 4 key points: (1) Our criticisms of personality testing apply only to the selection context, not to all research on personality; (2) the observed validities of personality tests predicting job performance criteria are low and have not changed much over time; (3) when evaluating the usefulness of using personality tests to select applicants, one must not ignore the observed, uncorrected validity; and (4) when discussing the value of personality tests for selection contexts, the most important criteria are those that reflect job performance. Implications for personality testing research and practice are discussed.     

Cognitive Style,Creativity Framing and Effects

This study investigates how individuals with different cognitive styles respond to choices involving framing effects. The results suggest that cognitive style as defined by Kirton (1976) is far more complex than previous studies indicate. Kirton characterises “Innovators” as rule breakers and “Adaptors” as conformists. The most important finding of this study is that in some decision contexts, Innovators and Adaptors exhibit similar preferences for rule breaking. In other situations, Adaptors actually prefer non‐conformity in comparison to Innovators. The study analysed responses from 146 university students and professional managers to 25 binary choices involving investment decisions, job choices and travel routes. The questions were constructed to reveal significant reversals of preference related to risk and attribute based framing effects. Additionally, some questions were constructed to reveal preferences for certain operational aspects of creativity. Overall, the results suggest that framing effects may provide an important tool for unlocking individual creativity in organisations, as long as cognitive style and context are carefully taken into account.