Comparison of the factors influencing interviewer hiring decisions for applicants with and those without disabilities

Two studies present an examination of the factors that influence hiring decisions for applicants with, and those without, disabilities in the employment interview. In Study 1, an integrative conceptual model of interviewer hiring decisions was proposed and tested in a field sample of applicants with disabilities. Interviewers provided ratings for 70 unstructured interviews with disabled applicants. Study 2 examined the fit of the model in an independent field sample of interviews with fully-able applicants (n=165). Results supported the model among both groups of applicants. Implications and recommendations for future research are discussed.This paper has been improved greatly through the suggestions of John Binning, Michael Campion, Robert L. Dipboye, Miles Patterson, and Mark Tubbs, and Lisa Brady and Jennifer Malatesta. Study 1 was partially funded by a grant from the U.S. Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services to the Wright State University Office of Disability Services (Theodore L. Hayes, co-Principal Investigator).     

Two for the Price of One: Assessment Center Training to Focus on Behaviors Can Transfer to Performance Appraisals

The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether the training and experience of assessors to record behaviors as part of an actual organizational assessment center (AC) would transfer to another context: performance appraisals. Specifically, we examined the effects of transfer of training on managers' behavioral specificity in comments on performance evaluations. Performance appraisal comments from managers who had received training and participated as an assessor and from managers who had not were compared. Analyses revealed significant differences between managers who were trained as assessors compared with managers who were not, suggesting transfer of training effects. Results provide the first empirical evidence for an added benefit of AC assessor participation and training.     

Effects of Applicant Pregnancy on Hiring Decisions and Interview Ratings

The effects of pregnancy on hiring decisions during employment interviews are examined in a United States sample of 210 undergraduate business school students at a Midwestern university. A pregnant applicant was compared to a non-pregnant applicant with identical credentials and interview performance to explore any differences in interviewer ratings of qualifications and hiring by having participants view videotaped interviews. Results show that in spite of being viewed as equally qualified and well-suited for the job, the pregnant applicant received significantly lower hiring recommendation ratings. The pregnant applicant was also rated as more likely to need time off, miss work and quit compared to the non-pregnant applicant, indicating a concern about absenteeism regarding the pregnant applicant.     

Note-taking in the employment interview: effects on recall and judgments

Although note-taking in the employment interview is highly recommended, little research has examined its effects. This study investigated the effects of note-taking styles, review of the notes, and content of the notes on participants' cued recall of information and decisions made from videotaped employment interviews. Note-taking increased recall accuracy but not judgment accuracy. Being able to review notes resulted in increased judgment accuracy for those taking conventional-style notes. The content of the notes also had important implications for conventional note-takers, suggesting some benefits of recording notes using the key-points style. The findings suggest that the act of note-taking may be more important for memory and legal reasons than for improving the decisions made by interviewers.     

Managers' Reactions to Utility Analysis and Perceptions of What Influences Their Decisions

Recent research on providing utility analysis (UA) information has shown small positive effects on acceptance of selection tests by human resource decision-makers (Carson, Becker, & Henderson, Journal of Applied Psychology, 83 84–96 (1998). In the present study, 218 managers provided reactions to UA information. Not only do our findings replicate the positive effects of UA, we found managers also responded favorably to UA information when asked independently of the decision making process. Specifically, when asked to rank order information in terms of what they perceived to be most influential in helping them make their final decisions, those who received UA information ranked it among the highest.     

Communicating the utility of human resource activities: A survey of I/O and HR professionals

A national survey of industrial/organizational (I/O) psychologists and other human resource (HR) specialists was conducted to examine experiences with and attitudes about utility estimates. Forty-six percent of respondents who had presented a HR activity to management (N = 192) reported using utility estimates. Results suggest that utility estimation in dollars provides but one of several means of expressing value. Areas for researchers to explore that may aid in the use of utility analysis by I/O and HR professionals are presented.Therese Hoff Macan is affiliated with Department of Psychology, University of Missouri-St. Louis, 8001 Natural Bridge Road, St. Louis, MO 63121-4499.Scott Highhouse is affiliated with Department of Psychology, Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis, Krannert Building 54, 1125 East 38th Street, Indianapolis, IN 46205-2810.Authors contributed equally. The helpful comments of James A. Breaugh, Lee Friedman, theodore L. Hayes, and Mark E. Tubbs on an earlier version of this article are greatly appreciated. The authors also thank Laura L. Heft for entering the survey data.     

The Effects of the Application on Processing of Information From the Employment Interview.1

Subjects observed and evaluated employment interviews after forming initial impressions of the applicants' paper credentials. Contrary to expectations, differential recognition of interview content was not found to mediate the effects of the application on perceptions of the interview. Instead, interviewers showed a biased interpretation of the interview performance. Applicants were perceived as doing a better job in answering the questions of the interviewer, displaying more sales-consistent traits, and making more favorable statements the more favorable their paper credentials. Note taking led to more accurate recognition of information from the interview but did not attenuate the biasing effects of the application.