Top Five Myths About Psychometrics, Busted!

Psychometric tests are a novel approach to hiring that has been acknowledged by several recruiters worldwide. Psychometric tests have taken the online recruitment forum by storm for some time now. However, there is still some confusion among recruiters regarding psychometric tests. Psychometric tests have become a standardized and scientific method which has been embraced by recruiters to measure an individual’s mental and emotional capabilities and behavioural style as well. These tests are designed to quantify a candidate’s suitability based on the specific role required focusing on the personality characteristics and emotional stability of the candidate. But with the great success that these assessments have garnered, many doubts have been raised about the same. With the vast amount of information floating all over the internet, recruiters may tend to get confused. Fret not. This is a list of top five misconceptions surrounding psychometrics, and we’re here to clear the air.

Types of Psychometric Tests: Used In Recruitment

Big 5 test

RIASEC test

Elaborative Personality Profile

Managerial Personality test

Coming to the myths, here are a few busted for you!

MYTH 1: TOO EXPENSIVE

It is a common myth that conducting psychometric tests can burn a hole in the company’s wallet. Although it is true that conducting these tests do require an added investment, this is nullified by the excellent returns from this expense. Psychometric assessments help in making the right recruitment decisions, ensuring proper integration of candidates into the company. Investing a little money to capture appropriate candidates is worth it. Furthermore ongoing costs of psychometrics assessments are very low and hidden cost are almost absent. The cost of recruiting the wrong candidate is far more pricey than conducting psychometric assessments. It is better to invest in acquiring high-quality candidates for the job by investing in psychometric tests rather than breaking your head later.

MYTH 2: UNRELIABLE

Recruiters are always questioning the credibility and feasibility of psychometric assessments. However, these tests provide unbiased and hidden information about candidates that can really aid recruiters in their hiring endeavours. Most personality tests are outcomes of detailed psychological theories giving them scientific backing. Intensive tools are used to ensure removal of any test biases that may exist. This is much more effective than trying to remove the cognitive biases that govern our judgment of others. These psychometric tests are not just some fun questions to collect information about a person. They are carefully created by top psychologists who have done years of research in identifying a person’s cognitive abilities which are crucial for a job role. Some of the psychometric tests are created especially to suit the needs of recruiters who want to test candidates for certain qualities and attitudes which are important for the job role.

MYTH 3: TIME-CONSUMING

Psychometric assessments can vary from a few minutes to a few hours all depending on the candidate’s capacity. Nowadays online psychometrics help in shortlisting candidates and evaluation of results at lightning speed thereby saving lots of time in the recruiting process. Many tests do not contain pages and pages of questions. Instead, they contain stimulus based response questions which the candidates can answer quickly. The flexibility of psychometric assessments makes it so that they can be placed at any point in the recruitment process. By placing them before the interview round, recruiters can make speedy hiring decisions from among a select few candidates only.

MYTH 4: MALPRACTICE AND CHEATING IS EASY

Sometimes candidates may tailor their answers so that they may be portrayed as perfect for the position. On personality tests, they may describe themselves in an exaggerated positive light. However online psychometric assessments are well equipped with comprehensive tools to see through the answering patterns of candidates. Relevant plagiarism tools have been integrated to ensure no malpractice takes place. Randomizing the questions further aids this process and keeps a strict check on cheating. The questions can also be created in a way where the person taking the test will not be able to tailor their answers to get better results.