Developing our skills (2)
Featured in the Recruiting and Keeping the Right People training manual
By Susan Iacovou
Category: Recruitment, Selection and Induction
Credit price: 4 download credits (Single user)
Whatever angle you look at it from, psychological testing is the ‘in thing’ at the moment. Personnel managers, line managers and recruitment consultants are increasingly looking to psychological testing of candidates to give them added confidence in their selection decisions. The number of tests available has grown rapidly over the last decade, and competition amongst test providers has resulted in wildly exaggerated claims as to what these tests can do. This training activity looks at psychological testing in recruitment, and offers help to recruiters trying to follow good testing practice by giving them clear guidelines on how to assess the multitude of available tests and many test providers. In particular, it highlights the need to use psychological tests ethically – by defining a testing policy, selecting tests carefully, and ensuring that the tester in properly trained.
You introduce the training activity by describing what psychological tests are, and explaining that they can add to the objectivity of the selection process. You then stress to participants the need to use tests carefully – by defining a testing policy for the organisation, selecting the tests carefully, and ensuring that testers are properly trained to administer and interpret the tests. Start the session by going through a list of the key issues which must be considered before testing can be carried out. You then split participants into two groups to carry out an exercise to look at the questions that should be asked when defining an organisational testing policy. When they have fed back their conclusions, you then take them through seven key points which should be addressed by any organisational testing policy. Next, you explain to participants how to select the right tests – that is, tests which are reliable, valid and fair – before leading a discussion on what to look for from any bodies you might use to provide training for your testers. Finally, you conclude the training activity by reviewing the main learning points it has covered.
Who is it for: This training resource is intended for use by trainers to enable participants to consider the conditions under which tests can be used, how to define an organisational policy on testing and the importance of training testers.
| Resource Type: | Activity |
| Min Group Size: | 4 |
| Max Group Size: | 20 |
| Typical Duration: | 01:35:00 |
| No of Pages: | 21 |
Resources: View standard resources for Fenman training activities
Purpose: This training resource is intended for use by trainers as a basic introduction to psychological testing. (This training resource is not a substitute for more in-depth, ‘proper’ training on the administration, marking, and evaluation of particular tests.)
Download the training activity, Developing our skills (2) as featured in the Fenman training manual; Recruiting and Keeping the Right People