attribute-based pre-employment testing

MrCreosote

I am looking for information regarding "attribute-based pre-employment testing." I think it's the kind of psychological test that uses multiple choice questions to determine if someone has the right traits or personality for a position. In our case it's sales positions. For example,

I prefer to talk to people
a) in person.
b) by phone.
c) through bulletproof glass with a little phone.
d) I never talk to people under any circumstances.

In my opinion, our time would be far better spent with good behavioral interview questions and follow-up, but this is being forced on us. Can anyone point me toward resources, regarding either testing methodologies or legal aspects, that I can use to make a case against these tests? Or if you use such tests and like them, please let me know what the positive aspects are.

Parabeagle

We have just begun to use pre-employment testing that is designed to gauge attitudes toward substance abuse, work ethic, integrity, etc. The main benefit I have found so far is that it performs two functions for me: First, I can do an immediate screening by sending the applicant an e-mail inviting them to take the test (which is done on-line). They have 30 days to do so. If they don't test, it obviously means they're either not interested or can't complete a simple task and I don't want to talk to them anyway. If they do not have access to an on-line computer, they can find one in any of our local libraries, Internet cafes, etc. Second benefit is that the tests streamline the interview process by unearthing in advance some of the information that I normally would have had to ask for myself, e.g., "Johnny sees no problem taking a drug test for illegal drugs if it is company policy." "Johnny has been late to work 1 to 3 times in the past year." Feedback I'm getting from our candidates is that the assessment is very user-friendly and easy to take.

Jury's still out until I have a bigger sample of tested versus non-tested employees to look at, but at the moment I like it.

Gillian

There are some old threads on the topic of testing and you should review them. Testing is a problematic area and tests which try to make a logical switch from attributes to performance are especially so. You should research the Uniform Guidelines on Selection Procedures which speak extensively to job analysis and test validation. The bottom line to this issue is that if a selection process has an adverse impact on a protected class and a charge of discrimination is filed, the employer may be asked to provide evidence that the test has validity - that the test is a true indicator of performance on the job. As made clear in the Guidelines, statements of validity by the vendor carry no weight - it is that the test truly predicts outcomes for your employee group.

MrCreosote

Thanks Gillian,
There is a very informative thread in the archive titled Personality Testing. Any new thoughts from anyone, of coure, would be appreciated.