Psychometric Tests and Assessment Centres

Support for the evaluation of the non-technical make up of a candidate is very commonly sought by carrying out some form of psychometric tests on the candidates. Psychometric tests are designed to assess either ability (cognitive tests) or personality characteristics and there are three basic types ones to assess a specific ability, e.g. numeracy, verbal and spatial perception ones to test general mental ability, e.g. an- 

Whilst it is relatively easy to carry out, the correlation between the test results obtained on a candidate and the actual performance on the job, known as predictive validity, is variable and depends on what characteristics are being looked at in the test. The correlation coefficient for cognitive tests has been assessed as 0.35 and for personality tests as low as 0.15 [A-4], However, when such tests are well done and analysed by a suitably qualified person they are very useful in checking or supporting the conclusions of the interviewing team, particularly where there is a divergence of opinion, but they should never be used as the sole basis for selecting a candidate. 

Because no single test is sufficient in its own right for making a judgment on a particular candidate it is better to use a combination of different techniques. This combination of techniques is known as an Assessment Centre. 

An assessment centre is not a physical place but is a suite of exercises designed to assess a set of personal characteristics. Their use dates back to the Second World War when the British War Office developed them to select people with officer potential from within the ranks. Nowadays they are used quite commonly in medium to large size companies not only for job selection, specifically graduate selection or managerial appointments, but also increasingly in internal promotion and development of staff for managerial careers, when they are more often called development centres [AS]. 

---