A New Low: Cheating on a Personality Test

The Wall Street Journal ran a story that finds even the jaded Barometer shaking its head.  Many employers, lured in by consultants, have their job applicants take personality tests.  The tough questions on this test?  “You have to give up on some things that you start.” “You would like a job that is quiet and predictable.” and “Any trouble you have is your own fault.” The answers?  “Strongly agree,” “Agree,”  “Disagree,” and “Strongly Disagree.”  The test and the retailers’ preferred answers made their way onto the internet where job applicants studied them so that they could perform well on the “test.”

The companies should be ashamed for using such a silly screen.  And when you impose silly rules and requirements on employees (or potential employees), they cheat.  The applicants should be ashamed for not knowing enough to understand that the stores were looking for shopping channel personnel:  go, go, go, sell, sell, sell, up with America etc. Did the retailers ever think that perhaps those who tend to be thoughtful and would fail the silly test might just be what they need in an employee?  The Barometer has an idea for a screening test.Pose a few ethical questions to the youths applying to be clerks.  Ask them if they ever took anything from a store and then what they did with it.  Ask them if they have ever lied to a friend to avoid doing something with or for them.  Ask them if they have ever faced an ethical dilemma and how they resolved it.  Ask them if they have ever downloaded a copyrighted song without paying.  Ask them if they gave back the change if a clerk gave them too much.  Then, sit back and watch the personality unfold. 

Never judge a book by its cover or an applicant by a personality test.  If you want thoughtful employees, delve into their thoughts.  “Strongly agree” answers and a green score on a test that is posted on the internet may not get you the insight you need. But you will get the employees you deserve.

About mmjdiary

Professor Marianne Jennings is an emeritus professor of legal and ethical studies from the W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University, retiring in 2011 after 35 years of teaching undergraduate and graduate courses in ethics and the legal environment of business. During her tenure at ASU, she served as director of the Joan and David Lincoln Center for Applied Ethics from 1995-1999. In 2006, she was appointed faculty director for the W.P. Carey Executive MBA Program. She has done consulting work for businesses and professional groups including AICPA, Boeing, Dial Corporation, Edward Jones, Mattel, Motorola, CFA Institute, Southern California Edison, the Institute of Internal Auditors, AIMR, DuPont, AES, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Motorola, Hy-Vee Foods, IBM, Bell Helicopter, Amgen, Raytheon, and VIAD. The sixth edition of her textbook, Case Studies in Business Ethics, was published in February 2011. The ninth edition of her textbook, Business: lts Legal, Ethical and Global Environment was published in January 2011. The 23rd edition of her book, Business Law: Principles and Cases, will be published in January 2013. The tenth edition of her book, Real Estate Law, will also be published in January 2013. Her book, A Business Tale: A Story of Ethics, Choices, Success, and a Very Large Rabbit, a fable about business ethics, was chosen by Library Journal in 2004 as its business book of the year. A Business Tale was also a finalist for two other literary awards for 2004. In 2000 her book on corporate governance was published by the New York Times MBA Pocket Series. Her book on long-term success, Building a Business Through Good Times and Bad: Lessons from Fifteen Companies, Each With a Century of Dividends, was published in October 2002 and has been used by Booz, Allen, Hamilton for its work on business longevity. Her latest book, The Seven Signs of Ethical Collapse was published by St. Martin’s Press in July 2006 and has been a finalist for two book awards. Her weekly columns are syndicated around the country, and her work has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, the Chicago Tribune, the New York Times, Washington Post, and the Reader's Digest. A collection of her essays, Nobody Fixes Real Carrot Sticks Anymore, first published in 1994 is still being published. She has been a commentator on business issues on All Things Considered for National Public Radio. She has served on four boards of directors, including Arizona Public Service (1987-2000), Zealous Capital Corporation, and the Center for Children with Chronic Illness and Disability at the University of Minnesota. She was appointed to the board of advisors for the Institute of Nuclear Power Operators in 2004 and served on the board of trustees for Think Arizona, a public policy think tank. She has appeared on CNBC, CBS This Morning, the Today Show, and CBS Evening News. In 2010 she was named one of the Top 100 Thought Leaders in Business Ethics by Trust Across America. Her books have been translated into four different languages. She received the British Emerald award for authoring one of their top 50 articles in management publications, chosen from over 15,000 articles. Personal: Married since 1976 to Terry H. Jennings, Maricopa County Attorney’s Office Deputy County Attorney; five children: Sarah, Sam, and John, and the late Claire and Hannah Jennings.
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