Human Assets

At the end of a busy day at work, you accidentally send an e-mail containing an attachment with some confidential client information to the wrong person.
Which of the following would be the best thing to do?

1.  Leave the office for the day and deal with it tomorrow
2.  Forget what happened and send the e-mail to the correct person
3.  Immediately send another e-mail to the 'wrong' person explaining your mistake
4.  Explain to your manager what has happened and let them handle the issue

• They show less adverse impact against minorities compared to cognitive ability tests
• They use measures that directly assess job relevant behaviours
• They can be administered in bulk, either via pen and paper or on-line
• They are more acceptable and engaging to candidates compared to cognitive ability tests since scenarios are based on real incidents
• It is unlikely that practice will enhance candidate performance as the answers cannot be arrived at logically - a response to a situation may be appropriate in one organisation and inappropriate in another.
• They can tap into a variety of constructs - ranging from problem solving and decision making to interpersonal skills

SJTs are being used increasingly and for various purposes.  For example, they are often used as a sift tool for external applicants, as part of selection in an internal promotion process, and as a development tool by providing useful feedback on how the candidate’s responses compare to the ideal response.  However, there have been conflicting views as to whether SJTs add any more value than cognitive ability tests.


SJTs and Cognitive Ability

Michael McDaniel and his colleagues (2001) found a relatively strong relationship between SJTs and cognitive ability.  They also found that this relationship was dependent on how the test had been developed.  For example, if a job analysis had been used to develop a SJT, the relationship with cognitive ability was higher compared to when a job analysis had not been conducted.  Interestingly, these tests were also better predictors of job performance.  This finding would therefore unfortunately suggest that the more robust SJTs are more likely to be contaminated by cognitive ability i.e. rather than testing aspects of job knowledge, they are merely testing logical and deductive reasoning. 

If this is all SJTs measure, then organisations may well question the benefits of using SJTs over and above the use of cognitive ability tests.  However, Jeff Weekley and Casey Jones (1999) found that SJTs account for all the predictive validity of cognitive ability tests but that the reverse was not true.  An explanation of these findings is that SJTs do not measure a unique construct, as cognitive ability tests are designed to do, but are multidimensional tools that encompass several job-relevant skills and abilities.  SJTs therefore tap into other aspects of job knowledge requiring evidence of more than just cognitive ability.  This explains why Jeff Weekley and Casey Jones also found a strong relationship between SJTs and job experience e.g. experience in the industry, longest stay with any one employer, exposure to multiple employers.

Therefore, although evidence indicates that cognitive ability is related to all SJTs, organisations would not be wise to rely on an off-the-shelf cognitive ability test but, in preference, substitute it for a bespoke SJT since they add incrementally to the prediction of performance.
 

How can Human Assets help?

At Human Assets, we design bespoke SJTs to ensure your assessment relates directly job itself, presenting realistic scenarios to the candidate to accurately assess whether their knowledge and values match your organisation. 

We can conduct a thorough job analysis by reviewing the competencies, job description and values needed for the role.  We also have extensive experience conducting interviews with post-holders and their managers to identify 'critical incidents' that arise in the role.

Furthermore, we can evaluate the validity of the SJT design through trialling the SJT with senior staff and subject matter experts (ensuring that they all agree what the best answer is) and by statistically comparing successful candidates' SJT score with their future job performance.

If you would like to find out more please contact our consultants on +44 (0)20 7434 2122 or at enquiries@humanassets.co.uk

References

Creighton, P. & Scott, N. (2006).  An Introduction to Situational Judgement Inventories.  Selection and Development Review, 22, 3 - 6.

McDaniel, M.A, Morgeson, F.P., Finnegan, E.B., Campion, M.A. & Braverman, E.P. (2001).  Use of Situational Judgement Tests to Predict Job Performance: A Clarification of the Literature.  Journal of Applied Psychology, 86, 730 - 740