Ψlogical
Testing

Chapter 8
Interviewing Techniques

House keeping 🧹🗑

  • First exam 3/6 (Thurs)
    • In class, but administered via Canvas (Ch 1 \(\rightarrow\) 8)
  • Project:
    • final revision
    • item writing
      • minimum of 5

🔭🌠ASTEROID YR4 PANIC METER!!!🌌💥

Interviewing!!!

Interview as a test

aka an agenda-driven social exchange between strangers

  • reliability??? ✅
  • validity??? ✅
  • construct standing estimate??? ✅

Interview contexts

Very pervasive…

  • job selection
  • clinical psychiatry
  • general medicine & nursing
  • counseling
  • financial advising

Interview Type:

…structured versus unstructured

  • standardization provides structure
    • content & process
  • difference a matter of degrees
    • not qualitatively different
  • most interviews have mix of both structured and unstructured elements

“Unique” aspects

Interpersonal dynamics at play…

  • reinforcement
  • attraction
  • persuasion
    • mirroring
  • social facilitation1
  • “back–and–forth”

Principles of effective interviewing

  • proper attitude
    • warm💖
    • honest😇
    • fair👨‍⚖
  • avoid evaluative language
  • ask open-ended questions

“Understanding” statements

  1. open-ended question
  2. “understanding” statements
    • capture feeling & meaning
    • keep interview moving

Warning

These also require training and experience – interjecting how the interviewee feels could also result in experimenter effects

Measuring “understanding”

  • 5–point scoring system
  • Ranges from 🥴 to 😔
  • Levels 1 and 2 not appropriate for interviewing

Note

…the construct confusion here – not sure whether to refer to this as understanding or empathy (p. 215)

Activity!!

  1. 5 life problems
  2. Taboo words for interviewee
  3. 5 levels of interviewer “understanding” interviewee response (number of words)
  4. 5 EC points (if identify problem in 2 minutes)

Sources of Error

  • first impressions
    • primacy effect
    • anchoring effect
  • halo effect
    • positive overall glow from few impressions

Note

…also all of the previously covered administrator effects – recommended solution to all is greater structure

Reliability

  • tends to be poor for unstructured interviews
  • best explanation for low validities
  • scoring rubric one key feature of structured interviews
    • greater agreement

With interviews, the greater the standardization, the more…

  • structure
  • stability
  • sustainability
  • substence

The tendency to form a final evaluation that is very close to your initial is…

  • anchor effect
  • primacy effect
  • halo effect
  • recency effect

The tendency to assume your friend is “good at everything” because they are great at sports is…

  • primacy effect
  • halo effect
  • recency effect
  • anchoring effect

The best type of interview question is…

  • open ended
  • closed ended
  • leading
  • interesting

To minimize error in the interview,…

  • build more structure
  • allow for greater time
  • record the interaction
  • dress appropriately

References

Triplett, N. (1898). The dymogenic factors in pacemaking and competition. American Journal of Psychology, 9, 507–533.