Interview

An interview is a procedure designed to obtain information

from a person through oral responses to oral inquiries; a
selection interview is a procedure designed to predict
future job performance on the basis of applicant’s oral
responses to oral inquiries.

TYPES OF INTERVIEWS
I. Structured versus unstructured interview
• In unstructured or nondirective interview- the manager
generally follows no set format. The lack of structure
allows the interviewer to ask follow-up questions and
pursue point of interest as they develop. This type of
interview can be described as little more than a general
conversation.
• In structured or directive interviews, the employer
specifies the questions ahead of time, and may also list
and rate possible answers for appropriateness.
Some experts restrict the term “structured interview” to
those interviews based on carefully selected job-oriented questions with
predetermined answers that interviewers ask of all applicants.

2. Interviews can also be classified according to content or types of

questions they contain.
• In a situational interview a series of job-related questions are asked
that focus on how the candidate would behave in a given situation.
• Behavioral interviews ask interviewees to describe how they reacted
to actual situations in the past.
• In a Job-related interview the interview, the interviewer tries to deduce
what the applicant’s on the-job performance will be based on his or her
answers to questions about relevant past experiences. The aim is to
draw conclusions about the candidate’s ability to handle the financial
aspects of the job to be filled.
• In a stress-related interview, the interviewer seeks to make the
applicant uncomfortable with occasionally rude questions. The aim is
supposedly to spot sensitive applicants and those with low stress
tolerance. The interviewer might first probe for weaknesses in the
applicant’s background, such as a job that the applicant left under
questionable circumstances. The interviewer then zeroes in on these
weaknesses, hoping to get the candidate to lose his or her composure.
Stress interviews help unearth hypersensitive applicants who might
overreact to mild criticism with anger and abuse.
3. interviews can be categorized according to the way they are
administered
Most interviews are one-on-one and sequential.
• In one-on-one interview, two people meet alone, and one interviews
the other by seeking oral responses to oral inquiries.
• In sequential or serial interview, several persons interview the
applicant, in sequence before a decision is made. In such a serial
interview, candidates may cover the same ground over and over again
with each interviewer.
• In an unstructured sequential interview, each interviewer may ask
different questions. In an structured sequential interview, each
interviewer rates the candidates on a standard evaluation form, using
standardized questions. The hiring manager then reviews and compares
the evaluations before deciding who to hire.
• A panel interview, also known as board interview, is defined as an
interview conducted by a team of interviewers who together interview a
candidate, and then combine their ratings into a final panel score. This
may elicit more meaningful response than are normally produced by a
series of one-on-one interviews.
• The mass interview is a stressful variant where a panel interviews
several candidates simultaneously. The panel poses a problem and
then sits back and watches to see which candidate takes the lead in
formulating an answer.
• Panel interviews in which members use scoring sheets with descriptive
scoring anchors for sample answers are more reliable and valid than
those that don’t.

• Phone and video interviews- some interviews are done entirely by

telephone. These can actually be more accurate than face-to-face
interviews for judging an applicant’s conscientiousness, intelligence, and
interpersonal skills. Each can focus on substantive answers , because
of the surprise call give more spontaneous answers.

• Computerized interviews
• A computerized selection interview is one in which a job candidate’s oral
and/or computerized replies are obtained in response to computerized
oral, visual or written questions and/or situations. Most computerized
interviews present the applicant with a series of questions regarding his
or her background, experience, education skills, knowledge and work
attitudes that relate to the job for which the person has applied. Some
computerized interviews also confront candidates with realistic
scenarios to which they must respond. Questions on a computerized
interview come in rapid sequence and require the applicant to
concentrate.

• Web-assisted interviews-
4. Interviews differ according to their objectives. Some of
the different objectives are

1. The selection interview- To evaluate the candidate for

purposes of hiring, promotion, or transfer. Interviews
conducted for such purposes are usually referred to as
selection or placement interviews.
2. To obtain information from the interviewee concerning his
attitudes about his job. These interviews are referred to
as attitude interviews. Their purpose is to understand the
person’s attitude better, even though the decision to
terminate has already been made.
3. To help the employee with any particular personal or on-
the-job problem which might be harmful to his
performance both on and off the job. These interviews
are referred to as counseling interviews.
4. To evaluate the interviewee for his ability to perform
under a particular set of difficult circumstances. These
interviews are often called assessment or stress interviews.
The interviewer deliberately provokes stressful situations
with the hope of measuring a person’s ability to perform
under such conditions.

THE SELECTION INTERVIEW

The interview is the most frequently employed selection

methodologies. For some jobs and in some companies, as
many as eight or ten such interviews occur with different
people prior to being accepted or rejected for the given
position. The assumption of multiple interviews is based on
the value of pooled judgments. It also involves sharing the
risk.
Length of the selection interview

There is no standard time limit associated with interviews for selection

purposes.

The length varies depending on the type

of position, number of applicants, importance attached to the interview as
a selection device, and personality of the interviewer. Many
employment interviews are conducted by untrained “executives” who
believe their skill in interview to be exemplary.

Uhrboch (1933) found the interview duration to be approximately twelve

minutes, with the interviewer doing most of the talking. Daniels and Otis
(1950) found the average interview length to be ten minutes. The
interviewer spoke about 57% of the time, the applicant spoke 30% of
the time and 13% was spent in silence. In many interview situations,
the length is predetermined by an appointment schedule.
 Model of the selection interview
The interview is difficult to evaluate as a selection device simply
because the somewhat complex fashion in which it fits into the
selection process. The basic purpose of the interview is twofold:

• 1) to gather as much data as one can which are relevant to the

selection decision,
• 2) to evaluate the data available and decide to select or reject the
applicant.

That data collected during an interview depend upon the type of

interviewer, his degree of training, his biases and the position he is
attempting to fill. Thus data can be collected systematically through
the use of a highly structured interview session in which a series of
planned series of questions is presented to the applicant. On the
other hand, data can be gathered in a much more open or
unstructured interview in which one simply probes and explores the
applicant’s qualifications in a ‘play-by-ear’ fashion. Similarly, the
process by one combines interview information into a single
decision is also often open to numerous options on the part of the
interviewer.
The best way to view an interviewer is to envision that he acts as a sort
 D1

Data which can be D2

obtained elsewhere Statistical
but which are part D3 predictor Statistical prediction
of success
of the interview D4 or model

D5 Interviewer
prediction can serve
interviewer as input to the
D6 statistical model
Interviewers
D7 Human prediction of
predictor success
D8
Data which are model
Validity of those
completely unique D predictors truly unique
to the interview 9 to the interview
process
process D
10
D
11

Model Of Selection Interview Process Model

of intuitive regression equation. His job is one of attempting to collect,
combine, and weigh the interview data in such fashion that he comes up
with a prediction of how successful the applicant may be should he be
hired. The degree to which he can successfully predict eventual job
success is his validity.

Data sources in the interview

Bellows and Estep (1954) classified data into two categories depending
upon the source of information. In the first category are data from
sources not directly tied to the interview situation itself. These auxiliary
sources include letters of recommendation, application blanks,
psychological tests etc. While one can and often does obtain such
information in the interview, it is usually more conveniently obtained via
other sources and is frequently provided to the interviewer prior to or
concurrent with the actual interview in the hope that such information will
be of help in the interviewing process.
The second major category of data is information obtained in the face-to-
face situation which is unique to the interview itself. Examples of this
data might be dress and mannerisms of the applicant, his speech and his
way of handling himself in a social situation.

Personnel selection procedures often utilize the first type of data in a formal
prediction model, such as the multiple regression model or profile model.
Interview information is always channeled through the interviewer, and it is
the job of the interviewer to weigh the informational cues according to
his best judgment and arrive at a decision about the applicant.
Therefore, when one attempts to evaluate the effectiveness of the
interview, one tends to evaluate the ability of the interviewer to collect
relevant information and combine it in the most accurate fashion. That
is, one tends to evaluate the interviewer’s ability to act as a statistical
prediction equation instead of evaluating the interview per se.

Characteristics of the selection interview

• the interview is a verbal and visual interaction between two individuals.
Thus many of the cues available to the interviewer will be based upon
the language and appearance of the interviewee. The basic structure of
an interview is “conversational”, one definition of the interview is that it is
simply “a conversation with a purpose” (Bingham and Moore, 1941).
The task of the interviewer is to use this conversational tool to elicit as
much relevant information as possible. It is therefore reasonable to
assume that the conversational skill of the interviewer can be an
important variable in the success of the interview.
• Since the interview is an interpersonal relationship, the behavior of the
interviewer can have a very dramatic effect on the behavior of the
applicant. The applicant seeks cues of his own concerning how well he
is doing or what the interviewer thinks of him. These cues serve as a
kind of feedback or reinforcement to the applicant and he will respond
• Differently depending upon whether he perceives the cues as being
favorable or unfavorable. The frequency of particular kinds of verbal
responses made by the interviewee can be dramatically influenced by
having the interviewer show approval for these kinds of responses.

• Some kinds of responses that the interviewer gives are :-

• agreement
• paraphrasing – the interviewer would repeat back to the subject the
opinion statement just made.
• Silence
• Disagreement

• Agreement and paraphrasing increase the number of responses by the

interviewee, whereas disagreement and silence decrease the number of
responses.

• The interviewer can influence applicant behavior to the degree to which

the interviewer lets his behavior differ from applicant to applicant. The
interviewer forgets that he should be standardized – he should attempt to
hold his behavior as constant from applicant to applicant as is possible.
Therefore one should have a highly structured interview which permits little
individuality on the part of the interviewer. Unfortunately highly structured
interviewer from exploring certain avenues of
• Information which arise and might be fruitful data sources. Some argue that to
restrict the flexibility of the of the interviewer involves sacrificing the basic
interpersonal advantage that the interview has over other selection devices.

Symonds (1939) has listed a series of factors which he believes can influence the
quality and quantity of the data collected in the interview.
• Factors inherent in the applicant – age, intelligence, sex, race, socioeconomic
level, language ability, emotional need, emotional security, applicant’s attitude
toward interviewer, applicant’s previous acquaintance with interviews, purpose of
applicant in coming to the interview
• Factors inherent in the interviewer – age, sex, intelligence, race,
socioeconomic level, position or authority with reference to the applicant,
personality (social warmth, sympathy, out-goingness, human interest, vitality),
social outlook, psychological understanding (his ability to sense or feel the
purposes, needs, or drives of the applicant), previous acquaintance with the
applicant, interest of the interviewer to applicant (degree to which interviewer
enjoys the conversation of the interviewer.
• Factors in the general situation where the interview is conducted – place,
time, persons present, first second or subsequent interview, experiences of
applicant directly preceding interview, emergency character of interview,
directions given applicant preceding the interview, voluntary versus nonvoluntary
nature of interview.
• Factors in the form and content of the interview – content of questions, form
of questions, interpretation, suggestion or other reactions of interviewer.
APPLICANT’S INTERVIEWER’S
SELF- SELF- PERCEPTION
PERCEPTION BEHAVIOR OF
INTERVIEWER

APPLICANT INTERVIEWER

BEHAVIOR OF
APPLICANT

CIRCULATORY OF THE BEHAVIOR PATTERN IN AN INTERVIEW

SITUATION
 Other Selection Methodologies
• Application blank
• References and recommendations
• Past work history
WHAT CAN UNDERMINE AN INTERVIEW’S USEFULNESS
• First impressions (snap judgements)- interviewers tend to jump to
conclusions about candidates during the first few minutes of the interview
based on test scores or resume data. First impressions are especially
damaging when the prior information about the candidate is negative. In
one study, interviewers who previously received unfavorable reference
letters about applicants gave those applicants less credit for past
successes and held them more personally responsible for past failures
after the interview. Their final decisions were always tied to what they
expected of the applicants based on the references, aside from the
applicants’ actual interview performance.
The interviewers seem to have a consistent negative bias. They are more
influenced by unfavorable than favorable information about the candidate.
Their impressions are much more likely to change from favorable to
unfavorable than from unfavorable to favorable. A common mistake is to
turn the interview into a search for negative information.

• Misunderstanding the job- interviewers who don’t have an accurate

picture of what the job entails and what sort of candidate is best suited for
it usually make their decisions based on incorrect impressions or
stereotypes of what a good applicant is. They then erroneously match
interviewees with their incorrect stereotypes.

• Candidate-order (or contrast) error and pressure to hire-

Candidate-order (or contrast) error means that the order in which you see
applicants affects how you rate them. In one study, managers had to
evaluate a candidate who was “just average” after first evaluating
several “unfavorable” candidates. They scored the average candidate
more favorably than they might otherwise have done because, in
contrast to the unfavorable candidates, the average one looked better
than he actually was. Same happens in pressure to hire.

• Nonverbal behavior and impression management- nonverbal

behavior has a large impact on an applicants ratings. Applicants who
exhibit high eye contact, high-energy-level behavior are rated more
favorably. Vocal cues such as pitch, speech rates, and pauses and
visual cues such as physical attractiveness, smile and body orientation
correlated with the evaluator’s judgements of whether or not the
interviewees could be liked and trusted, and were credible.
•
Nonverbal behaviors are important because interviewers infer the
interviewees personality from the way he or she acts in the interview.
Extraverted applicants are more likely to self-promotion and self-
promotion is strongly related to the interviewer’s perceptions of
candidate-job fit.

Impression management – some successful candidates use ingratiation

• to persuade interviewers to like them. Others use
self-promotion tactics, by making complimentary
comments about their own accomplishments.
Ingratiation involves agreeing with the recruiter’s
opinions and thus signaling that they share similar
beliefs. Self-promotion means promoting one’s
own skills and abilities to create the impression of
competence.

• Effects of personal characteristics: attractiveness,

gender, race
• Interviewers ascribe more favorable traits and
more successful life outcomes to attractive people.
Men were perceived as being more suitable for
hire and more likely to advance to a next executive
level than they did equally qualified women.
Designing and conducting an effective interview

The structured situational interview produces superior results. In creating

structured situational interviews, people familiar with the job develop
questions based on the job’s actual duties. The procedure is as
follows:
1. Job analysis
2. Rate the job’s main duties
3. Create interview questions – based on actual job duties, with more
questions for the more important duties. Situational questions, job
knowledge questions, willingness questions, behavioral questions.

4. Create benchmark answers – develop several descriptive answers.

5. Appoint the interview panel and conduct interviews- the panel
members generally review the job description, questions and
benchmark answers before the interview. One panel member usually
introduces the applicant and asks all questions of the applicants. All
panel members record and rate the applicant’s answers on the rating
scale sheet. They do this by indicating where the candidate’s answer
to each question falls relative to the ideal or poor answers.
How to conduct a more effective interview

1. Base questions on actual job duties

2. Use job knowledge, situational or behavioral
questions.
3. Train interviewers- train them to avoid irrelevant
or potentially discriminatory questions.
4. Use the same questions with all candidates
5. Use descriptive rating scales to rate answers
6. Use multiple interviewers or panel interviews. To
reduce bias
7. Use standardized interview form
8. Control the interview
9. Take brief, unobtrusive notes