Comprehensive Analysis of Assessment Instruments in I/O Psychology

This essay delves into the assessment instruments employed within the field of industrial and organizational (I/O) psychology, aiming to understand and predict human behavior in work environments. It explores various assessment methods, including observations, judgments from trained staff, and standardized tests. The essay differentiates between these instruments, highlighting their unique characteristics and applications. It discusses the use of cognitive ability tests, which assess skills like knowledge and reasoning, and personality tests, which evaluate job-related traits and behaviors. Furthermore, it examines self-reports, such as biodata inventories and honesty tests. The essay also analyzes personality and biographical data tests, detailing their functions in measuring individual traits and predicting future behavior, along with the factors influencing their implementation. The paper concludes by emphasizing the importance of reliable and fair assessment methods for effective employee recruitment and overall organizational success.

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Running head: ASSESSMENTS INSTRUMENTS
Assessments Instruments
Name
Institution Affiliation

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ASSESSMENTS INSTRUMENTS
Question 1
Industrial and organizational psychology tries to understand and predict the behavior of
human beings in organizations of work. There are instruments used which include observations
and judgment from trained staff or rater using standardized tests if the assessment of behavior is
at the individual level (Jeanerette & Silzer, 2016). These instruments of assessments differ from
one another as they have different features and descriptions.
Observations and judgment from trained staff mainly focus on knowing the status of an
individual more so the reason for their interest in any administrative personnel. This approach
and its outcomes are greatly influenced by the nature of human beings. The scoring is manual
because people like supervisors, peers, subordinates and even customers who regularly visit
where the individuals work provide the ratings. If the people providing judgments provide their
points of view about a certain individual in a similar way, the ratings are commonly known as
multisource or 360 degrees ratings. The ratings depend on factors like an individual's character
traits, level of performance or the potential to perform a particular task (Bottom & Kong, 2015).
Secondly, there is the use of standardized tests which is a different approach from
observation of individuals. These tests are of two types with different nature. The first type is
cognitive ability tests as instruments of assessments of an individual. The cognitive ability tests
focus on providing the estimation of achievement or the capacity of cognitive functioning in
areas such as the level and use of knowledge, verbal or reasoning which play a significant role
while performing duties. Additionally, these tests assess aspects of personality which include
job-related traits, the expected behaviors, mood disposition, and values. In most tests, the

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individual's response is needed in written form which later are computer administered and
awarded marks as well ("Industrial and Organizational Psychology", 2017).
Additionally, there is the use of self-reports as an instrument of assessment which
includes biodata inventory. A response of a series of questions is required. The questions are
related to one's experiences and provide a good reflection of one's qualities that are needed for
job success (Jeanneret & Silzer, 2016). The special version of such reports is called honesty or
integrity tests. Eventually, these questions assess one’s character and values. Records such as
employee attendance data, graphology, response to ‘guilt knowledge’ questions and drug testing
based on urine and blood samples are used while conducting the test.
Question 2
The types of tests used in psychological assessment in any workplace are personality
tests and biographical data tests. Personality tests measure the personality of different
individuals. They diagnose psychological problems in people and also provide a decision if it's
wise for the candidate to join a college or rather get employed. Personality tests include self-
report inventories and projective tests (Sappenfield, 2017).
Self-report inventories are usually kind of objective test which are used to determine an
individual’s personality. They make great use of multiple-choice questions or numbered scales
that range from strongly disagree to strongly agree. These scales were developed by Rensis
Likert thus named Likert scales. The commonly used self-report inventory is the Minnesota
Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) (Davis, 2018). At first, it helped in the clinical
diagnosis of psychological disorders in patients but currently, it is used in occupational screening

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such as in career, college, law-enforcement and even in marital counseling. The scoring is
computerized and very fast since it takes approximately fifteen minutes.
Projective tests depend on the defense mechanisms proposed by Sigmund Freud as a
means of assessing the processes that are unconscious. Abstruse cards are subjected to the person
being tested which incite the person to express his or her feelings, impulses and desires toward
the cards through telling a story, interpretation of an image or completion of sentences. These
tests identify whether one has unusual thoughts, high level of anxiety or the likelihood of
becoming volatile. There are different types of projective tests that include Rotter Incomplete
Sentence Blank, Tell-Me-A-Story, Rorschach Inkblot Test, Thematic Apperception Test, and
Contemporized- Themes Concerning Blacks test which is all used to assess one's personality
(Davis, 2018). The tests are scored by computers since it is difficult to interpret them manually
into a standardized version.
The other type of psychological test is biographical data test. It is used to measure the
consistency of an individual's behavior. After measuring that consistency, an organization can
predict how an individual will act in the future. It applies the belief that past behavior acts as the
best predictor of the behavior to occur in the future. Biodata test provides information about
one's character, attitudes, experiences, interests, skills, and abilities that help in predicting how
one can perform in any occupation (Guilford, 2017).
Before using the bio data tests there are various factors that are greatly considered. The
factors are applicants' reactions, development costs, administration costs among others. The
factors ensure that the tests are favorable for both the organization and the subjects to the tests
(Guilford, 2017).

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Both personality and biographical tests should be reliable for companies to recruit the
best employees after assessing their overall behavior. The biographical tests should be fair to the
subjects in that they don't require much information on their private life (Jeanerette & Silzer,
2016). The biographical tests should also consider the specific applicants who are to answer
specific questions to improve on their reliability and validity, for example, indicating which
gender should answer certain questions.
In conclusion, personality tests are commonly used in assessing individuals’ character
traits that predict their overall behavior. The behaviors provide a basis of whether the individuals
are fit for a certain job or not. Biographical data tests are also helpful since they access
individuals’ information on the level of education, experiences among others that are used to
determine whether to recruit them or not.

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References
Bottom, W., & Kong, D. (2015). Normative Models for Strategic Decision Making in Industrial-
Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior. Industrial And Organizational
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Davis, F. (2018). Psychological testing. Psychological Bulletin, 47(4), 365-366. doi:
10.1037/h0052508
Guilford, J. (2017). Psychological testing. Psychological Bulletin, 52(1), 97-98. doi:
10.1037/h0038314
Industrial and Organizational Psychology. (2017). Industrial And Organizational Psychology,
1(4), 508-508. doi: 10.1111/j.1754-9434.2008.volcontents_1.x
Jeanneret, R., & Silzer, R. (2016). Individual Psychological Assessment: A Core Competency for
Industrial–Organizational Psychology. Industrial And Organizational Psychology, 4(3),
342-351. doi: 10.1111/j.1754-9434.2011.01352.x
Sappenfield, B. (2017). Psychological testing. Psychological Bulletin, 45(2), 181-183. doi:
10.1037/h0050183