Reliability and Validity free essay sample

For example if the applicants are given different selection tests it would be very difficult to compare the difference among applicants. Alternatively, if a number of candidates are given the same selection test, the test should provide consistent results concerning individual difference between candidates. Six types of reliability are considered: test-retest, interrater reliability, candidate consistency, interviewer-candidate interaction, internal consistency, interrater agreement. For a selection measure to be useful its not enough for it to be repeatable or stable (i. e. eliable), it must also be valid. There are numerous ways of assessing validity, but they all focus on two basic issues: what a test measures and how well it has measured it. Three types of validity information are considered: job relatedness, reduced deficiency, and reduced contamination. Personal interviews are used by all employers and companies for selecting their staff. Interview is one of the most important steps in the staff selection procedure. We will write a custom essay sample on Reliability and Validity or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Interview proves important because it connects both the employers as well as job seekers. It assists employers in selecting a right person for a right job. It also helps job seekers to present their job skills and acquire a desired position on merit. There are 15 key components to consider when conducting a job interview. First key component is base questions and job analysis. There are varieties of ways you can use job analysis methods to develop structured interviews, critical incident method being the most common approach. The second key component is asking exact same questions to each candidate. Asking questions in the same order might enhance reliability because it increases the consistency of the interview and reduces EEO bias. Third key component is limit prompting, follow-up questioning, and elaboration on questions. Prompting is intended to clarify answers and seek information, so limiting its use might create deficiency. Forth key component is to use better types of questions. Question type can refer to either how the question is asked or its content. The fifth key component is using longer interview or larger number of questions. Longer interviews are more structured because they obtain a larger amount of information. Sixth key component is control ancillary information. . A threat to structure is the uncontrolled use of ancillary information. Seventh key component is not allowing questions from candidate until after the interview. Why? Because it changes the interview in unpredictable ways. Also the control and dominance of the interview can be affected. This has an increased effect of reliability and mixed for validity. Eighth key component is rating each answer or use multiple scales. Ratings can be made on each answer or on the entire interview. Multiple ratings or a single rating can be made. Three levels are considered: being to rate each answer, make multiple ratings at the end and, make one overall judgment at the end. The ninth component is use detailed anchored rating scales. Four out of the many types of anchored that can be used are example answers of illustrations, descriptions or definition of answers, evaluation of answers (e. g. excellent, good, or bad), and relative comparisons. The tenth component is taking detailed notes. Note taking may enhance structure because it reduces memory decay and avoids recency and primacy effects. The eleventh component is using multiple interviews. Using multiple interviews reduces biases and multiple judgements can cancel out random errorsd. The twelfth component is using same interviewer(s) across all candidates. This is important because different interviewers usually ask different questions and evaluate answers differently. The thirteen component is not discussing candidates or answers between interviews. This leads to irrelevant information entering the evaluation process. The fourteen component is providing extensive interview training. Training is most common to improve interviews. And last and fifteen component is using statistical rather than clinical component. To enhance structure statistical procedures are used rather than interviewer judgments. Selecting the right candidates is crucial for long term success of both multi-national companies and individual managers. The selection process is almost like a series of obstacles that applicants must cross in order to obtain the job. In my experience of being interviewed at Wal-Mart the interview difficulty was about average. I was interviewed by three people; only one person asked questions, but all three took notes. Each job candidate evaluated using a number score system. In total about five pages of questions were asked (about ten to fifteen question) and it took about an hour. Wal-Mart is one of the most popular store chains of supermarkets, department stores and warehouses in the United States and other countries (such as Canada) and it is one of the world’s largest public corporations in revenue. As one of the worlds largest companies, the job opportunities at Wal-Mart are also unlimited. Job Analysis: Job Descripition for Cashier: â€Å"A Wal-Mart cashier is responsible for effectively executing and adhering to the Basic Beliefs of the founder, Sam Walton. These beliefs entail showing the customer respect at all times, demonstrating outstanding customer service and settling for nothing less than excellence while performing daily responsibilities. † (http://www. scribd. com/doc/32968961/65/Recruitment-and-Selection-at-Wal-Mart): Wal-Mart has an excellent selection and recruitment process however that does not mean there aren’t any room for improvement. As a HR manger I would introduce the idea of Critical incident method. Critical incident method is one way Wal-Mart can improve its recruitment and selection process through job analysis. Critical incidents method is a process of job analysis that produces statements of behavioural example along a range from superior to ineffective performance for a specific job. For example, candidates are asked to identify the key dimensions of their passed job, specific critical incidents that relate to success, as well as those that lead to job failure. Once these critical incidents have been described, they are ranked with respect to their importance to success on the job. Job analysis is a basic requirement for developing valid selection procedures and has a weak positive relationship with reliability. Wal-Mart covers many of important components in selection and recruitment such as: asking the exact same questions to each candidate, using longer interview and asking large number of questions, not allowing questions from candidate till the end of the interview, rating each answer and using multiple scales, taking detailed notes and mainly using multiple interviewers. As an HR manager of Wal-Mart having to interview candidates side by other HR professionals would be an interesting experience. Having panel (multiple) interviewers increases accuracy, allowing for clarifying questions from different perspectives. If