Applicant Personality and Procedural Justice Perceptions of Group Selection Interviews.

Hege H Bye,Gro M Sandal

doi:10.1007/s10869-015-9430-9

Abstract

PurposeWe investigated how job applicants’ personalities influence perceptions of the structural and social procedural justice of group selection interviews (i.e., a group of several applicants being evaluated simultaneously). We especially addressed trait interactions between neuroticism and extraversion (the affective plane) and extraversion and agreeableness (the interpersonal plane).Design/Methodology/ApproachData on personality (pre-interview) and justice perceptions (post-interview) were collected in a field study among job applicants (N = 97) attending group selection interviews for positions as teachers in a Norwegian high school.FindingsInteraction effects in hierarchical regression analyses showed that perceptions of social and structural justice increased with levels of extraversion among high scorers on neuroticism. Among emotionally stable applicants, however, being introverted or extraverted did not matter to justice perceptions. Extraversion did not impact on the perception of social justice for applicants low in agreeableness. Agreeable applicants, however, experienced the group interview as more socially fair when they were also extraverted.ImplicationsThe impact of applicant personality on justice perceptions may be underestimated if traits interactions are not considered. Procedural fairness ratings for the group selection interview were high, contrary to the negative reactions predicted by other researchers. There was no indication that applicants with desirable traits (i.e., traits predictive of job performance) reacted negatively to this selection tool.Originality/ValueDespite the widespread use of interviews in selection, previous studies of applicant personality and fairness reactions have not included interviews. The study demonstrates the importance of previously ignored trait interactions in understanding applicant reactions.

Highlights

Perceptions of organizational justice are central antecedents of important outcomes in organizations, such as task performance, job satisfaction, citizenship behavior, and counterproductive work behaviors (Cohen-Charash and Spector 2001; Colquitt et al 2001, 2013; Viswesvaran and Ones 2002)
Purpose We investigated how job applicants’ personalities influence perceptions of the structural and social procedural justice of group selection interviews
Because there is evidence to suggest that justice is weighted more heavily among actual applicants (Chapman et al 2005), it is important to complement findings from the lab with studies in the field. We address these issues by conducting a field study examining how applicants’ personality traits, including two theoretically important trait interactions, influence how group selection interviews are experienced in terms of procedural fairness

Summary

Introduction

Perceptions of organizational justice are central antecedents of important outcomes in organizations, such as task performance, job satisfaction, citizenship behavior, and counterproductive work behaviors (Cohen-Charash and Spector 2001; Colquitt et al 2001, 2013; Viswesvaran and Ones 2002). J Bus Psychol (2016) 31:569–582 reactions are indirectly related to job performance by influencing test scores in selection (McCarthy et al 2013). Against this backdrop, employers could benefit from trying to affect applicants’ reactions in selection. Employers could benefit from trying to affect applicants’ reactions in selection This may be achieved through the design and implementation of selection systems (Truxillo and Bauer 2011), but it may prove important to take into account individual differences within the applicant pool. If one has knowledge of dominant traits in the candidate pool, some selection tools can be chosen or avoided (Merkulova et al 2014; Ryan and Huth 2008; Truxillo et al 2006)

Methods

Results

Conclusion