Psychological Testing in Personnel Selection, Part I: A Century of Psychological Testing

Abstract

This article is the first in a three-part series that examines the development of selection testing. Part I focuses on the historical development of personnel selection testing from the late 19th century to the present, with particular attention given to personality testing. Attention is given to the efforts of early industrial psychologists that shaped and defined the role of testing in the scientific selection of employees. Part II examines the development of methods and standards in employment testing with particular emphasis on selection validity and utility. Issues of selection fairness and discrimination in selection are explored as they relate to psychological testing. Part III explores the development and application of personality testing. The transient nature of models of personality is noted, and current paradigms and the utility and fairness of personality testing for modern organizations are discussed.