CODESP Interviewing Techniques and Methods 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A situational interview question differs from a behavioral interview question primarily in that it:
- Asks about a candidate's education history
- Presents a hypothetical scenario rather than asking about past experience (Correct answer)
- Evaluates only technical skills
- Is administered exclusively in writing
Correct answer: Presents a hypothetical scenario rather than asking about past experience
Situational questions pose hypothetical job-related scenarios and ask what the candidate would do, whereas behavioral questions ask what the candidate has done.
Question 2: Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, an interview question about a candidate's national origin is:
- Permitted if asked of all candidates equally
- Prohibited as it is not job-related and could cause disparate impact (Correct answer)
- Required for federal contractor positions
- Acceptable only in written pre-employment tests
Correct answer: Prohibited as it is not job-related and could cause disparate impact
Questions about national origin are prohibited under Title VII because they are not job-related and can lead to discriminatory hiring decisions.
Question 3: In CODESP-aligned selection systems, interview questions must be:
- Based on a current, documented job analysis (Correct answer)
- Developed solely by HR personnel without input from supervisors
- Identical for all job classifications in the agency
- Selected from a national test bank without local modification
Correct answer: Based on a current, documented job analysis
CODESP guidelines require that interview questions be grounded in a current job analysis to ensure content validity and job-relatedness.
Question 4: Which scheduling practice best supports fairness in oral interview processes?
- Randomizing interview order to prevent order effects from systematically favoring early or late candidates (Correct answer)
- Scheduling all internal candidates first to allow more preparation time
- Allowing candidates to select their own interview time slots
- Scheduling interviews over several weeks to reduce interviewer fatigue
Correct answer: Randomizing interview order to prevent order effects from systematically favoring early or late candidates
Randomizing interview order controls for order effects such as primacy and recency, which can systematically advantage candidates interviewed at certain times.
Question 5: What is the purpose of conducting a 'probe' during a structured interview?
- To ask the candidate about salary history
- To elicit more complete or specific information when an initial response is vague (Correct answer)
- To redirect a candidate who is speaking too quickly
- To verify educational credentials in real time
Correct answer: To elicit more complete or specific information when an initial response is vague
Probes are follow-up questions used by interviewers to obtain the level of behavioral detail needed to accurately score a response.
Question 6: Inter-rater reliability in an interview panel is BEST measured by:
- Averaging all panelists' scores without comparison
- Calculating the correlation or agreement among panelists' independent ratings (Correct answer)
- Having the hiring manager override panelist scores
- Using only one panelist's scores for final ranking
Correct answer: Calculating the correlation or agreement among panelists' independent ratings
Inter-rater reliability is measured by calculating the degree of agreement or correlation among independently assigned scores from multiple raters.
Question 7: Which of the following is an example of an impermissible interview question under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)?
- 'Can you perform the essential functions of this job with or without reasonable accommodation?'
- 'Do you have any disabilities that would prevent you from working?' (Correct answer)
- 'This role requires lifting 30 lbs; are you able to do that?'
- 'What hours are you available to work?'
Correct answer: 'Do you have any disabilities that would prevent you from working?'
The ADA prohibits asking candidates directly about disabilities; employers may only ask whether the candidate can perform essential job functions with or without accommodation.
CODESP Interviewing Techniques and Methods 3
A situational interview question differs from a behavioral interview question primarily in that it: