Recruitment efforts to reduce adverse impact: targeted recruiting for personality, cognitive ability, and diversity.

Full Abstract

Noting the presumed tradeoff between diversity and performance goals in contemporary selection practice, the authors elaborate on recruiting-based methods for avoiding adverse impact while maintaining aggregate individual productivity. To extend earlier work on the primacy of applicant pool characteristics for resolving adverse impact, they illustrate the advantages of simultaneous cognitive ability- and personality-based recruiting. Results of an algebraic recruiting model support general recruiting for cognitive ability, combined with recruiting for conscientiousness within the underrepresented group. For realistic recruiting effect sizes, this type of recruiting strategy greatly increases average performance of hires and percentage of hires from the underrepresented group. Further results from a policy-capturing study provide initial guidance on how features of organizational image can attract applicants with particular job-related personalities and abilities, in addition to attracting applicants on the basis of demographic background. (c) 2009 APA, all rights reserved.

Author information

Author/s: Newman, Daniel A (DA); Lyon, Julie S (JS);

Affiliation: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Champaign, IL 61820, USA. d5n(-atsign-)uiuc.edu

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Journal Article

Journal: The Journal of applied psychology (J Appl Psychol), published in United States. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2009-Mar; vol 94 (issue 2) : pp 298-317

Dates: Created 2009/03/10; Completed 2009/05/11;

PMID: 19271792, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 5/11/2009, IMS Date: 11 May 2009 00:00:00)

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

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