How to fake a personality test
In the day and age of capitalism and corporations, companies and governments will do whatever it takes to improve their standing and maximize their productivity. One of those ways is by paying special attention to who they hire: after all, a company is a reflection of the people who work there. More and more companies and institutions are now relying on personality tests to assess whether an individual fits their ideal image and criteria.
As a student in need of money, one of my friends applied to Capital One, a company that sells insurances. She got a call for an interview which she passed easily and then she was asked to fill out a personality test. The test seemed inspired by the MBTI, the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (although this could apply to any similar test of personality), and consisted of over 300 questions that she had to answer in 3 hours. Not only did she succeed, but the director was asked over and showed her results: she had gotten one of the highest grades they had ever seen in that branch — a whooping 19 on 20.
First of all, to pass one has to know what are the idealized traits for that job and company. Thus, one should always survey their website, the products they offer and their marketing pitch. In the case of Capital One, where employees have to sell insurances, some of the traits they sought were extroversion, honesty, conscientiousness and perseverance. This step is essential to prevent confusions, achieve high results and to impress your employers.
Second of all, to prevent people from cheating, the test developers designed the test around one of the biggest shortcomings of the human race: our memory and its ability to forget. After three hours of questions, we feel tired and it is harder to concentrate. We become confused as to our answers and, at the slightest trace of inconsistency in those answers, we fail the test. Many of the questions at the beginning are reformulated later on in the test. Thus, cheating is discouraged by the sheer amount of material that we have to remember. Answering truthfully would be the fastest and the least tiring way to answer the test, but that does not guarantee passing the test.
To counter this obstacle, my friend relied on a very simple trick. The solution is to answer the questions at the most extreme ends of the scales provided. If a certain situation is given as an example, the most desirable and extreme response should be chosen. Not only is it easier to remember an extreme answer than a more balanced one but, if you have well understood the personality traits that are ideal, it helps you score more points! It is vital that the traits be chosen before the test because some questions might be tricky. For example, one of them had to do with being honest and losing a sale or lying and making a sale. On one hand, benefiting the company by lying seems to be the more ‘’appropriate’’ answer BUT do not forget that the test assumes that personality traits are consistent throughout time and situations. In other words, admitting to dishonesty would imply that you might lie to the company one day. Thus, by sticking to pre-chosen personality traits and by choosing the most extreme answers, anybody can ensure consistency and portray themselves in whatever way they desire. This shows the test has problems with internal validity and reliability.
In short, personality tests can be faked and thus are not the most reliable ways of assessing personality. If one person can do it, many others can. They might stop unprepared cheaters but with the growing importance of these tests, any smart person with simple strategies like the ones mentioned above, may achieve tremendous results not to mention that free tests are now available all over the internet to provide ample practice!
260475855
