How Trait Values Are Determined


Remember that the Applicant assessed themselves on a 1-5 scale for each of the 100 adjectives on the Personality Profile Form. If they indicated "1", this meant that word described them most or all of the time at work. "5" indicated the word rarely, if ever, described them at work.

A value of "3" would indicate that adjective applies to them about half the time, and a response of "2" or "4" would also indicate some degree of applicability, but not necessarily absolute or extreme applicability or non-applicability. Having the ability to describe themselves on this 5 point scale maximizes the Applicant's ability to accurately provide meaningful data to the system, especially compared to a 2-value Yes/No or 3-value Yes/No/In-Between response.

Each Trait extreme of the 20 different Trait Scales has a list of Personality Characteristics associated with it, each Characteristic having been described by the Applicant. If, for example, each of the Characteristics were given a value of "1" by the Applicant, then that would indicate they see themselves as "extremely" representative of that trait. Conversely, if all of the Characteristics had a value of "5", that would indicate that the Applicant not only believes they are not like that trait at all, but they would be very much like the opposite trait at the other end of the scale. Therefore a "5" on one side of the scale is like having another "1" value on the other end of the scale.

Values of "2" and "4" balance each other, and of course, "3" is half way between. Using this system of balance, the Hire Success System uses a complex algorithm to evaluate evidence provided by the Applicant as to where they belong along the 9 point scale. Let's use some simple examples:

Example 1: The Applicant indicates all of the Characteristics that describe the Trait: "Patience" with the value of "1", and all of the Characteristics that describe "Impatience" with "5". The evidence is overwhelming that the Applicant considers himself as "Extremely Patient", and would thus have a "9" on that Scale.

Example 2: The Applicant indicates all of the Characteristics that describe the Trait: "Patience" with the value of "2", and all of the Characteristics that describe "Impatience" with "5". The evidence shows that the Applicant considers himself "Patient", but not extremely Patient, yet is not an "Impatient" person. The result would indicate a value of "8" on the Impatient-Patient scale. This means they are "Very Patient", but not as patient as someone who described him or herself with all "1" values to the Characteristic adjectives.

Example 3: The Applicant indicates all of the Characteristics that describe the Trait: "Patience" with the value of "2", and all of the Characteristics that describe "Impatience" with "4". Again, the evidence shows that the Applicant considers himself "Patient", but not extremely Patient. However, he also indicated that the adjectives that characterize "Impatient" may apply sometimes, but less than half the time. The result would indicate a value of "7" on the Impatient-Patient scale. This means they are "Patient", but not as patient as someone who described him or herself in the more extreme terms.

In all 3 examples, we know we're dealing with a Patient person but there are some subtle differences in the way each of the Applicants in the above examples responded to the various adjectives that characterize each of the Traits on that Scale. Even though the 3 people in the examples above are "Patient", the person in Example 1 would probably exhibit more patience than the Applicant in Example 3. The question the Interviewer needs to know is: "Can a person be too patient in this job?" In some jobs, the answer might be "Yes", in others, the more patient the employee, the better.

Let's use a couple of very general examples: a Nurse and a Sales person. Chances are, extreme patience in the Nurse will be an attribute, considering the type of work a Nurse is normally engaged in. However, the Sales person could be too patient and never ask for the order, or wait weeks or months for the customer to pay for what was sold. If that were the case, there would probably be some cut-off point where the person would be considered too patient to work out well in the job.

One could argue that in the case of the sales person who is extremely patient, that he or she may have "learned" not to be so patient in those circumstances and thus would still be good for the job. That is true, and illustrates why the Hire Success System can be an important tool for both the employer and the employee. The Trait Scale may indicate the person may be too high in Patience, but alerts the Interviewer to a potential problem so that they will be made aware to ask questions about this during the interview. Perhaps the Interviewer will be satisfied that the Applicant has learned to be less patient based on further questioning. The Interviewer might also want to ask this question of the applicant's previous employers to see if it has ever been a problem. If it has been a problem in the past, then the Interviewer is now aware of the facts, probably more facts than would have been available had this issue not been brought to light in the testing process.

In the above scenario, the end result will be best for both the employer and the employee. If the Applicant knows when to be patient and when not to be, the employer may have an excellent employee candidate. If not, both are possibly spared the agony of a bad hire, which could ultimately end up with the employee's termination after a short time. The objective of the Hire Success tools are to avoid those costly and life disrupting problems as much as possible.