10.4 Methods of Collecting and Combining Information to Make a Decision
Before a selection decision can be made, information about the applicants must be collected from various sources. HR managers collect information on application forms, resumes, and cover letters from scoring guides on interviews and through reference checks. Some employers also have test scores.
Sometimes, all collected selection information is ideal, and the decision can be straightforward. However, sometimes the information is unclear; perhaps the candidate did well in the interview but poorly on the cognitive ability test or did not receive good recommendations from their references. The HR manager will have to decide how to combine all this data to make a decision.
Statistical Data versus Judgemental Data
Two types of data are collected throughout the selection process:
- Objective/statistical data
- Subjective/judgemental data
Information collected from some sources, such as test scores, tends to be more objective; applicants’ numerical test results can easily be compared. As no human judgment is involved, this information/data is called statistical. Other information, such as resumes, unstructured interviews and reference checks, are from much more subjective sources. We refer to these methods of collecting applicant information or data as judgemental.
Just as applicant data can be collected statistically or judgmentally, the data can be combined using statistical and judgemental methods. So, several possible methods of data collection and combinations can be used.
In a pure judgment approach, subjective data such as unstructured interviews, resumes, and reference checks are collected and combined in a judgmental manner. A judgemental manner is when the HR manager or hiring manager decides to hire the candidate based on a gut feeling. This method is prone to biases as the selection decision is based on an overall, subjective impression of the candidate’s job ability.
Under a purely statistical approach, objective data, such as test scores and weighted application blanks, are collected and combined statistically. Combining statistically means totalling the test scores or scores from other sources and hiring the top scorer. Using a statistical method in hiring is a way to limit personal stereotypes and perceptions of the interviewers.
Judgemental Composite
The most common method HR managers use to make selection decisions is a judgemental composite—judgemental and statistical data are collected and combined in a judgmental manner. The HR manager or hiring manager then considers, for example, the test scores and the interview and forms an overall impression of which candidate to hire.
“21 Testing and Other Selection Methods” from Human Resources Management – Canadian Edition by Stéphane Brutus and Nora Baronian is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.—Modifications: Used section 9. Combining the information, edited, added content.
