Assessment Tips

What is socially-desirable answering behavior?

During selection procedures, many candidates will try to provide 'socially-desirable' answers when filling out a personality test. They will opt for statements that leave a favorable impression. For instance, they might choose the statement 'No one works as hard as I do' over 'I don't always help colleagues at work'. However, answering in this manner is unbeneficial. Organizations will recognize the dishonesty when they review the test report.

When completing a Big Five personality test, bear in mind that the test also includes items that assess the extent of socially-desirable answering. This is termed the social desirability scale. The items of this scale don't measure personality; they measure socially-desirable answering behavior.

An example is the statement, "No one works harder than I do." It's likely that this statement doesn't genuinely apply to anyone. If someone responds with "strongly agree," it may indicate socially-desirable answering.

This item doesn't genuinely apply to anyone. If someone answers 'strongly agree', it can be an indication of socially-desirable answering. Most personality tests indicate the extent of socially- desirable answers on a scale, typically ranging from one (not socially desirable) to ten (very socially- desirable). More advanced personality tests, like The Bridge Personality, go much beyond this. This test also provides a score on agreeable answering behavior and the consistency between normative and ipsative answers. These scales help determine the candidate's honesty, which is useful information during recruitment and selection with a personality test.

This technique is also available in the Competency Test, the 16 Personality Test and the 4-Color Personality Test.

Recognize socially-desirable answers in a personality test with Normative-Ipsative Split Technology®

The Bridge Personality uses a system that includes three main scales to understand how directive someone is when answering questions. It also uses Normative-Ipsative Split Technology®. This technology shows how strong someone's directive behavior is for different personality traits. For example, it can indicate if a person is honest about their attention to detail but not as truthful about their focus on results. This information is helpful during the selection process.

If a candidate has difficulty choosing among statements related to a specific dimension, a normative-ipsative split will appear in the report next to that dimension. The 'N' (for normative) is positioned beneath the normative score, while the 'I' (for ipsative) is placed below the ipsative score. This dimension reflects the candidate's challenges in decision-making. It's intriguing to explore the reasons behind this. Several factors could be involved (such as the explanations provided earlier). The feedback provider and the candidate should discuss this together. A normative-ipsative split isn't negative; it simply offers additional insights.

Example of a Normative-Normative-Ipsative Split

In the below example page of The Bridge Personality report, there is a normative-ipsative split at the competency: Abstract. Here the normative score is 7, where the ipsative score is 4. Hence, the split appears in the report, representing a certain doubt that the participant had while completing the questionnaire. This doubt can either be intentional faking (this may occur with job applicants in recruitment procedures), or it may represent a doubt that the participant has on the specific competency (Abstract). For example, the normative score (N) may represent the behavior in social environments (at home) and the ipsative (I) represents the behavior at work. Of course, there can be many other reasons why a participant displays a certain amount of doubt on a competency.  The normative-ipsative will help you to recognize the doubt and discuss it with the participant.

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