Personality tests measure basic aspects of an applicant’s personality, such as introversion, stability, and motivation. Some of these tests are projective. The psychologist presents an ambiguous stimulus (like an inkblot or clouded picture) to the person. The person then reacts to it. Other personality tests are self-reported: applicants complete them themselves.
Industrial psychologists often focus on the “Big Five” personality dimensions: extraversion, emotional stability/neuroticism,agreeableness, conscientiousness, and openness to experience.
Personality traits can be predictive since they do often correlate with job performance. Other traits correlate with occupational success. For example, extraversion correlates with success in sales and management jobs. However, there are three caveats.
First, projective tests are hard to interpret. An expert must analyze the test taker’s interpretations and make conclusions about his or her personality. Second, personality tests can trigger legal challenges. Third, some dispute that self-reported personality tests predict performance at all.
Be aware of what you expect from a personality test and the caveats associated with it. Nonetheless, personality tests can be a valuable source of information.