THE BIOGRAPHICAL ITEM: CAN IT BE IMPROVED?^1,2

A Model of Faking Likelihood in the Employment Interview

“…By using items pertaining to historical events that have taken place or continue to take place, respondents are discouraged from presenting fictionalized versions of themselves (Asher, 1972). External items refer to actions occurring in actual, real-life situations and exclude thoughts, attitudes, and opinions, as well as unexpressed reactions to events.…”

“…On the contrary, subjective items (e.g., personality types of questions) involve interpretation thus allowing self-deception, self-justification, and self-enhancing distortion. As a result, individuals may suppress reactions or assume reactions that never happened (Asher, 1972;Mael, 1991).…”

Armed Services Applicant Profile (ASAP): Development and Validation of Operational Forms

“…Yet, these scales also tend to include a greater proportion of eclectic and behaviorally-objective background types of items that have been shown to he less susceptible to response distortion (Trent, 1987b). Asher (1972) has recommended the use of verifiable items to enhance reliability. ASAP items vary in the extent to which they are perceived by the respondent as potentially verifiable (Hanson, Hallam, & Hough, 1989).…”

“…Biographical questionnaires provide a cost-effective methoxd of identifying and quantifying experiences, behaviors, and attitudes relevant to adaptation to, and successful completion of, military service. This use of biodata has received considerable support from industrial applications, where research has demonstrated that biodata items are valid predictors of a variety of complex behaviors such as job performance, creativity, and tenure (Asher, 1972;Chancy & Owens, 1964;Crawford & Trent, 1987;Schuh, 1967). In a comprehensive review of the validity of tests for predicting training and occupational success, Ghiselli (1966) concluded that biographical data.…”

Recruiters’ Inferences of Applicant Personality Based on Resume Screening: Do Paper People have a Personality?

“…Mael (1991) has noted that any event or behavior that has taken place is a shaper of future behavior, and is, therefore, appropriate subject matter for biographical data. Asher (1972) has defined biographical information or ''biodata'' as representing ''historical and verifiable pieces of information about an individual (p. 266).''…”