Use of behavioral versus traditional procedures for increasing job interview skills.

Abstract

The improvement of job interview skills was studied using 45 paid student volunteers who were drawn equally from business administration and nursing. The students were randomly divided among a behavior training group, a traditional discussion training group, and a control group. Before and after training, all of the students completed a videotaped simulated job interview, which was independently rated by two judges for length of eye contact, length of response, voice affect, loudness of voice, ability to explain skills, openness, positive self-statements, and speech disturbances. After the interviews, the students completed a self-report anxiety measure. The pre-and posttraining scores were compared by univariate analyses of variance and post hoc tests.The students in the three groups reported a similar decrease in anxiety after their training experience. After training, the behavioral group showed a greater increase in eye contact, while the traditional group showed a greater improvement in length of speaking and in ability to explain skills. A combination of the two training techniques might be the most promising workshop model for future job interview training.-

Interviewee Training: A Review of Some Empirical Literature

“…al, (1968) and Stevens and Tornatzky (1976) studies, all studies involved ratings of interview behaviors in simulated job interviews by either trained raters or practicing personnel managers. In addition, two studies (Austin & Grant, 1981;Hollandsworth et. al., 1977) employed self-ratings of interview performance, while the Hollandsworth et.…”

“…Ratings by a personnel manager showed increases in the four global areas of enthusiasm, positive information conveyed, ambition, and the probability of hire. Hollandsworth, Dressel, and Stevens (1977) assessed the effectiveness of behavioral and discussion training for increasing job interview skills among college seniors. Using a pretest and posttest control group design, Hollandsworth, Dressel, and Stevens found that subjects who received behavioral training (modeling, response rehearsal, directed feedback) exhibited a greater increase in the percentage of eye contact than either the discussion or control group.…”

Excerpts from. . . The Employment Interview

“…A six-month follow up showed no significant attitudinal differences between the two groups but those who participated in the interview workshop obtained higher paying jobs. Hollandsworth, Dressel, and Stevens (1977) developed a job interviewee skills workshop based on behavioral procedures such as modeling, role playing, and directive feedback, and compared it with a traditional lecture-discussion group approach, as well as with a no-treatment control group. .…”

Use of Social‐skills Training in the Treatment of Extreme Anxiety and Deficient Verbal Skills in the Job‐interview Setting

“…In addition, several controlled investigations have supported the effectiveness of this approach Hollandsworth, Dressel, and Stevens, 1977;Keil and Barbee, 1973). Other studies in the area of social-skills training also appear to be directly applicable to the job-interview setting.…”