Integrity tests are used to assess honesty and ethical principles in pre-employment screening and to confirm adherence to a company’s code of conduct. They can be administered via interview, computer program, or paper-and-pencil test. Critics question their validity, and laws regarding their use vary by country.
An integrity test is a test that is administered for the purpose of learning more about someone’s honesty and adherence to ethical principles. Such tests are used as a pre-employment screening to help companies identify candidates with high levels of integrity and can also be used as a follow-up for people who are already employed to confirm they adhere to the company’s code of conduct. The law regarding sanity testing varies and may not be legal in all industries.
In an integrity test, the test taker is asked a series of questions regarding moral or ethical issues. This can be done in an interview with a test administrator or via a computer program or paper-and-pencil test. The integrity test is designed in such a way that the answers to the questions should reveal important information about the candidate’s integrity.
Integrity tests are intended to identify risks. These can include employees who may cheat or steal, people who have difficulty adhering to ethical standards, and those who may pose a threat to job security. They are designed to be used in conjunction with other pre-employment screening tests, such as background checks, references and a job interview, to provide a more complete picture of a job candidate.
Some critics have questioned the validity of integrity tests. While test companies often come up with meaningful results, these can be difficult to replicate. A test taker may be able to pass the test by answering questions in a calculating manner, and someone who is under stress may fail the test because they cannot understand the questions or the purpose of the test is not clear. Problem framing of questions on an integrity test can also confuse test takers and result in invalid responses. Furthermore, the test does not necessarily predict behavior; someone of high integrity may be frustrated by abusive working conditions, for example, and cheat or steal in the workplace.
Many nations have laws that are designed to protect job seekers from discrimination. In some countries, a sanity test is legal because it is not deemed to infringe any rights; will not subject anyone to undue discrimination based on gender, race, disability status, or other identities that may be protected. Other nations, however, acting to challenge the validity of such tests, have determined that they are not legal at all or that employees should have the right to refuse them without having their questions jeopardized by the refusal.
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