QUESTION TRADE TESTS
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interviewer is only wasting time by asking questions on
this subject; for no one would apply for work at such a
place who was not determined to swear on his honor that
he never touched a drop.
These instances may be slight exaggerations, but they
nevertheless serve to point out the absurdity of some
questions. Moreover, they also point out the importance
of the element of suggestion in an employment interview.
One of the greatest discoveries of psychologists has been
the part which suggestion plays in ordinary life, and the
mechanism by which it works. In the case of the ordinary
applicant, anxious to obtain a job, there is usually a great
deal of room for the operation of this factor. The applicant
is naturally very desirous of pleasing the interviewer
as far as possible; for with him rests the decision as to
whether he will obtain a job or not, and whether it will
be a poor or a good one. Consequently, the applicant
watches the interviewer for the least little sign. He literally
hangs upon his word and expression. He answers
as nearly as possible what he thinks the interviewer
would like to hear from him. He will praise the present
company and condemn its rivals. He will insist on his
willingness to work. He will be deferential and courteous.
He will enlarge on his experience and training. He will
describe his studies and call attention to his ambitions.
In short, he will put his best foot forward. If, during the
interview, he exaggerates slightly or distorts the truth,
it is hardly fair to call him dishonest. He is simply giving
himself the benefit of the doubt, and he is trying to represent
himself as the kind of a man that the interviewer,
at the moment, would like him to be,—is, in fact, suggesting
that he should be. If this is remembered, a great
many questions which are now asked would be omitted,
