What is Psychometric Testing?

Psychometric testing refers to the process of measuring a candidate's relevant strengths and weaknesses. This form of measurement is primarily employed to assess employment suitability, including company/candidate fit. The aim of psychometric tests is to gain an accurate summary of the candidate's cognitive abilities and personality and relational style.

The process of testing candidates is a bimodal process. In order to increase the validity of the psychometric testing process, p2p Recruitment endeavours to assess candidates using both cognitive tests and personality assessments. Implementing both forms of testing subsequently complements and increases the validity of the assessment process. Detailed below are the main areas of focus for both cognitive aptitude and personality assessments.

Cognitive / aptitudes psychometric tests

Cognitive abilities (i.e. numerical reasoning and spatial reasoning, etc.) are important characteristics for the successful application of skills in many occupations. Psychometric testing can provide key insights into a candidates ability to communicate, make decisions and calculate cause and effect in certain occupational scenarios.

p2p Recruitment offers psychometric tests to target specific areas of cognitive ability. Tests are drawn from five main cognitive aptitude types including; abstract/conceptual, verbal, numerical, emotional reasoning and business personality reflections. 

• Abstract / conceptual reasoning assessments are psychometric tests which focus primarily on a candidate's level of fluid intelligence. These tests measure a candidate's ability to promptly and accurately learn complex concepts and then apply the learning in a practical cintent. Abstract reasoning tests are culture-neutral as questions are presented in diagrammatical form, which reduces its emphasis on verbal ability.

• Verbal reasoning aptitude tests focus on the candidate's ability to effectively pay attention to and communicate business related concepts in a verbal form. These tests pay particular attention to candidates effective use of written ideas and information to construct accurate conclusions.

• Numerical reasoning aptitude tests establish a candidate's accuracy in numeracy skills in order to understand and present conclusions regarding numerical data, especially the interpretation of graphs and basic calculations.

• Emotional Intelligence reasoning tests a candidate's ability to successfully manage human interaction in roles such as customer service, human resources, sales roles and team work. 

• Personality tests are assessments, which require the least preparation on the candidate's part. Personality psychometric tests measure an individual's relatively stable behavioural tendencies and preferences within an occupational context. It is important to note that personality tests do not consist of questions which have correct answers assigned to them.