Job seekers: remain calm during tests

Job interviews can be stressful but if a standardized test is involved it's crucial to remain calm – even if you hate taking tests, says a new study published in the Journal of Applied Psychology.

Research shows candidates' reactions can affect their performance on the test, said Julie McCarthy. The associate professor in the Department of Management at the University of Toronto Scarborough and the Rotman School of Management was part of an international team of researchers working on the study.

"The findings are an important consideration both for organizations and for applicants," McCarthy said. "There is clearly value in training programs to help applicants minimize test anxiety and stay motivated."

Working with researchers in the United States and Belgium, McCarthy also found that doing well on a job test predicted strong job performance.

"Candidates who experience high levels of anxiety, for instance, will have low test performance while those who are motivated by tests will perform better, both on the test and on the job," McCarthy said.

The researchers also determined that skepticism about standardized tests or the fairness of the application process did affect candidates' performance on the test itself but did not reliably predict their performance on the job.

McCarthy partnered with Chad Van Iddekinge of Florida State University, Filip Lievens of Ghent University, Mei-Chuan Kung of Select International in Pittsburgh, Evan Sinar of Development Dimensions International in Bridgeville Pennsylvania and Michael Campion of Purdue University. The researchers examined data from studies on three continents.

The research was partly funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.

Shelley Romoff is a writer with the University of Toronto Scarborough.