Case Study: Robert Jordan v. New London Police Department
In a notable case, Robert Jordan was rejected for a police officer position in New London, Connecticut, because his score on the Wonderlic Personnel Test (WPT) was considered too high. His score of 33, equivalent to an IQ of 125, surpassed the department's maximum cutoff of 27 (IQ of 104). The department's policy was based on the belief that individuals with higher cognitive abilities might become bored and dissatisfied with police work. Subsequently, Jordan sued the department, claiming his rejection constituted discrimination and a violation of his civil rights under the equal protection clause. However, the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against him, affirming that no discrimination had occurred because the same hiring standards were applied equally to all applicants.
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Use of Personality Tests in Employee Selection
Validation of Selection Tests
Types of Tests in Employee Selection
Cutoff Scores in Selection Testing
Case Study: Robert Jordan v. New London Police Department
Evaluating an Employee Selection Process
A rapidly growing tech company needs to hire several entry-level software developers. The hiring manager decides to use a single assessment for all applicants: a highly competitive abstract reasoning test designed to measure raw problem-solving ability. The company plans to hire only those who score in the top percentile. Based on principles of effective employee selection, what is the most significant weakness of this approach?
Rationale for Upper Cutoff Scores in Hiring
Case Study: Robert Jordan v. New London Police Department
Dilemma of Universal Cutoff Scores in Hiring