Lying candidates. Why do people lie during selection interviews?

Aarticle by Diego Ingrassia – “Lying candidates. Why people lie during selection interviews?“ – November 2019_HARVARD BUSINESS REVIEW

Try typing the phrase “how to approach a selection interview”. Below the search engine string you will see this data: about 646,00 results in 0.40 seconds.

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Statistics say that most of us do not go beyond the first four or five pages, in any case we already have dozens and dozens of information and tips. Let us look at some of them: how to write a CV; how to acquire information about the company; how to deepen the job description. We then find pages dedicated to personal preparation that provide advice on communication style, verbal and non-verbal, management of emotions and stress. Finally, the dress code is mentioned and some documents also refer to breath and fragrances.

There is also no shortage of tips for those who sit on the other side of the table, with a focus on the best questions to ask the candidate to really find out who they are. There is nothing wrong with this, although the impression one gets from these premises is a kind of challenge between those who are better at playing their cards.

Let’s imagine then for a moment that we are observing from above that table where two people, clearly with different roles, are sitting opposite each other.
From such a vantage point, it is easier to analyse the scene according to a systemic logic, and in this case it would be wise to think that the best possible encounter between the needs and interests of the two parties should result from the conversation. In reality, this does not happen, or still happens too rarely, and one of the main reasons is related to the fact that people lie at selection tables.

Research carried out in the UK by EIA (Emotional Intelligence Academy) analyses themost frequent distortions andomissions:
– the salary previously received (23%)
– the level of previous experience (14%)
– the actual qualification (13%)
– dates and duration of previous duties (10%)
– the recognised professional title (9%).

The figures for these small or large disguises are increasing: this is not surprising in a market that requires candidates to distinguish themselves and stand out, in an increasingly competitive and selective scenario. In some cases dissimulation is limited to mere exaggeration, but in many others we are faced with truly false and incorrect statements. Here the new recruit may be genuinely unfit for the job, and his incompetence may result in serious damage to the company in terms of time and money. As well as affecting other potential candidates, who are unjustly discarded during the selection process even if they are more competent.

For several years now, the field of investigation in selection has extended beyond the area of specialised skills, and has increasingly focused on the area of so-called soft skills, with the aim of understanding the candidate’s motivations, values and behavioural orientations. Lying about these aspects is more difficult if those conducting the selection are prepared to pick up on aspects of an emotional-behavioural nature. In more general terms, it should be reiterated that the selection interview should never be experienced as a challenge, and this applies to both sides of the table. The asymmetric game aimed at proving who is better, who wins and who loses, does not pay and exposes to that risk well summarised by the statement that ‘companies hire for skills and fire for behaviour’.
The time is ripe to start thinking that the knowledge we have at our disposal can help us change the culture that accompanies selection activities, thus approaching them with a different mindset.

The tendency for candidates to provide untrue data, which we mentioned earlier, is basically nothing more than a response, certainly not a correct one, to a widespread perceptual distortion that leads to a misinterpretation of the meaning of these activities. Countering this tendency is possible starting with a commitment to improving the skills of those responsible for handling selection interviews.
The ability to observe and the sensitivity of those working in the sector must improve, in order to extend the investigation to the sphere of emotions and motivations, thus enhancing those aspects linked to emotional intelligence that play a decisive role in the balance of the assessment process.