Industrial Psychologist interview questions
Interview questions with sample answers
Psychological interview questions usually require you to describe how you reacted to a specific situation or how you might respond to a hypothetical situation posed by the interviewer. These questions are designed to show the hiring manager certain personality traits and soft skills you have that can help you perform the job well. Since most psychological interview questions are situational, its usually helpful to use the STAR interview response method whenever possible. With STAR, you highlight the following in your answer:
The STAR method ensures you provide necessary details about the situation, either real or hypothetical, to help the hiring manager envision the story while also highlighting the actions you took or would take to achieve success.
Review a few example psychological questions with sample answers to help you prepare for your next job interview:
Can you tell me about a situation in which you had to think creatively to solve a problem?
Hiring managers ask this type of question to understand how you approach problem-solving and creative thinking. Both of these skills are highly sought after for most occupations and career fields, so you can anticipate a question like this one at some point during your job interview. You can apply the STAR method to this question to help formulate a thorough answer. Ensure you highlight how you specifically used creativity and problem solving, even if you worked with a team on the overall challenge. Use this example answer to help you prepare your own:
Example: “In my past position as a child caregiver, I had a two-year-old student who refused to keep their jacket on outside even in cold weather. They were very good at zippers and would just unzip and remove the coat as soon as I put it on their body. After a couple of days of constantly putting the childs jacket back on, I had the idea of putting the coat on the child backward, so the zipper was on their back rather than their front. This method worked really well—my student loved that they could get their arms into the coat by themselves and would let me zip them up the back so they could go play.”
Tips for psychological interviews
Use these tips to help you prepare for and succeed during a psychological interview:
Example: “The two most important skills for an industrial psychologist are problem-solving and communication. Industrial psychologists need to be able to solve problems that arise within a company, whether they’re related to employee satisfaction or productivity. I think being able to communicate effectively with others is also essential because we often collaborate with other professionals on projects. In my previous position, I worked alongside engineers to create a more effective training program.”
If you’re looking to work in this field, you’ll need to be prepared to answer some tough questions. In this guide, we’ll provide you with some sample questions and answers that will help you ace your industrial psychologist interview.
Example: “I’ve found that receiving constructive criticism is an important part of my growth as an industrial psychologist. I try to take every piece of feedback seriously and use it to make improvements in my work. In the past, I’ve had colleagues give me feedback on presentations or reports I’ve written, and I always appreciate their honesty. They have helped me learn new ways to communicate information more clearly.”
Example: “If I noticed a significant drop in productivity among my employees, I would first try to determine why this was happening. I would hold a meeting with all of my employees to discuss any changes that may have occurred within the workplace or company. If there were no major changes, I would then ask each employee about their individual performance to see if they had any personal issues that could be affecting their work. After addressing these concerns, I would create new policies and procedures to ensure productivity doesn’t decrease again.”
Example: “I am very familiar with the Big Five personality traits because I use them in my assessments all the time. These five traits are openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness and neuroticism. Openness refers to someone’s creativity and intellect. Conscientiousness refers to someone’s ability to plan ahead and follow through on tasks. Extraversion refers to someone’s sociability and friendliness. Agreeableness refers to someone’s kindness and compassion toward others. And neuroticism refers to someone’s emotional stability.”
While most organizations use interviews in employment decision making, many have not maximized the effectiveness of their interviewing process. In the section on Types of Employment Tests, the advantages and disadvantages of interviews were presented. In this section, we discuss what distinguishes an effective interview from an ineffective one. Research has been fairly conclusive in showing that structuring an interviewmaking sure that the characteristics to be evaluated are clearly identified, that all interviewers ask the same questions of all candidates, that interviewers are well trained, and that interviewee performance is evaluated using well-developed rating scalesleads to a more effective interview process.
Interviews are not just opportunities to learn more about candidates; they are also opportunities for managers to help candidates learn more about the job. When candidates have a realistic understanding of their job, their expectations are more likely to be met. When a job fails to live up to an individuals expectations, he/she is more likely to be dissatisfied and ultimately leave the position. When encountering tight labor markets, managers may be inclined to only relay the positive aspects of a job to candidates. Although this approach may result in short-term success, ultimately more time is spent hiring as candidates continually leave the position.
Employers must consider a number of factors in deciding what candidate characteristics will be evaluated in the interview. Questions to be considered include: Is this a knowledge, skill, or characteristic that is important to success on the job or to some outcome of interest (e.g., low turnover)? Is the interview the best way to assess this important knowledge skill or ability? How much overlap would be best between the interview and other tests used in the decision-making process?
To increase the chances of hiring a good candidate, use the interview experience to sell the job and the company. Prior to the interview, talk to employees in the company and find out what they like best about the organization. Then, when talking to candidates about what they are looking for in a work experience, relay how the job and the organization can meet their needs. To make the most of this selling opportunity, think about the interview experience from the candidates perspective. A candidates experience in the interview process affects his/her opinions about the organization. Being treated professionally and talking with a well-prepared interviewer creates a positive impression and experience.
A systematic evaluation of individuals responses to interview questions is helpful for several reasons. It allows for a comparison across candidates who are often interviewed by different individuals or even by the same individual across a wide time span. It requires the interviewer to evaluate the candidate on the job-relevant characteristics identified as important, not on any idiosyncratic set of criteria. Standardization in rating scales provides documentation that all candidates were evaluated on the same basis.
FAQ
How do I prepare for a psych interview?
- Prepare in advance. The best way to show confidence during a psychological interview is to prepare for potential questions in advance. …
- Be honest. Keep your answers honest in your interview. …
- Know the goal. …
- Highlight your experience. …
- Stay calm.
What questions do industrial psychologists ask?
Tell me about an experience in which you analyzed information and evaluated results to choose the best solution to a problem. Provide an example when you were able to prevent a problem because you foresaw the reaction of another person.
What is interview in industrial psychology?
What questions are asked in a psychological interview?
Why Did You Choose Psychology As Your Career? What Parts of Your Work Do You Enjoy the Most/Least? What Do You Think Are the Most Important Qualities and Skills of a Top-Notch Psychologist? What Are Your Strengths and Weaknesses as a Psychologist?
