Personnel selection has always focused on one question: who will perform best? A 2025 provocation article argues this singular focus is ethically and practically inadequate, and that employee wellbeing should be treated as an explicit criterion alongside performance in how organisations select people.
Personality tests are widely used in hiring, with validity evidence drawn largely from low-stakes research settings. A 2025 meta-analysis finds that validity is consistently lower when the stakes are high and candidates have reason to present themselves strategically, raising questions about how well the published evidence base applies to real selection contexts.
Leadership research has long relied on broad personality traits. A 2026 meta-analysis of 203 datasets finds that the facets beneath those traits tell a considerably richer story, and that the personality profile that gets people chosen as leaders is often not the one that makes them effective.
Algorithms consistently outperform human judgment when combining assessment data to predict performance. A 2023 survey finds that practitioners know this and largely ignore it, and identifies the specific reasons why the evidence has failed to change practice.
How reliable are supervisor performance ratings, the standard measure against which all selection tools are validated? A 2024 meta-analysis finds higher reliability than previously estimated overall, but meaningful variation by job type that current practices do not adequately account for.
The Question In 1902, French colonial officials in Hanoi offered a bounty for rat tails to combat a plague-driven infestation. Residents duly
Workplace wellbeing programmes are widely offered and widely trusted. A 2024 study of 46,000 workers finds that participants report mental health outcomes no better than those who received nothing at all.
The Question The question of whether male and female brains are organised differently has been scientifically contentious and culturally charged in roughly
Situational judgment tests and assessment centres are both widely used in selection. A 2024 head-to-head comparison finds they are not interchangeable: one predicts thinking performance well, the other is needed for interpersonal and leadership performance. The right question is not which is better, but better at predicting what.
Studies You Should Know: General Cognitive Ability and Job Performance: A Contemporary Reassessment The Question Few findings in industrial and organisational psychology have
