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Blowing away ethnic stereotyping in tests

January 07, 2005

It is often thought that Asian cultures value accuracy over speed of performance and Black groups are less concerned with accuracy than White groups. Contrary to popular belief research shows these stereotypes do not exist in psychometric testing.

These are among the findings of research reported by Helen Baron, independent practitioner, Tamsin Martin from SHL Group plc and Claire Chissick, Chris Elshaw, Kirsty Weston, Ashley Proud from Qinetiq, Centre for Human Sciences, today Wednesday 12 January 2005 at the British Psychological Society's Annual Occupational Psychology Conference. The conference, sponsored by Pearn Kandola, is being held at the Chesford Grange Hotel, just outside the town of Warwick.

Attitudes towards the importance of time are one of the issues upon which cultures typically differ. In their study of 338 test takers, Baron and colleagues found that Asian candidates worked as fast but were less accurate than White candidates, whilst Black candidates worked more slowly and carefully. The psychologists conclude that cultural attitudes to time, such as the Western preoccupation with speed, do not translate in a simple manner into test performance.

The fact that some tests have to be completed at a fast pace to get the best scores will not necessarily result in unfairness to some ethnic groups. Varying the time limits on the tests was found to have no impact on the relative performance of the different ethnic groups. .

In a related piece of research involving 2,290 job candidates, Black and Asian test takers were found to guess more than Whites. Black candidates checked their answers less than test takers from other groups - despite or perhaps because, they worked a little slower.

The findings of the research reported today have serious implications for the way tests are used. Time limits on test are not discriminatory per se. Indeed, they can reflect the importance of speed in work performance. However, the authors warn employers using tests to ensure candidates use practice materials. Practice materials will offer the candidates advice on test taking techniques and ensure that all candidates approach tests in the same way. This will eliminate the impact of test taking style on the test results. By offering practice leaflets, employers will fulfil their duty to create a fair and level playing field.

British Psychological Society (BPS)

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