Editing Integrity (section)

== In psychological/work-selection tests ==

{{See also|Employment integrity testing}}

"Integrity tests" or (more confrontationally) "honesty tests"<ref>{{cite book |last=van Minden |first=Jack J.R. |url=https://www.sdgshop.nl/product/alles-over-psychologische-tests-hardcover-1-januari-1900/' |title=Alles over psychologische tests |publisher=Business Contact |year=2005 |isbn=978-9025404154 |pages=206–208 |language=nl |access-date=2010-04-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091126052236/http://www.bol.com/nl/p/boeken/alles-over-psychologische-tests/1001004001667648/index.html |archive-date=2009-11-26 |url-status=dead|quote={{lang|nl|...deze 'integriteitstests' (dat klinkt prettiger dan eerlijkheids- of leugentests)...}} [...these 'integrity tests' (that sounds nicer than honesty test or lies tests)...]}}</ref> aim to identify prospective employees who may hide perceived negative or derogatory aspects of their past, such as a criminal conviction or drug abuse. Identifying unsuitable candidates can save the employer from problems that might otherwise arise during their term of employment. Integrity tests make certain assumptions, specifically:<ref>{{cite book |last=van Minden |first=Jack J.R. |url=https://www.sdgshop.nl/product/alles-over-psychologische-tests-hardcover-1-januari-1900/' |title=Alles over psychologische tests |publisher=Business Contact |year=2005 |isbn=978-9025404154 |page=207 |language=nl |access-date=2010-04-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091126052236/http://www.bol.com/nl/p/boeken/alles-over-psychologische-tests/1001004001667648/index.html |archive-date=2009-11-26 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
* that persons who have "low integrity" report more dishonest behaviour
* that persons who have "low integrity" try to find reasons to justify such behaviour
* that persons who have "low integrity" think others more likely to commit crimes—like theft, for example. (Since people seldom sincerely declare to prospective employers their past deviance, the "integrity" testers adopted an indirect approach: letting the work-candidates talk about what they think of the deviance of other people, considered in general, as a written answer demanded by the questions of the "integrity test".)<ref name=tipvanminden>{{cite book |last=van Minden |first=Jack J.R. |url=https://www.sdgshop.nl/product/alles-over-psychologische-tests-hardcover-1-januari-1900/' |title=Alles over psychologische tests |publisher=Business Contact |year=2005 |isbn=978-9025404154 |page=207 |language=nl |access-date=2010-04-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091126052236/http://www.bol.com/nl/p/boeken/alles-over-psychologische-tests/1001004001667648/index.html |archive-date=2009-11-26 |url-status=dead|quote=TIP: {{lang|nl|Dit type vragenlijsten melden koelbloedig dat zij kunnen ontdekken wanneer u een misleidend antwoord geeft of de zaak bedondert. U weet langzammerhand dat geen enkele test zo'n claim waar kan maken, zelfs niet een die gespecialiseerd is in het opsporen van bedriegers.}} [TIP: This sort of questions lists mention in cool blood that they are able to detect when you give a cheating answer or try to deceive the test. You are step by step learning that no test could make true such a pretense, not even one specialized in detecting cheaters.]}}</ref>
* that persons who have "low integrity" exhibit [[impulsivity|impulsive]] behaviour
* that persons who have "low integrity" tend to think that society should severely punish deviant behaviour (specifically, "integrity tests" assume that people who have a history of deviance report within such tests that they support harsher measures applied to the deviance exhibited by other people.)

The claim that such tests can detect "fake" answers plays a crucial role in detecting people who have low integrity. Naive respondents really believe this pretense and behave accordingly, reporting some of their past deviance and their thoughts about the deviance of others, fearing that if they do not answer truthfully their untrue answers will reveal their "low integrity". These respondents believe that the more candid they are in their answers, the higher their "integrity score" will be.<ref name=tipvanminden/>{{clarify|date=April 2020}}