Interviews are among the most popular personnel selection instruments ® for both the applicant and HR staff alike. However, the major drawback with classic, unstructured interviews is their low predictive validity, i.e. their inability to make an estimate on an applicant's future job performance.
In contrast, the Multimodal Interview MMI® is a semi-standardized job interview combining the advantages of the classic job interview with the principles of modern psychometric assessment. Its high levels of validity and acceptance by candidates and users, have been proven in numerous scientific investigations. In addition to personnel assessment, it can be used in performance appraisal systems and to identify personnel training needs (training interview).
The MMI® consists of both structured and unstructured interview parts. The principles of multimodality are combined here to form an efficient and user-friendly personnel selection instrument by taking into account the three central approaches of modern psychometric assessment (i.e. trait approach, behavioral approach and biographical approach). This feature, together with a previous job analysis, plus clear structure allows ease of navigation through the various parts of the interview, enabling the Multimodal Interview MMI® to achieve an extremely high predictive validity of up to r=.52.
With the results, a total value and individual values for each separate dimension are calculated. Interview results can also be compared with values from various reference groups. The structured design and standardized questions with response anchors accompanying the applicant's answers also ensure a high level of objectivity. Other advantages of this instrument are the time efficiency (on average 45 minutes; for personnel development purposes between approx. 60 and 90 minutes) and high applicant acceptance ® applicants perceive the Multimodal Interview MMI® as a pleasant form of conversation, informative in nature, and providing assistance with personnel decision-making issues.
The MMI® is designed with specific target groups and companies in mind, in collaboration with the managerial staff and HR personnel of each organization. This allows us to develop an interview guide which takes into account the company's unique features and which enjoys high acceptance by both parties. For smaller companies with fewer job vacancies per year, a standardized mid-sized company version is available.
The Multimodal Interview MMI® is a registered trademark of S & F Personalpsychologie.
© 2009 S & F Personalpsychologie. All rights reserved.
