PSYCHOLOGY MASTER'S THESIS ABSTRACT

Yardena Bar-Cohen
Industrial/Organizational
May 1999

Faking Biodata Items: High Self-Monitors Versus Low Self-Monitors

    The relationship between self-monitoring and faking responses to biodata items used in employment selection was investigated.  One hundred twenty-nine college students completed two biodata questionnaires, designed for “Sales Managers” under both “honest” and “fake” instructions, in addition to Gangestad and Snyder’s Self-Monitoring Scale (SMS-R).  Results indicated a significant discrepancy between responses under “fake” administration and “honest” administration.  However, no differences were found in faking biodata items between low, moderate and high self-monitors.  In addition, the susceptibility of different types of biodata items to faking was examined.  Results indicated a significant difference in faking between “attitudinal,” “experiential,” and “demographic” type items; “experiential” type items were found most susceptible to faking, while “demographic” type items were least fakeable.

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