Dissertations and Theses @ UNI
Availability
Open Access Thesis
Keywords
Cover letters; Employee selection--Biographical methods; Extraversion; Personnel management--Psychological aspects; Résumés (Employment); Soft skills; Academic theses;
Abstract
This following thesis study examined the accuracy of extraversion judgments accrued from resumes and cover letters. Within personnel selection, professionals often rely upon the applicant resume as an initial prescreening tool. Little empirical research, however, has explored whether reviewers use the resume and cover letter in a reliable fashion. Moreover, the current research base has not explored whether cover letters improve the accuracy of certain personality inferences made from resume biodata. Based upon the premises of Funder's (1995) Realistic Accuracy Model (RAM), the author posited that cover letters improve the accuracy of extraversion judgments made from resumes. The second intention of this study was to determine to what extent resume format influenced the accuracy of reviewer extraversion inferences taken from resume biodata. One hundred and four (N = I 04) students from two Midwestern universities reviewed the resumes and cover letters of two applicants. They were given either a resume with a cover letter or a resume without a cover letter. Furthermore, reviewers were given either the applicant's functionally formatted resume or the applicant's chronologically formatted resume. The author tested the 2 x 2 (cover letter presence x resume format) factorial design using three separate multivariate MANOVAs. Results of the study were as follows: (1) reviewers were generally unreliable in assessing an applicant's level of extraversion based upon resume biodata; (2) reviewers were more reliable if they received the applicant's cover letter; (3) applicants were viewed as being more hirable by reviewers if they included a cover letter with their resume; (4) resume format did not significantly influence the accuracy of reviewer extraversion judgments or the perceived hire ability of applicants. The findings of this thesis study suggest that researchers and practitioners should consider using multiple methods when assessing an applicant's credentials to avoid relying upon inaccurate implicit assumptions. Moreover, it would behoove HR professionals to encourage applicants to include a cover letter with their resumes.
Year of Submission
2009
Degree Name
Master of Arts
Department
Department of Psychology
First Advisor
Michael Gasser
Second Advisor
Adam Butler
Third Advisor
John Williams
Date Original
2009
Object Description
1 PDF file (101 leaves)
Copyright
©2009 Matthew Sean Christensen
Language
en
File Format
application/pdf
Recommended Citation
Christensen, Matthew Sean, "Resumes and Cover Letters: The Accuracy of Extraversion Judgments Made From Resume and Cover Letter Biodata" (2009). Dissertations and Theses @ UNI. 2339.
https://scholarworks.uni.edu/etd/2339
Comments
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