4 questions a psychologist asks in a job interview
Anyone looking for a new job opportunity knows that selection processes can be complex and time-consuming. Interviews, dynamics and tests can be part of the stages and each new phase brings specific challenges and requires particular skills. Candidates need to be prepared for each one, including answering the questions a psychologist asks in a job interview .
Anyone who thinks that only the recruiter will do interviews is mistaken, as specific questions can be asked by people from each area, including the direct manager and a psychologist. Each conversation has a different purpose and the conversation with this professional allows you to evaluate the candidates’ profile .
When planning to open a new vacancy, the recruitment and selection sector must evaluate several issues and consult the area manager to define, among other things, what characteristics are desired in the new employee. With this, it is possible to determine a certain profile that is most appropriate, either to the specific routine of the sector or to the needs of the tasks.
It may be, for example, that the leader wants a professional with more analytical characteristics, or needs to be communicative as he will make presentations to the rest of the company. Determining these attributes makes the selection process more agile and will allow hiring that is more suited to the organization’s cultural fit .
The role of the psychologist in the selection process
With in-depth knowledge of the human psyche, the psychologist is better able to evaluate the behavioral characteristics of candidates. This way, he understands the nuances of your answers in more detail and, even between the lines, he can make analyzes that will help understand whether or not the professional is suitable for the position.
In addition to the interview, they can carry out this assessment through tests such as psychometric and personality tests, which help to visualize the desired traits in a candidate. See the main points that psychologists evaluate during the interview:
Response time
This helps them understand how a professional deals with unforeseen events, especially if they ask less obvious questions for the selection process. It also indicates your agility to reason and think of solutions or, in this case, preparing a response.
Insight
It may not seem like it, but even answers to simple questions offer indications of how a candidate behaves in a given situation, whether they can find solutions quickly, or whether they have the creativity to deal with unexpected situations. The interview is a good way to assess your ability to deal with adverse circumstances.
Self control
Self-control and emotional intelligence are important characteristics and one of the most desired behavioral points in companies. Not only to deal with the aforementioned unforeseen events, but also with pressure, the need for innovation and even demands to achieve goals. The psychologist is able to analyze this characteristic in the interview.
Psychologist interview questions
A professional committed to winning a position must always be prepared for the interview. This includes reading about the company, adapting answers to suit the type of work expected within what was stated in the job description, carrying out self-analysis and responding about strengths and weaknesses, identifying areas for improvement and results achieved.
However, preparing for the interview with the psychologist can be more difficult, as it involves care related to behavior, which is not as easy to practice as the answer itself. But we will include some questions asked by psychologists to help professionals in this process:
- How do you describe your profile?
- Why did you leave your previous job?
- Tell us how you solved a work problem
- How did you resolve a conflict with colleagues or bosses?
In general, these questions help to understand how the professional behaves. If you are able to admit your own mistakes, if you seek to improve and acquire new knowledge, and also, how you communicate with colleagues and managers.
How to answer the questions
There is no right answer, after all these questions require a personal comment, appropriate to each person’s life and experiences. However, there are some tips that help you go through this process successfully, check them out:
Tell the truth
Some professionals may try to “mask” reality, minimizing errors or negative aspects. But no one is perfect and trying to sound good at everything you do will seem like a lie. Therefore, especially in matters involving failures at work, be honest and point out what you did wrong without blaming others.
Show that you learned from your mistakes
When pointing out these issues, take the opportunity to indicate how the situation was resolved, your role in this process and what you learned from it. Everyone makes mistakes and what psychologists really want to know is how you deal with them and whether you are able to improve and avoid making the same mistake again.
Seek improvements
Both in technical and behavioral issues, there are always ways to evolve and improve. Show the psychologist what lessons you learned from the situations you faced and how you tried to improve through them. Also indicate that you continue to work on your professional development.