Employers are using personality tests to better understand their staff + Facial recognition is turning into a real-life Black Mirror experience
Facial recognition: A Black Mirror episode come to life. What started off as a simpler method of unlocking smartphones has given rise to more concerns about tech advancements and security, the Wall Street Journal writes, citing data industry experts. The technology has been adopted for a variety of uses, including home security and as a replacement for boarding tickets, but what it brings from convenience, it offsets with privacy invasion. Just like the majority of the things we share online, our facial features can be very easily sold from one company to another, with still-shaky laws on the matter. However, technology is expected to continue to have a more prominent presence in our lives, as part of our travels, entertainment, education, and law enforcement.
As they try to manage remote teams, employers are increasingly turning to personality tests, which provide insights into how employees feel and think, the New York Times reports. Personality tests have burgeoned into a USD 2 bn industry, according to Harvard University psychology professor Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic. Employers use the exams to better understand their employees’ working styles and to help them develop professional relationships, in addition to being used to inform decisions about hiring and promotions. However, critics have long questioned the validity of these tests, arguing that they do not always incorporate the latest developments in research and social changes. Psychologists are now beginning to address these concerns and making adjustments to make them better suited to hybrid work.
The Big Five: Psychologists have identified what’s referred to as the “Big Five” personality traits — extroversion, openness, conscientiousness, agreeableness, and neuroticism — that are universal. Extroversion, the extent to which a person is energized by social engagement, and openness, which relates to a person’s creativity and desire for new experiences, are two personality traits that have a particularly large impact on how people behave at work.
Want to know your own employee personality? You can take this nine-question personality test that determines your working style and assesses if you’re better suited to work from home or from the office.