Integrity is the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles. Although no particular definition of integrity is entirely agreed on in the literature, there is a general consensus advocating that integrity relates to qualities such as the consistency, truthfulness and accuracy of one’s actions, values and principles.
With respect to selection for employment, integrity is usually defined as including behaviors such as trustworthiness, fairness, dependability, conscientiousness, reliability, honesty and avoidance of deviant behavior.
The Value of Workplace Integrity
Studies on the topic illustrate that the concept of integrity has important contributions to make to an organization’s selection system. Integrity in the workplace is the same as it is outside of the work environment. However, in a workplace setting, integrity is considered to be one of the most important qualities that organizations seek in their employees, as it does not only foster a transparent and positive work environment but also an ethical approach to decision making. Organizations and leaders that place high emphasis on integrity are more likely to keep high-value customers and reduce employee turnover, as integrity has been found to be a determinant of organizational trust, work engagement, performance and a vital component for effective leadership. Moreover, research suggests that higher levels of integrity relate to lower levels of counterproductive behaviors at work. To conclude, integrity is not only crucial to avoid costly errors and illegal activity, but most importantly it helps in preserving the core values of the organizations in place, which are vital for organizational success.
What does the Integrity Indicator look like?
Remember that there is no need for the candidates to undertake any additional assessment in order for you to have access to the Integrity Indicator.
Do note that like all personality questions, this will cover most of the common scenarios, but there will always be exceptions that confirm the rule.
The Integrity Indicator is only available in specific plans. If you are interested in including this indicator to your assessment, please reach out to Bryq Customer Success and we will guide you through the process. We are always happy to help! :)
Click here for instructions on how to add Indicators to your assessments.
Indicative Roles: Financial advisors, Treasurer, Controller, Credit counselor, Security advisor, Fraud examiner/analyst, Healthcare social worker
Integrity Interview Questions: A few interview questions that will be helpful for you during your interview.
Top 6 questions:
What does integrity mean to you?
Have you ever faced adverse consequences for doing what you thought was right?
What do you do when you need to admit a mistake of yours?
Tell me about an incident where you thought your integrity was tested.
Tell me about a situation where you had to comply with a rule you disagreed with.
Have you ever faced an ethical dilemma at work? If so, what was the issue and what did you do?
References
Becker, T. E. (2005). Development and validation of a situational judgment test of employee integrity. International Journal of Selection and Assessment, 13(3), 225-232.
Becker, T. E. (1998). Integrity in organizations: Beyond honesty and conscientiousness. Academy of Management Review, 23(1), 154-161.
Berry, C. M., Sackett, P. R., & Wiemann, S. (2007). A review of recent developments in integrity test research. Personnel Psychology, 60(2), 271-301.
Engelbrecht, A. S., Heine, G., & Mahembe, B. (2017). Integrity, ethical leadership, trust and work engagement. Leadership & Organization Development Journal.
Rosmi, R., & Syamsir, S. (2020). The Influence of Integrity and Work Experience on Employee Performance. International Journal of Research and Analytical Reviews (IJRAR),, 7(1), 789-794.
Sackett, P. R., & Wanek, J. E. (1996). New developments in the use of measures of honesty integrity, conscientiousness, dependability, trustworthiness, and reliability for personnel selection. Personnel psychology, 49(4), 787-829.
Soelistya, D., Warindra, A. S., Rosyihudin, M., & Nugroho, M. I. H. (2021). The Effect of Integrity and Work Discipline on Employee Engagement: Motivation as an Intervening Variable. Budapest International Research and Critics Institute (BIRCI-Journal): Humanities and Social Sciences, 4(4), 8270-8286.
White, D. W., & Lean, E. (2008). The impact of perceived leader integrity on subordinates in a work team environment. Journal of Business Ethics, 81(4), 765-778.