Bias in Selection

Discrimination is the essence of good selection: an employer tries to discriminate between the applicants who will be good workers and those who will be poor workers. Such discrimination is right and proper: it increases organisational efficiency, it conserves society’s resources and it saves many individuals the stress and strain of struggling to cope with jobs beyond their capabilities. However, this discrimination is justified only when it is based upon the ability to do the job concerned. In practically all circumstances the decision should not be influenced by the sex, colour, creed or politics of the applicant. If these factors are allowed to influence decisions it can mean that less satisfactory candidates are hired with the inevitable organisational, individual and social consequences and it is usually termed ‘bias’. These keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.