Personality psychology concerns three questions. First, in what important ways are people all alike? This question involves analyzing the nature of human nature. Second, in what important and systematic ways are people all different? This question concerns individual differences. The third question concerns how to measure, in a reliable and valid manner, important individual differences… Read more »
Author: RHogan
Unconscious Biases
Psychologists define unconscious biases in terms of memories that people repress or drive out of consciousness but that continue to influence their lives in various ways—inexplicable fear of heights or closed spaces or spiders. For psychologists, unconscious biases are almost always pathological in some way.
Constructing Integrity
Recent events in politics and business again show the importance of personal integrity in everyday affairs, especially at the leadership level. Our analysis of the psychology of integrity suggests that the topic, although a crucial element in human affairs, is somewhat more paradoxical than it might appear at first blush. In Memories, Dreams, and Reflections,… Read more »
12 Questions to Ask When Choosing a Personality Assessment
Choosing the right personality assessment for employee selection and leadership development can be mind-boggling.
Employability and Personality
Several years ago, Joyce and I visited the maximum security prison in McAlester, Oklahoma, and talked with some dangerous prisoners. Several of them asked us if we would hire them when they were released. This was the first time I thought seriously about “employability”. The concept of employability is interesting for several reasons. First, it… Read more »
How Personality Drives Safety Behavior
It’s surprisingly easy for busy organizations to overlook the importance of fundamentals, even when it comes to something as critical to reputation and profitability as safety. And safety starts with talent management. While safety training certainly helps, what organizations need most are employees who think and act safely in the first place. If an organization… Read more »
Extreme Hogan
It’s been awhile since we’ve posted something new. We’ve been taking some time to get our bearings and to discuss some new possibilities for this blog space, beginning with some different voices and and expanded content scope. To kick things off, we’re linking to a recent article on changeboard.com that discusses the use of Hogan… Read more »
Some thoughts on the concept of engagement
The concept of “engagement” has become a hot topic in applied psychology over the past two years. Like competency modeling and personality assessment before it, HR practitioners have forced the academic community to pay attention to engagement—it is not something that the academics discovered on their own. The concept of engagement was first described by… Read more »
Who Wants to be a Psychologist?
The following is an excerpt from a fascinating (and often humorous) autobiographical piece that Dr. Robert Hogan wrote for the Journal of Personality Assessment in 2006. During the course of the article, Hogan describes his upbringing, his education, and the curiosity and conviction that led to a life-long career as a preeminent personality psychologist. My… Read more »
Intelligence and Good Judgment
It is hard to overstate the importance of the concept of intelligence for applied psychology; intelligence testing may be the most important single contribution psychology has made to larger society. Advocates of intelligence testing provide data showing that IQ predicts virtually every significant life outcome from income and occupational status to life expectancy. Nonetheless, the… Read more »