Welcome to the Masquerade: Deception in the Preliminary Job Search Process

This study examined the likelihood that college students are to deceive regarding various professional and personal characteristics in face to face interviews and on LinkedIn accounts. Professional characteristics included knowledge of spreadsheet software, presentation software, graphic design software, etc. Personal characteristics included leadership, creativity, writing, research, motivation, etc. This study also measured feelings of inadequacy, fear of negative evaluations, and interaction anxiousness. By sending out an electronic survey, I collected data from approximately 80 students at The College of Wooster. The results revealed that there are no differences on the likelihood of deception in face to face interviews in comparison to on LinkedIn. According to my findings, the more inadequate someone is and the more fear of negative evaluation they have, the more likely they are to exaggerate on personal factors, both on LinkedIn and face to face interviews. These findings are valuable as they have the potential to help employers and job applicants be more cognizant of deception throughout the hiring process