LET ME TELL YOU ABOUT A TIME: EXPLORING HOW STORYTELLING AND MEMORY AFFECT BEHAVIOURAL INTERVIEW PERFORMANCE RATINGS

Behavioural interviews continue to be a popular selection tool used in industry today. Although the literature finds that behavioural interviews are reliable and valid selection tools, two fundamental elements of behavioural interviewing have been overlooked. Specifically, behavioural interview ratings are based on how much detail candidates retrieve about their experiences as well as their ability to effectively convey those details to interviewers. I hypothesize that autobiographical memory predicts interview performance ratings and that storytelling mediates this relationship. In addition, I expect that the presence of probing questions will moderate the mediated relationship. Study 1 tests these hypotheses using a laboratory experiment conducted with a student sample over two sessions. Studies 2 and 3 were conducted with samples of professional participants residing in North America with hiring experience. Autobiographical memory and storytelling were manipulated using written interview transcripts. Studies 1 and 2 found that autobiographical memory predicted interview performance ratings and that this relationship was facilitated by enhanced storytelling. Study 3 findings trended in the expected direction but were inconclusive. Including probing questions may also level the playing field for individuals who retrieve autobiographical memory less easily. Implications and future directions of this work are discussed