Rainer Leenen, Siegfried Stumpf, Stefan Höft
Adverse impact occurs when personnel selection results in a significantly different selection rate to the detriment of the members of a social group. Adverse impact is not the same as a violation of fairness considerations, but it should be understood as a serious indication and work order to review the fairness of the selection process. This paper focuses on differences in the performance of different ethno-cultural
groups in personnel selection. At first, a differentiated overview of the empirical findings is given. It is shown to what extent ethnic-cultural subgroup differences occur, to what extent they depend on the selection methodology as well as on the specific ethnicity/culture under consideration. After on, it is explained through which assessments subgroup differences can be reduced and better opportunities created, especially for minorities, without endangering the validity of the selection process. Based on this, guidelines for the practice of personnel selection are formulated to support cultural diversity of the workforce in an organization and to make the selection process fair and valid. The guidelines are formulated in a process-oriented manner. They cover the necessary process steps from the task analysis through to the conception and implementation of the procedure and finally to the evaluation. They provide design suggestions for reducing adverse impact and for establishing a valid and culturally fair selection procedure.