Faking Biodata Tests: Are Option-Keyed Instruments More Resistant?

Response biases in biodata scores derived with option-keying and item-keying procedures were investigated. Results indicated that (a) when subjects simulated responding as job applicants they distorted their responses in a socially desirable direction; (b) item-keyed scores were susceptible to inflation due to socially desirable responding and specific job-title knowledge, but option-keyed scores were not; and (c) response biases were not reflected in response latencies. A supplementary analysis indicated that the two keying procedures may capture different aspects of criterion variance. Implications for reconciling conflicting reports about the susceptibility of biodata scores to response biases are discussed. Issues related to reliability and validity of the two keying procedures, and the generalizability of the results to personality tests, are also discussed.