Have you ever participated in a mock interview before? I haven’t. Well, I have never participated in a professional mock interview. However, I have sat down and reluctantly answered my mom’s interview questions while she pretended to be the interviewer who would ultimately decide if I got hired. It was a rather uncomfortable experience. I did not like practicing with my mom. I wasn’t good at answering the questions, and I found myself silently viewing the whole process as unrealistic. I knew it was my mom who was asking me interview questions and not an actual interviewer. At the end of the day, I preferred to practice alone, if at all.
The results? Not so good. I failed multiple interviews. Over time I got better and was finally able to secure a job. Though it did take failed interview after failed interview before I started to pick up on the kind of questions that were asked. Once I became familiar with the interview questions, I formulated better answers and was more confident while answering. Although I did learn from the failed interviews, the lessons came at a price. By the time it was all over my self-esteem was shot, and it left me with a bad taste in my mouth in regard to interviewing.
Now, you might be thinking that down the road I began participating in mock interviews and have experienced a surplus of benefits from doing so. That is not the case. I still don’t like practicing for interviews, let alone actually interviewing. The whole interviewing process makes me anxious. Unsurprisingly, I have just come across research that shows that anxiety, poor etiquette, and poor answers lead to unfavorable outcomes for interviewees (Jeske et al.; Tews et al.). With that being said, practice interviews seem to be a viable solution for interview anxiety, poor interview etiquette, and poor interview answers.
Interview Anxiety & Perceived Performance
Debora Jeske and her fellow colleagues conducted a study to determine if interviewee anxiety affects perceived hireability and job suitability. The researchers separated the participants into two groups. Participants in the experimental group “listened to a telephone recording with an anxious job candidate” (Jeske, et. al, 322). Those in the control group “listened to the same recording but with a confident candidate” (322).
The interview was “transcribed from an actual interview with a computer science professional” and played out by two actors. One actor was the interviewer and the other was the interviewee. The interviewee conducted the interview in either a confident or anxious manner, while following the transcribed script. The only difference between the two recordings was whether or not the interviewee (played by an actor) seemed anxious.
Participants in the first study listened to either the recording of the confident interviewee or the anxious one, and were then asked to rate the interviewee’s hireability. In the second study participants did the same thing, except they were asked to rate the interviewee’s job suitability. Participants in the second study were also asked how likely they were to recommend hiring the interviewee. Hireability, job suitability, and hiring recommendation were measured through a series of multiple questions. An example item for hireability was “This applicant appears to have a good understanding of web development” (324). Participants were asked to rate their response from 1 (totally disagree) to seven (totally agree) (324).
The results from the study showed that “Participants rated the anxious interviewee less hireable… compared to the participants who rated the confident interviewee” (326). The anxious interviewee was also perceived as less suitable for the job compared to the confident interviewee (326). Lastly, those “who rated the anxious interviewee were less likely to recommend hiring him… compared to the participants who rated the confident interviewee” (326).
Overall, the “results demonstrated a statistically significant group effect…” (327). The results also showed a rater bias; the researchers found that “rater variance is more attributable to the rater than to the interviewee” (327). This means that there was “a strong negative effect of how anxious the interviewees were perceived on ratings, with lower rating being given the more anxious the interviewers [raters] perceived the interviewee to be” (327).
For Employers: Reduce Anxiety Bias Through Additional Measures
I get anxious during interviews and it is noticeable. My voice becomes high-pitched: I hate it because I feel like I am not taken seriously. Interviewers seem to view me as incompetent or unable to work, and that’s just not true. Debora Jeske and her colleagues suggest employers use additional measures to identify candidate ability, “such as work samples” to reduce anxiety bias (329). I think this is a great idea because some people can be bad at interviewing, but really good at the job they are applying for.
I remember once when I was applying to teach the principal wasn’t too sure about hiring me because I didn’t have much experience, but he allowed me to do a sample lesson in front of the curriculum coach. The curriculum coach was pleasantly surprised that I was able to be assertive while teaching class. I think they might have been worried that since I was young I wouldn’t be able to handle the classroom. However, since they gave me a chance to show my skills they were able to see that I was a good fit for their school.
Looks can be deceiving, which is why it’s important for employers to give interviewees a chance to prove that they are a good fit.
For Interviewees: Use Mock Interviews to Reduce Interview Anxiety
Okay, so the results from the study aren’t exactly ideal, but that’s why practice is important. It is a shame to know that perceived interview anxiety might sway interviewers away from a fitting candidate. However, this is not a time to give up hope. If you have interview anxiety, mock interviews might be able to help. I think a good idea would be finding people in your desired field or in a related field and asking them to interview you for practice. Again, I haven’t done this yet, but I think it might be a good idea, especially after reading the results from the study.
I suggest conducting a mock interview with one person at first. You should interview with that person consistently until you feel comfortable answering the questions that person gives. Once you become comfortable interviewing with that one person, add in more interviewers. Conduct a mock interview as many times as you can until you notice your anxiety fade away with each practice interview. Don’t expect to confidently answer the questions right away. You might stumble your way through your answers at first. Don’t get embarrassed and decide to give up. The fact that you are messing up is an indicator that you are right where you need to be: practicing with professionals. Once you become comfortable answering interview questions you will be seen as a more hireable candidate. Hopefully, after conducting mock interviews, you will be able to land a job that is perfect for you.
Interview Etiquette, Interview Answers & Perceived Performance
Michaael Tews and his fellow colleagues conducted two studies to determine if interview etiquette impacts hiring outcomes. In the first study, the researchers assessed “the impact of interview etiquette on perceptions of employment suitability” (166). Participants included 274 individuals who were recruiters for a large university. Recruiters were asked to rate one out of eight profiles (167). The profiles were created by the researchers to include candidates with good or poor etiquette (167). In addition, the candidate would offer either good or poor answers (167). Once the recruiters read the profiles they “evaluated the candidate’s employment suitability” (167). Participants rated how much they viewed the candidate as being a person-organization-fit, as well as their hiring recommendation level of the candidate in question (167).
The results showed that interview etiquette had a significant impact on person-organization-fit, which means that the recruiters viewed candidates with good etiquette as more suitable for the job (168). Interview etiquette also had a significant impact on hiring recommendation (168). Recruiters were more likely to recommend a candidate with good etiquette (168). In addition, interview answer quality also had a significant impact on both hiring recommendation and person-organization-fit. Participants viewed candidates with good answers as a better fit and were more likely to recommend the candidate for a job. Lastly, the results from the study indicates that “interview etiquette amplifies the impact of interviewer answer quality” (168).
In the second study, the researchers gathered a sample size of 155 students from a large university in the United States. Students from the sample were asked “to complete a paper-and-pencil survey about their job search experiences (170). The survey measured multiple factors including job offers and interview etiquette (170). Interview etiquette was seen as “dressing professionally, addressing interviewers formally, shaking hands properly, providing a copy of one’s resume at the beginning of the interview, and sending thank you notes” (170).
Overall, the results showed that interview etiquette had a significant impact on the number of jobs offered (172). This means that students “who reported more frequently engaging in interview etiquette received more job offers” (172).
Increase Your Interview Etiquette and Interview Answers
Besides reducing interview anxiety, mock interviews can help increase interview etiquette and interview answers, which in return can increase your chances of getting hired. It isn’t surprising to know that good interview etiquette and good interview answers increase your chances of getting hired. However, it is beneficial to know that researchers have proven our intuition to be true. Now, we can focus our efforts into formulating better answers, while practicing interview etiquette.
A friend or acquaintance specialized in your desired field can serve as a guide to help you curate the best answers for your upcoming interview. Dressing professionally, addressing interviewers by their formal titles, firmly shaking hands, and thanking the interviewer for his or her time are a couple of ways that you can show interview etiquette (170). Practice with these items during a mock interview can help you become comfortable using interview etiquette during an actual interview.
Mock Interviews: A Possible Solution to Better Interview Outcomes
Although practicing for interviews can be uncomfortable, mock interviews may prove to be a great solution to high interview anxiety, poor interview etiquette and poor interview answers. Practicing your answers with a friend or professional can help you identify your weak points, which can help you curate better interview answers that accurately reflect your knowledge and ability. Mock interviewss can also serve as the perfect opportunity to practice interview etiquette. If demonstrating interview etiquette doesn’t come naturally, mock interviews can serve as the perfect tool to help you acclimate to the skill, so that it becomes instinctual over time.
Lastly, if you get anxious during an interview, mock interviews may be able to help reduce interview anxiety. Hopefully, the more familiar you become with practicing mock interviews, the more comfortable you become with interviews in general.
Wrap-Up
Mock interviews aren’t that fun, but they can prove to be helpful in the long run. Confidence, good etiquette, and good answers have a significant impact on perceived hireability. With that being said, use mock interviews as a tool to practice improving in all three areas.
Works Cited
Jeske, Debora, et al. “Perceived interviewee anxiety and performance in telephone interviews.” Evidence-based HRM: a Global Forum for Empirical Scholarship, vol. 6, 2018, doi:10.1108/EBHRM-05-2018-0033.
Tews, Michael J., et al. “Interview etiquette and hiring outcomes.” WILEY International Journal of SELECTION AND ASSESSMENT, 2018, doi:10.1111/ijsa.12228.