How to create great interview questions

💡Why should I learn this? Great interview questions allow you to accurately assess job-related skills so you can have confidence you're hiring the best person for your role.

Behavioral and situational questions

The best types of questions for assessing candidates skills are behavioral questions and situational questions. These questions are best because they will help you understand how a candidate will perform on the job.

Behavioral questions ask candidates to describe what they did or how they responded to a situation in the past. They often start with, ‘tell me about a time where…’.

Situational questions present candidates with scenarios they are likely to encounter on the job. Candidates are asked to explain how they would respond if they were in that scenario.

How behavioral and situational questions predict job performance

The predictive nature of behavioral and situational questions comes from psychology. 

• Behavioral questions are based on the theory that past behavior predicts future behavior. Asking about how someone behaved in the past (i.e. in a previous role) is a good predictor of how that person will behave in the future (i.e. in your role).
• Situational questions are based on the psychological theory of reasoned action. The rationale is that someone’s intention to behave in a particular way is the best predictor of how that person will actually behave in the future (i.e. in your role).

Behavioral and situational questions tend to perform equally well in terms of helping you select your best candidate and identify top talent. 

How behavioral and situational questions reduce bias and discrimination

Behavioral and situational questions help you concentrate on a candidate’s job-related skills and competencies. That means you will rely more on job-relevant information when making your hiring decisions which helps avoid discrimination and creates a more equitable playing field for candidates.