Fairness Reactions to Personnel Selection Techniques in Morocco

Candidate reactions represent a pressing contemporary subject, with heightened expectations for favorable treatment from companies during recruitment. Negative encounters adversely affect employer branding and candidate attraction. Thus, meticulously cultivating the candidate experience is imperative. This research examines the responses of candidates to various hiring methods in Morocco. A total of 244 job seekers rated the favorability and fairness of selection methods, including interviews, resumes, work-sample tests, biographical information blanks, written ability tests, personal references, personality tests, honesty tests, graphology, and personal contacts. Moroccan job seekers completed an online questionnaire, and data were analyzed using IBM SPSS. The snowball sampling method was employed, with participants initially identified on LinkedIn. Our primary objective is to assess the prevalence of the ten selection procedures used in Morocco and examine candidates' favorability towards these approaches. Within-subjects analysis of variance (ANOVA) evaluated differences in candidates' responses to the selection methods. Applicants expressed the most positive responses towards résumés, work-sample tests, interviews, and personality tests, while graphology, references, and biographical information were the least favorable. Regarding procedural justice, applicants rated frequency of use, predictive validity, opportunity to perform, employer's rights, and face validity most positively, while interpersonal warmth and invasion of privacy were least valued. However, this study faced several limitations. The cross-sectional design hindered robust causal inferences, and reliance on single-item measures for procedural fairness and organizational outcomes limited our findings' depth. Generalizing results to the broader Moroccan population requires caution due to potential regional and sectoral variations. While snowball sampling increased the sample size, it precluded response rate calculation. Practical implications and future research perspectives are also highlighted.