Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What contexts can / has this testing be / been used in?

A: HDC testing has contributed to clarifying relational dynamics in a variety of contexts:

• Interpersonal, marriage, and family – to improve and develop depth of unity in key relationships
• Schools, Universities, non-profit organizations, and churches – to improve, develop, and define skills for involvement
• Businesses – to build team dynamics, improve employee performance, and screen applicants for key job placement

Q: Is it legal to use a testing device like this to screen applicants for a job position?

A: For public sector groups and agencies there are three exemptions, laid out in USC; Title 5; 2302 (b), for the prohibited use and collection of data concerning hiring, promoting, or other HR purposes. One of these exemptions is the collecting of data used in defining and evaluating “characteristics”. Because of this exemption, all the test data collected through HDC can be used as a part of your basis for HR management decisions. For private sector groups we researched this question through the Law Department at Oklahoma University (click here) for the legal opinion of the Professor of Employment Law, Kyle L Buchanan.

Q: If I (as an account manager) am having performance or motivational problems with 1 or 2 of the people on my staff (they all do the same thing) but not others do we have to test all of them?

A: No, but by testing all of them (including yourself) you will end up with a better view of the issues surrounding those with performance problems. Because workplace stress and poor performance can come from a variety of sources (the “problem” may not be them or you) for the sake of establishing validity all should be tested. The “validity construct” for each testing device used by HDC is very high but no assumptions should be made in the application of the resulting information.

Q: If I as a manager build a system that is natural to me but hard for some of my employees to adhere to, am I obligated to continue to accept poor performance because their “test results” say that is “the way they work”? Couldn't they just say I am “too picky” because of my test results?

A: No, you are not obligated to accept substandard results for an employee as long as the standards of performance are clear and you have document performance reviews. The testing provided by HDC is “descriptive” not “prescriptive” meaning the test doesn't tell you how you must act , you have told it how you perceive yourself to normally act , and then translates that opinion of yourself onto a statistically objective scale.