Deception and Egoistic Behavior: The Socially Desirable Response

Much research has been devoted to the study of
socially desirable responding (SDR) on non-cognitive
measures of job related characteristics. However, the
egoistic component (ego-promotional and
ego-defensive) of SDR has not been given enough
attention in the literature. In this dissertation I
describe deceptive behavior from an evolutionary and
cultural perspective. The research on faking and
socially desirable responding is thoroughly explored
and the notions of ego promotional and ego defensive
responding are introduced. These discussions lead to
two research studies examining 1) how egoistic
behavior affects self appraised job performance and
responses to biographical questionnaire and 2)
whether SDR scales can measure actual deception in a
pre-employment testing context.

Autorentext
is a research psychologist for the U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board and conducts government-wide personnel related studies. He holds BA and BS degrees in education and psychology from the University of Central Florida and an MS and Ph.D. from the Florida Institute of Technology. He has authored numerous articles in professional journals.

Klappentext
Much research has been devoted to the study of socially desirable responding (SDR) on non-cognitive measures of job related characteristics. However, the egoistic component (ego-promotional and ego-defensive) of SDR has not been given enough attention in the literature. In this dissertation I describe deceptive behavior from an evolutionary and cultural perspective. The research on faking and socially desirable responding is thoroughly explored and the notions of ego promotional and ego defensive responding are introduced. These discussions lead to two research studies examining 1) how egoistic behavior affects self appraised job performance and responses to biographical questionnaire and 2) whether SDR scales can measure actual deception in a pre-employment testing context.