Nanny Risk and Personality Assessments are psychological tests that help parents screen potential nannies, au pairs, or babysitters. The tests provide a better insight into the caregiver’s personality and traits, as well as an assessment of possible risk factors, and allow parents to select the best possible nanny. Similar tests are used by corporate and government organizations around the world (including around 80% of Fortune 500 companies in the US and 75% of Times 100 companies in the UK), as well as some nanny agencies, nannies and au pair and child care organizations. In fact, such tests are required by the US government for all Au Pair agencies.

Why are such tests needed? Aren’t interviews and reference checks enough to select a babysitter? Most recruiters agree that the validity of interviews is quite low, even when conducted by trained professionals. Most parents are not trained interviewers and often lack the experience to properly formulate interview questions, read between the lines of what the applicant is saying, interpret non-verbal signs and body language, etc.

A babysitting personality and risk assessment test can be thought of as a very detailed and structured interview that overcomes some of the limitations of face-to-face parent interviews. The test includes several hundred questions, covering all relevant topics, including questions parents may feel uncomfortable asking in a face-to-face interview. Personal traits covered may include responsibility, obedience and discipline, self-control, emotional stability, pressure management, positive attitude, and service awareness. Risk assessment topics should include violent behavior, drug abuse, problem drinking, truthful reporting, respect for property, and more. Similar to an ordinary interview, interactive online tests of this type allow different questions to be asked based on previous answers, as well as providing real-time feedback to the applicant triggered by specific answers that are considered problematic.

However, the main benefit of the Nanny Personality and Risk Assessment Test is in the accuracy of the information provided. A properly constructed and administered test includes several mechanisms that aim to identify misleading and inaccurate responses; the large number of questions (some are repeated in different versions), the way they are structured (which can sometimes seem peculiar), the time constraints, and some additional mechanisms (which will not be detailed in this article for obvious reasons).

Parents’ use of a babysitting personality and risk assessment can also face certain challenges. Some parents worry that using such a test could offend an applicant and create a bad impression. While this may be true and some applicants may even refuse to take such tests, parents should always keep in mind that such tests are standard procedure for applicants in many commercial and government organizations, as well as part of the selection process in a series of Nanny and Au Pair Agencies. There really isn’t a good reason why parents hiring a babysitter on their own shouldn’t benefit from using such assessments. There is no other position as important and critical as that of a childcare provider. Parents should not compromise on the selection process and use every means possible to make the best informed decision. To minimize objections, parents should explain to the babysitter about the test, why they think it is important, and ask her to put herself in her place, faced with a similar decision about their own children.

Another challenge is for parents to avoid using test results as the sole decision factor. Parents should note that the babysitter’s personality and risk assessments do not replace interviews or any other component of the existing caregiver selection process. Like any other psychological tool, they are not 100% accurate and should be considered a decision support tool and not a decision-making tool. When hiring a nanny, parents should always interview applicants, check references, and use her intuition, which is as important and helpful as any scientific tool.

The babysitting personality and risk assessments must be used correctly to ensure that the test results are valid. The applicant must be fluent in the language in which the test is administered. Applicants who are not fluent in the test language should not be tested. The tests are also designed for a specific purpose. For example, a test designed to assess job candidates should not be used for self-assessment purposes, for example by someone wanting to see if they are suitable for a certain position or occupation.

Properly designed and used, babysitter personality and risk assessments are invaluable to parents seeking a babysitter for their child, and should become a standard component of any child care provider’s selection process.

Written by Yossi Pinkas, TakeCare, www.take-care.me