Time lags between selection procedures and their effect on applicant attrition by sex, ethnic group, and aptitude test scores

The effects of "time lags" in selection procedures on attrition rates of actual job applicants were investigated. Data were collected on twenty-two hundred and thirty-five applicants for entry level operator jobs at two petrochemical plants. This included the applicant's ethnic/sex subgroup, test scores, and length of time between testing date and scheduled interview date. It was found that with both short and long time lag periods, the attrition rates were greatest for whites and least for blacks, with Hispanics falling generally between these groups. White females tended to have greater attrition rates than white males. Black applicants as a group, both males and females, showed a major decline in mean test score with long time delays. This effect was not found with other subgroups. Blacks with higher test scores dropped out of the selection process at a faster rate than blacks with low test scores. The overall results of this study gave evidence to the possibility that other employers were much more likely to offer jobs to whites or blacks with higher test scores than to blacks with low test scores.