Brainteasers as hiring indicator (was Re: Bringing "Mental Gymnast" back On Topic)

[Lois Patterson <skycerulean -at- yahoo -dot- com>]

Maggie Pierce Secara said:
> I suspect the question was there to explore your
> approach to problem solving; to see not what you
> answered, but how.

You may be correct that this was how the company was
using this test. (If not this company, some other
company that uses brainteasers.)

However, very nicely explained wrong answers (and
there were several on the thread) are still wrong.
Sort of like how technical documentation can be
perfectly formatted and indexed, but have incorrect
content. If a company were to choose on the basis of
"how" you answered, rather than "what," they'd be
selecting for just this type of documentation (IMO). 

I think that brainteasers could be a useful screening
tool. For maximum efficacy, the brainteaser would have
to be original (so the solution was not on Google). If
the respondent got the answer correct because he or
she consulted with more geeky friends, that would be
evidence of an ability to communicate technically. If
the respondent got the answer right by reasoning
correctly on his or her own, that would also be a
plus. 


Lois Patterson

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