SMALL SAMPLES, LARGE CONSEQUENCES

People make innumerable decisions daily about other people that affect their lives and careers. These decisions are inevitably fraught with errors of judgment that reflect ignorance, personal biases, or stereot ypes on the part of the judges. Psychological tests can serve as a mea ns to offset the impact of these distortions only if they are soundly constructed and responsibly applied. The requirements of dependable in struments are examined and the benefits from accurate test usage are r eviewed.