|Sensitive Questions
In a perfect world, interview questions would only be related to the position and your willingness and ability to do the job. Occasionally an interviewer asks questions that seek information about you that could potentially be used in a discriminatory way. Think about how to handle these questions.
Remember many interviewers are not trained in interviewing. They may not know which questions to avoid, and which are illegal. Inappropriate questions may be unintentional, with no malice intended. Use your common sense and react objectively, not defensively.
If you are presented with potentially discriminatory questions:
- Maintain eye contact and remain cool calm and professional
- Be aware of your body language. Try to manage your non verbal reactions so as to remain as neutral as possible
- Ask for clarification as to how the question might relate to the responsibilities of the job.
- Evaluate what the interviewer is really seeking. Questions about children may relate to potential absenteeism, or questions relating to working with minorities may relate to the customer base, the work group, or how you evaluate people.
- Express concrete facts and ideas and try to avoid expressing feelings.
- Answer in a neutral but positive way
- Stick to business matters in the discussion, if you introduce personal topics, this may then open up those areas for further discussions.
If the questions really are discriminatory, then there are a number of well known bodies that can advise and help you in this area.
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