Does online psychological test administration facilitate faking?

This study examined for the first time the effect of delivery mode on faking good and faking bad in psychological testing. Participants (N = 223) completed questionnaires either online or in pen-and-paper format in a mixed experimental design. After completing measures of personality (HEXACO-60, Ashton & Lee, 2009) and depression (DASS-21, Lovibond & Lovibond, 1995) under standard instructions, participants then faked the personality measure as if applying for a job, and faked the depression measure as if experiencing severe depression. Equivalence of internet and pen-and paper-administration on faking was then measured between groups. As predicted, participants were able to fake good on the HEXACO-60 and to fake bad on the DASS-21. Also as predicted, there were no significant differences in faked scores as a function of test administration mode. Further, examination of effect sizes confirmed that the influence of test administration mode was small. It was concluded that online and pen-and paper presentation are largely equivalent when an individual is faking responses in psychological testing. Given the advantages of online assessment and the importance of valid psychological testing, future research should investigate whether the current findings can be generalised to other faking and malingering scenarios and to other psychological measures.

► We examined whether online or traditional test administration influences fakability. ► Administration mode did not influence scores when faking good. ► Administration mode did not influence scores when faking bad. ► Online and pen-and paper presentation appear equivalent when an individual is faking. ► Future research should investigate other measures and faking scenarios.