Research Suggests Job Recruiters Less Likely to Hire Opinionated Social Media Users

Story posted February 23, 2020 in CommRadio, News by Siani Boyd

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — According to researchers at Penn State, job recruiters are less likely to select candidates who appear to be too self-involved or opinionated on their social media.

Social networking sites are often used for people to tell everyone about their everyday lives and thoughts, which can make one come off as self-absorbed or arrogant.

The researchers found that self-absorption negatively impacted recruiters’ perceptions of candidates, as they fear that those individuals would focus on their own goals and wouldn’t sacrifice for the company.

“It’s important for job candidates to be aware of how they portray themselves in social media,” said Michael Tews, associate professor of hospitality management.

Students going into their career fields sometimes don’t pay attention to the things that they post on the internet. Muhammad Ali Imran, who is studying international political economy, is one of those students who is aware of what he shares.

“I use certain pages for certain things, and some are professional and some are not,” Imran said. “For example, I use Facebook for professionalism and Snapchat for everything else.”

Some students think that job recruiters should not be allowed to use social media posts against candidates and that people should be able to express themselves. Accounting major Nelrophe Laguerre is one such student.

“I don’t think it’s fair that jobs get to see your social media posts, even though it’s out there for the public to see,” Laguerre said. “It doesn't determine how good of a worker you are.”

Researchers conclude that you should limit posting content that can tarnish your character, such as self-absorption, alcohol and drug use or being extremely opinionated while searching for a job.

 

Siani Boyd is a junior majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact her, email stb5277@psu.edu.