Predicting 911 Dispatcher Success with Multifaceted Testing with CritiCall 3D

Hosts Jenny Arnez and Mike Callen of TestGenius interview Dr. Dan Biddle, CEO of Biddle Consulting Group and TestGenius, about building and validating CritiCall 3D for 911 dispatcher selection. Biddle outlines his PhD in I/O psychology, decades of testing and validation work, and experience as a testifying expert and Department of Labor consultant. The discussion explains why multifaceted “3D” testing (operational, situational, and behavioral/personality) outperforms single-method selection, clarifies cognitive ability (fluid vs. crystallized), and defines adverse impact, test validation, and essential functions under the Uniform Guidelines. Biddle summarizes a major CritiCall 3D validity project combining three divergent assessments to achieve an operational validity coefficient of 0.634, explaining about 40% of job performance, and compares this to the lower predictiveness of unstructured interviews. They also cover practical implications for agencies, including reducing uncertainty, training costs, and qualification-related turnover, plus guidance on cutoffs, banding, and adverse-impact considerations.

00:00 Welcome and Introductions
00:41 Dan Biddle Background
02:35 CritiCall Origins
03:46 Why 3D Testing
07:03 Cognitive Ability Explained
08:42 Benefits for Applicants
10:53 Adverse Impact Basics
12:50 Essential Functions and Guidelines
15:19 CritiCall 3D Validity Study
20:32 Interviews Versus Testing
23:34 Sponsor Break
24:22 Validity Charts Walkthrough
32:00 Stacking Tests and Overlap
36:11 Practical Impact for Agencies
39:17 Cutoffs Banding and Rank Order
49:11 Wrap Up Key Benefits
55:08 Closing and Resources

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