Intelligent Survey Software using Decision Board Analysis Technique for Recruitment Processes in the UK

In 2004 it was reported that up to half a million elderly people may be victims of abuse at any one time. Studies have shown that elder abuse can have devastating effects upon service users and can often lead to long-term health problems. It is vital that health care service providers acknowledge the importance of recruitment decision-making when employing carers for work involving vulnerable adults. In 2002 the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) was established in the UK to ensure safer recruitment decisions could be made. The CRB check is utilised to facilitate safer recruitment decisions by providing employers with wider access to an applicant’s criminal record information through a Disclosure service. However, how these changes are impacting upon recruitment decisions and its implications for the protection of vulnerable adults is yet to be examined. In order to collect sufficient research to investigate how recruitment decisions are being made by individual decision-makers using CRB Disclosure information, a unique, tailor made software package was designed and created. This was entitled Survey Software Version 5. This allowed the administration of a series of vignettes, whilst recording and sorting the inputted information. This software is in the form of an electronic questionnaire based upon a decision board design. By utilising the DBA technique, the decision-maker is permitted to make a recruitment decision based upon as little or as many pieces of information that they feel is necessary to make an appropriate recruitment decision. For the purposes of the present study, the DBA technique will be utilised to: present a series of vignettes based on actual CRB Disclosures, assess what impact the knowledge of convictions has upon perceived suitability for employment, examine whether or not decisionmakers are aware of the meaning of offences, identify which pieces of information found on a CRB Disclosure are used to make recruitment decisions, and asses the order in which information is selected. Organisations from the National Health Service, Social Services, Higher Education, Further Education and Care Home sectors whose employees have contact with vulnerable persons were recruited to take part in this research.