Should I Guess Answer on the Test?

@ Non-Technical Discussion

Background

Recently, during interviews at different companies, I encountered some companies using online: 104 Assessment Bank🔗 to test common logic questions, such as:

  • Shapes: Given 8 images, choose the next image based on inference.
  • Text: A, B, C… products have different discount logic… asking which day has the most discounts.

I can say I’m completely lost on tests related to shape inference. Despite racking my brain within the time limit, I had no clue, so I chose to randomly fill in the unfinished questions at the last moment to seek the best score possible.

While discussing this with friends, I found a viewpoint that it is better to leave blanks than to randomly fill answers to avoid being discovered as relying on luck and pretending to understand.

Reflection

Many things have two sides, like the aforementioned situation: Can “relying on luck and pretending to understand” also be interpreted as “being strongly dedicated to achieving goals and being adaptable”?

With 1000 people, there can be 1000 perspectives on things. I cannot change how others interpret, but encountering such questions can promote reflection: “What kind of person are you? Why take such actions?“.

  • Do you agree that interviews should purely be a test of ability without luck involved?
  • Do you believe in fairness?
  • Do you care about others’ opinions?
  • …

You Should Randomly Fill Answers

  • Result-oriented: In pursuit of the final score, resorting to random strategies shows strategic flexibility and pragmatism.
  • Ability to exploit gaps in rules: Since the rules didn’t state that you cannot fill randomly, it is reasonable to do so.

You Should Not Randomly Fill Answers

  • Process-oriented: Emphasizing how you think rather than simply guessing the correct answer.
  • Honesty: If you don’t know, you should face it honestly and not depend on luck for points.

I Choose To…

I believe luck is an unavoidable factor and agree that an ideal interview should minimize the influence of luck.

Most real-world issues are complex and lack correct answers. Different strategies should be adopted based on the nature of the interview. From the perspective of competing for job opportunities:

If the target company uses extensive testing just to filter out an appropriate number of candidates (result-oriented), then randomly filling in answers is an appropriate strategy.

If a company patiently observes the logic of answering questions (process-oriented), they usually would directly present free response topics, and at that point, it’s reasonable to honestly explain your strategy whether it’s to randomly fill or not fill at all.

Conclusion

I’m surprised that after being a student for many years, this is the first time I reflect on the motivations and trade-offs behind this behavior. Human biases are not easily changed, but through reflection, one can better understand whether they align their mind and actions.