Behavioural Interview

A behavioral interview is a technique that focuses on how a candidate has handled situations in the past, rather than how they say they would handle hypothetical ones. The underlying assumption is that past behavior is a better predictor of future performance than abstract answers to abstract questions.

Instead of asking “how would you handle a difficult colleague?”, a behavioral interview asks “tell me about a time you had to work through a conflict with a colleague.” The response reveals actual behavior, not an idealized version of it.

Candidates are assessed on specific competencies relevant to the role: communication, problem-solving, leadership, adaptability, and so on. Some behavioral interviews also include role-playing exercises or written components depending on what the role requires.

The format gives interviewers a more consistent basis for comparison than open-ended conversations, since all candidates are responding to the same structured prompts and being evaluated against the same criteria.