Review of Public Personnel Administration
2015, Vol. 35(4) 352 –366
© The Author(s) 2014
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DOI: 10.1177/0734371X14540689
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Article
The Use of Written Exams in
Police and Fire Departments:
Implications for Social
Diversity
Norma M. Riccucci1 and Margaret Riccardelli1
Abstract
This exploratory analysis seeks to determine the extent to which written exams are
required by law for police and firefighters across the United States and whether,
in fact, they are being used. The continued use of written exams has served as a
major obstacle to the attainment of social equity based on race in these uniformed
services. The study also explores the use and importance of nonconventional
testing methods (e.g., assessment centers). The study finds that while civil service
laws in most jurisdictions do not require the use of written exams, police and fire
departments continue to rely on them in hiring and/or promotion. It further shows
that nonconventional methods are used in some capacity, but written exams either
supplement these methods or are integrated into them.
Keywords
social diversity, written employment exams, uniformed services, Ricci v. DeStefano,
assessment centers, police officers, firefighters
The 2009 Ricci v. DeStefano decision was a catalyst for renewed interest in the employ-
ment tools used for promoting as well as hiring in police and fire departments. The
decision reminded us that written tests, despite all the challenges and indeed lawsuits
they have generated, continue to be relied upon for hiring and promotion in the uni-
formed services. It is the use of written exams that has perhaps been the biggest obsta-
cle for police and fire departments to achieve social diversity based on race and
1Rutgers University, Newark, NJ, USA
Corresponding Author:
Norma M. Riccucci, Distinguished Professor, School of Public Affairs and Administration, Rutgers
University–Newark, 111 Washington Street, Newark, NJ 07102, USA.
Email: riccucci@rutgers.edu
540689ROPXXX10.1177/0734371X14540689Review of Public Personnel AdministrationRiccucci and Riccardelli
research-article2014
