Applicant impression management tactics have been shown to
positively influence interviewer evaluations. This study extends previous research
by examining the moderating roles of interview structure, customer-contact
requirement, and interview length in real employment interviews for actual job
openings. Results from 151 applicants of 25 firms showed that the more structured
the interview, the weaker the relationship between applicant nonverbal tactics and
interviewer evaluation. In addition, when the extent of customer contact required
for a job was relatively low, the influence of applicant self-focused tactics on
interviewer evaluation was minimized. Furthermore, when the interview was of
longer duration, the effects of applicant self-focused tactics became
insignificant.