API Potential

Generalities

The Applicant Potential Inventory (API) is distributed by FifthTheroy LLC based in Chicago, USA [2025. It was formerly published by Pearson Reid, London House, UK [2006]. The API was initially created in the 1980s.

It is one of 400 proprietary assessments, as well as other assessments built on demand by FifthTheory, designed to measure personality dimensions in the workplace, including those relevant to jobs in security and healthcare.

Assessment

The API is derived from another assessment called PSI (Personal Selection Inventory), also published by FifthTherory, but doesn’t include specific dimensions such as math or risk avoidance.

API measures 11 traits which are the following:

Dimension	GRI a priori
Honesty	Not Applicable
Drug Avoidance	Not Applicable
Employee Relationship	Not Applicable
Work Value	Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Job Stability	Low 1, high 3, high 4
Safety	Not Applicable
Customer Service	High 2, low 1
Social Desirability	High 2
Accuracy	Very high 4
Employability	Not Applicable

Usage

The assessment is sold to help hiring decisions. The publisher adds,”helping to build strong customer and employee relations, improve productivity and profitability, and help to reduce employee turnover and theft.”

Comments

The assessment used to be taken over the phone or directly on a computer. Processing could have been outsourced (2006).