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Something Extra: Can Facebook Profiles Predict Job Performance?

MIAMI (CBS4) - Be careful about what you put on Facebook.

About seven years ago, I did one of the early broadcast stories on the social networking site.  Back then, it was still college-focused and you needed to have an "edu" email address to be a member.  But there was already concern about how employers would react to Facebook postings.

Now, a new study suggests Facebook can be an effective job-screening tool because your profile can predict what kind of worker you will be.

Raters reviewed students' profiles and answered personality-related questions, including whether the students seemed dependable and emotionally stable.

Then, six months later, they compared the ratings against employee evaluations from the students' supervisors.

They found a strong correlation between job performance and the Facebook scores for conscientiousness, agreeability and intellectual curiosity.

Ironically, partying photos didn't necessarily count against a student, because they could indicate a student was extroverted and friendly.

There's no word on what employers think if you're one the few young adults who don't have a Facebook profile at all.

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