The short answer
A behavioral interview is a job interview in which candidates describe specific situations from their past where they used a skill the role needs, usually prompted with "Tell me about a time when..." It rests on the principle that past behavior is the best predictor of future behavior. It matters in hiring because a real example is much harder to fake than an opinion about how you would act.
Behavioral interview explained
The behavioral interview definition used by the US Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is simple: behavioral description questions ask applicants to describe a past behavior shown in a situation relevant to the competency being assessed. OPM's example is "Describe a situation where you analyzed and interpreted information." The interviewer listens for what the candidate actually did, not what they believe in.
Good behavioral questions start from the job. If a project manager must keep vendors on schedule, ask: "Tell me about a time a vendor was about to miss a deadline that mattered. What did you do?" Then probe: what was at stake, what the candidate personally did, and what happened. Most interviewers use the STAR method to structure the probe and the scoring.
According to OPM, behavioral description interviews have shown higher validity where the work is highly complex, such as professional and managerial jobs. For entry-level roles where candidates may lack relevant history, situational questions ("What would you do if...") are often a better fit, or a mix of both.
Behavioral vs situational interview questions
Common mistakes
- Accepting a hypothetical. "I would usually..." is not a behavioral answer. Ask for one specific time.
- Crediting the team. Listen for "I" as well as "we," and ask what the candidate's own part was.
- No rubric. Without anchors for a weak, solid and strong answer, interviewers grade on how much they liked the story.
For ready-to-use questions with a scoring rubric, see our behavioral interview questions.
Related terms
- STAR method: the Situation, Task, Action, Result structure for answers.
- Competency-based interview: every question tied to a defined competency.
- Structured interview: same questions and scoring for every candidate.
- Situational judgment test: a scenario-based written or video test.
- Interview rubric: anchors that turn answers into consistent scores.
Questions
How many behavioral questions should an interview include?
Four to six is common for a 45-minute interview, which leaves time for follow-up probes. Each question should target a different competency.
Are behavioral interviews fair to career changers?
They can be, if you accept examples from school, volunteer work or other jobs. The skill matters more than the setting where the candidate used it.
What is a behavioral interview in simple terms?
It is an interview where you are asked to tell real stories from your past that show how you handle the kind of work the job involves.
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