I don't think asking someone a trick question in an interview is a good way to gauge if they'll push back and ask questions on the job. Also, I think that behavior is more related to the employer creating an environment where employees feel safe doing that, and isn't really something you can draw out of a candidate during an interview, of all times.

[–] BCsven@lemmy.ca 1 points 2 days ago

Its not a trick question, its an ambiguous one. Ambiguity should prompt people to ask clarifying questions. Assumptions are often wrong.

Part of ambiguity also lies in the English language. In a general conversation 35% is information and 65% is disambiguation.

[–] CanadaPlus@lemmy.sdf.org 1 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

Well, there's reason to think it is. Or at least, is for original, insightful questions; anybody can come up with "can I have more time off?". We live in a society that rewards reliably doing and saying whatever you're told to, and critical thinking (which isn't just skepticism!) is super rare when tested for. A lot of college kids with good grades got there because they learned to mindlessly repeat whatever stuff back when tested.

Why that's rewarded so much, and if there's a way to encourage and teach actual independent though, are great questions, but that's not really relevant here.

Also, I think that behavior is more related to the employer creating an environment where employees feel safe doing that

It's also a big factor. Since that reply, it's come up that OP isn't actually management, but just does interviews. So, maybe they're looking more for a good colleague than a good employee.

If memory serves, Google used to use these kind of questions, but they stopped because that isn't actually what they wanted or needed in their workers. A code monkey doesn't need to question anything, in the end.