Interview Questions You Should Never Ask

“How big is your family?” “Are you planning to get married?” The question you ask to warm up the room may actually be one to avoid.

I’m Naohiro Hayashi, creator of Soreda!. This article isn’t here to blame anyone. It’s here to sort out the questions people ask without ill intent, and to think together about what to ask instead. What follows is general guidance from a fair-hiring perspective; the specific judgment and ultimate compliance rest with the employer, and when in doubt, check with a relevant authority or a professional.

The questions people “just ask” without meaning harm

First, why this matters at all.

Easy to ask with no ill intent

“How big is your family?” “Are you planning to marry?” “Do you own or rent?” These slip out without ill intent — from wanting to break the ice or get to know the person. Many ask them without ever realizing they’re inappropriate, simply because they’ve heard the same questions in interviews they once sat in themselves.

Why it’s a problem

These questions have nothing to do with the person’s aptitude or ability, and the answers can bias your decision and lead to discrimination. Fair hiring rests on the idea of evaluating a candidate on whether they can do the job. Asking about matters unrelated to the work departs from that principle.

Examples of questions to avoid

From a fair-hiring perspective, here are examples generally considered best to avoid. These are general examples; when in doubt, check with a professional.

Things a person isn’t responsible for

Birthplace, family makeup, a parent’s occupation, housing situation — things a person can’t change through their own effort, unrelated to job aptitude. Asking about these is best avoided.

Things that should be left to the individual

Beliefs, religion, political affiliation, plans to marry or have children — these belong to personal freedom. They shouldn’t be material for a hiring decision, and asking about them in an interview is best avoided.

Prepare fair questions with Soreda!‘s interview question AI →

Rephrase what you want to know as an appropriate question

You do have legitimate things to confirm in hiring. The key is to change how you ask.

Ask the legitimate business need directly

Instead of “how big is your family?”, if what you really need is scheduling, ask the business need directly — “what hours can you work?”, “how do you plan to commute?” The important thing here is not to turn it into a roundabout way to fish for the banned information. Don’t probe into someone’s family situation by proxy; confirm the work-related condition itself, plainly.

If you want to know about character and fit, confirm it through job-related questions, not the personal sphere. Asking about how they handled a real situation tells you far more about fit than anything about their private life ever could. Specific assessment questions are covered in Interview Questions That Reveal Who a Candidate Is.

Prepare a fair question sheet with AI

Remembering every question to avoid, one by one, is a lot.

AI prepares a fair set that avoids inappropriate questions

Soreda!‘s interview question AI prepares a question sheet built around appropriate, job-related questions. Rather than building from scratch while worrying about what’s inappropriate each time, you can go into the interview with more confidence. The flow of preparing it through dialogue is in Prepare Interview Questions with AI.

But the ultimate compliance rests with the employer

AI helps prepare fair questions, but how you actually ask and what you use to decide are ultimately the employer’s responsibility. For points you’re unsure about, check with a relevant authority or a professional.

FAQ

Q. Why shouldn’t I ask about family or marriage? A. They’re unrelated to aptitude or ability, can bias the decision, and may lead to discrimination.

Q. Is it not okay even as small talk? A. Even as small talk, the candidate takes it as part of the evaluation, and it can stay on the record. It’s safer to avoid, even when your intent is just to be friendly.

Q. What if I genuinely need to know? A. If what you genuinely need is a work-related condition, rephrase it to ask that condition directly. Matters unrelated to the job aren’t used in the decision, as a rule.

Q. How much does it cost? A. Pricing is ticket-based, counted per question sheet. See the official site for current details.

The interview questions to avoid are most dangerous precisely when you ask them without ill intent. The key is to rephrase what you want to know as an appropriate, job-related question. A commitment to evaluating candidates fairly builds your company’s trust, too. Start by taking another look at your usual questions.

Prepare fair interview questions with Soreda! →