> A smarter candidate will figure out you're playing games, which defeats the purpose. I think you also want to consider the reaction of the candidate after the

> A smarter candidate will figure out you're playing games, which defeats the purpose. I think you also want to consider the reaction of the candidate after the interview. Suppose they answer honestly, then figure out what you did to them. It won't make any difference. A smarter candidate would know you're playing a game but not care. They would give you their honest answer because if you were not interested you wouldn't hire them and they would not care because of the manipulation, and if you were interested in hiring them they would not be as interested because of the manipulation but would understand that despite their honest answer on a personal question you were impressed by them -- this would help even things out. It's win/win.