Types of Personality Tests

1 Types of Personality Tests There are two main Types of Personality Tests available today: the Myers-Briggs test and the Big Five test. Almost all of the other Personality Tests are variations on these two Types of Tests . While the purpose behind both Types of Tests is the same (to determine and quantify Personality characteristics), the method is very different for these two Types of Tests . The Myers-Briggs test sorts the population into distinct categories on various different topics, while the Big Five Tests rate each person as a percentage of each category. Both Tests will fairly accurately determine your Personality characteristics, but will do so in a different manner.

2 To help you understand, here are some in-depth notes on each type of test. Myers-Briggs They Myers-Briggs Personality test was created in the 1940s by Isabel Briggs Myers in an attempt to categorize the different Personality characteristics of people. The test asks a series of preferential choice questions, with no wrong answers, to help determine the person's tendencies within four categories. The categories used in the Myers-Briggs type indicator model are: Favorite World: Extroversion or Introversion Types of Personality Tests Page 1 Information: Sensing or Intuition Decisions: Thinking or Feeling Structure: Judging or Perceiving Each person is assigned to one of the choices within each category.

3 Based on these assignments, the person then has their own Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) that describes their Personality traits. For example, if someone was dominant on the first option in each category, they would be extroverted (E), sensing (S), thinking (T), and judging (J): ESTJ. The sixteen different MTBI options comprise the Myers-Briggs model and accurately describe the test taker. Additionally, the interactions between different Types can be predicted with surprising accuracy. Before getting into the details of the sixteen different MTBI options, let's first discuss what the different categories really are and what they mean about someone.

4 Extroverts are the opposite of introverts. They are often surrounded by people, because this Introverts are people who draw is where they are the happiest. their energy from within Extroverts will want to discuss their themselves. They like to think decisions with many people in things through by themselves order to help them determine what before making a decision. they think. Additionally, they draw While people may confuse their energy from those around shyness or quietness with them. For example, while an introversion, these are not introvert might become tired by always comparable. Being Types of Personality Tests introverted is not about how Page 2 being at a loud party, an extrovert will often become more energized you act, but where you gain as the evening continues on.

5 Your insight and energy from. A sensing person is one Intuition refers to how a who relies on facts to help person remembers and them make sense of the interprets their world around them. For experiences. An intuitive example, they remember person remembers facts, not emotions. Also, feelings, not facts and they prefer to rely on likes to understand the details first, then discover big picture in any the big picture. situation. People in the feeling category are very tuned into what other people are experiencing and use The thinking category deals with that knowledge when making how you make your decisions. decisions. These people are People with this Personality often good mediators and make preference use the logical facts and decisions based on what they impersonal observations to help believe is best for those them decide something.

6 They often involved. Feelers often are use pro/con lists and like scientific Types of Personality Tests Page 3 able to pick up on other jobs. While no one uses the same people's emotions better than method for making every decision, thinkers . They then use these if you are categorized in the emotions as important factors thinking category, then this is Despite the term, judging people are not People who are people who judge others. perceiving are typically This simply means that viewed by the world as this is someone who likes more flexible and casual. to have decisions made They are often described (similar to how a judge as go-with-the-flow.)

7 Makes his/her decision). Types of people. If you If you are judging , you fall into this category, you are orderly, like to have also like to keep an open items resolved, and will mind and not make typically plan your tasks decisions too hastily. and make lists to stay organized. Based on which of the four categories your answers indicate, you will have four descriptive letters assigned to your MBTI Personality type. A. table describing the letters for each type is below. Letter Type Letter Type E Extroversion I Introversion S Sensing N Intuition T Thinking F Feeling J Judging P Perceiving Types of Personality Tests Page 4 Once you know what your four letters are that make up your MBTI.

8 Type, it is fairly easy to determine how this could describe your Personality . Typically, people with the same four letters have similar Personality profiles. The table on the next page shows the sixteen different letter combinations and a short description of each. Throughout the , all sixteen of the Personality Types are represented. However, they are not all represented evenly. The chart on the right, taken from Wikipedia, shows an approximate percentage for each of the sixteen MBTI Types . While it is impossible to know the exact percentage of the population that falls into each category without testing everyone, this chart shows clearly that some Personality Types occur more often than others.

9 For example, you are more likely to encounter an ISFJ type than an ENTJ type. Types of Personality Tests Page 5 MBTI Type Description 1 ISTJ The Duty Fulfillers 2 ESTJ The Guardians 3 ISFJ The Nurturers 4 ESFJ The Caregivers 5 ISTP The Mechanics 6 ESTP The Doers 7 ESFP The Performers 8 ISFP The Artists 9 ENTJ The Executives 10 INTJ The Scientists 11 ENTP The Visionaries 12 INTP The Thinkers 13 ENFJ The Givers 14 INFJ The Protectors 15 ENFP The Inspirers 16 INFP The Idealists Types of Personality Tests Page 6 For more information about the Myers-Briggs Personality test, check out the website at Types of Personality Tests Page 7 Big Five Personality Test Whereas the Myers-Briggs Personality test categorized the human's Personality into four distinct areas, the Big Five Personality Tests uses five categories to describe someone's Personality traits.

10 This test was developed and changed over time, with the version that is most common today developing primarily during the 1980s. Each of the five Personality characteristics is used to describe a person's tendency toward a particular behavior. Each of these five characteristics can be further broken down for a very detailed analysis of your particular Personality traits. Just as in any Personality test, the test cannot predict what you will actually do in a given circumstance, but instead indicates what you are pre-disposed or inclined to do based on your Personality . The five characteristics measured in the Big Five Personality test are: Openness Contentiousness Extroversion Agreeableness Neuroticism Each of these five areas is scored on a scale of 0 to 100.