Personality Type (modern, not Myers Briggs)

[ER Eddie]

This forum has a tendency to talk about personality in terms of Myers Briggs. Myers Briggs was invented half a century ago and really isn't taken seriously in the field today. The science has come a long way, and we have a much better understanding of personality now than we did then.

I thought we might try assessing ourselves with something that incorporates a modern understanding of personality. Research has shown for decades that personality can be broken down into five main factors.

Here's a Big Five test. It takes about 3 to 5 minutes to complete.

https://openpsychometrics.org/tests/IPIP-BFFM/

Here are my results:

For people who don't know how to copy an image: right click on the image, select "copy image address," click the image box in the menu bar of your post (the little mountain), then paste the address into that box.


Their factor V is labelled "Intellect/Imagination," but it's more commonly referred to as "Openness."

Here are brief descriptions of the 5 factors, for those who aren't familiar with them. (Maybe best not to read these until after taking the test, as doing so may bias your responses?)

Factor I: Extroversion. Outgoing and social vs. introverted.

Factor II: Emotional Stability. Low scores would be associated with proneness to negative emotion (e.g., depression, anxiety).

Factor III: Agreeableness. Friendly, optimistic (vs. critical, ornery, aggressive).

Factor IV: Conscientiousness. Careful, organized, diligent (vs. impulsive, disorganized)

Factor V: Openness. Open to new ideas and experiences (vs. traditional, conventional).

 

[Nemo2]

Seems to me that the questions/results indicate how one views oneself more than anything else; for example, I can say I'm conscientious (IMO) but others might view me as a goof-off.

Likewise 'concern for others', et al.

 

[JoeWras]

This test may be more scholarly and give more information, but it isn't as much fun. But I'll try.

"Hey, I'm a 96 type IV. What about you, honey? Wanna come organize my closet with me?"

 

[Amethyst]

A lot of it depends on the time of day. I'm critical and ornery in the morning, so that's when I go to the gym. Later on, when I'm optimistic and friendly, I can do the things I like

 

[cathy63]

I've had several of these personality tests done in the course of team building/management workshops when I was working. It seems to me that the models that gain the most traction are the ones that can put people in nice little boxes and then the outside consultant can come in and give everyone a set of operating instructions for how to deal with each other.

The modern scientific tests that emphasize that there's a continuum in personality traits will never be as popular. Nevertheless, here is mine:

 

[GravitySucks]

HR types forced this stuff on me. Not going to voluntarily do one on my time.
I yam what I yam.... [emoji16]

 

[imoldernu]

Was kinda fun... dunno what's good, what's bad. As my son always says, "it is what it is".

Don't guess it will change my life.

 

[ER Eddie]

Seems to me that the questions/results indicate how one views oneself more than anything else;

That's how self-report questionnaires work. Same thing with just about every personality test ever. Except for projectives like the Rorschach, which have almost no validity.

I've had several of these personality tests done in the course of team building/management workshops when I was working. It seems to me that the models that gain the most traction are the ones that can put people in nice little boxes and then the outside consultant can come in and give everyone a set of operating instructions for how to deal with each other.

The modern scientific tests that emphasize that there's a continuum in personality traits will never be as popular.

That's right. Easier to come up with a dumbed-down system that puts people into 4 categories, then dole out simplistic advice based on those categories. Consultants come up with endless variations and make lots of money. I prefer science, but what do I know.

Nevertheless, here is mine:

Thanks for playing. Very similar to mine.

My guess is that most people here would score high in conscientiousness. That's the factor (actually a subfactor, industriousness) that is a very good predictor (along with IQ) of career success.

Interesting to see the high Openness scores. I've always associated that with creativity and liberal leanings, whereas this forum seems rather conservative and traditional to me (though I could be wrong, just my impression). Otoh, maybe people who are more open are more willing to take the test.

Was kinda fun... dunno what's good, what's bad. As my son always says, "it is what it is".

No good or bad, just a description along the major lines that describe people's personality. Thanks for playing. Extremes can be problematic. High neuroticism (low emotional stability) can be problematic. In general, though, everything has pros and cons.

And no, it won't change your life; it just describes the personality you meet it with. Which is pretty much a done deal and locked in, by the time we're old enough to be talking on ER.org.

 

[tmm99]

My agreeable scale is quite high, but my friends and DH, I'm sure, won't agree.

 

[ER Eddie]

Here is a more in-depth description of the traits, for anyone wondering how to interpret their results:

https://www.verywellmind.com/the-big-five-personality-dimensions-2795422

And here is the wikipedia breakdown:

Extraversion (outgoing/energetic vs. solitary/reserved). Energy, positive emotions, surgency, assertiveness, sociability and the tendency to seek stimulation in the company of others, and talkativeness. High extraversion is often perceived as attention-seeking and domineering.

Low extraversion causes a reserved, reflective personality, which can be perceived as aloof or self-absorbed. Extroverted people tend to be more dominant in social settings, as opposed to introverted people who may act more shy and reserved in this setting.

Neuroticism [labelled as Emotional Stability in the test above, so it's described from the opposite pole here.] (sensitive/nervous vs. secure/confident). Tendency to be prone to psychological stress. The tendency to experience unpleasant emotions easily, such as anger, anxiety, depression, and vulnerability.

Neuroticism also refers to the degree of emotional stability and impulse control and is sometimes referred to by its low pole, "emotional stability". High stability manifests itself as a stable and calm personality, but can be seen as uninspiring and unconcerned. Low stability manifests as the reactive and excitable personality often found in dynamic individuals, but can be perceived as unstable or insecure. Also, individuals with higher levels of neuroticism tend to have worse psychological well being.

Agreeableness (friendly/compassionate vs. challenging/detached). Tendency to be compassionate and cooperative rather than suspicious and antagonistic towards others. It is also a measure of one's trusting and helpful nature, and whether a person is generally well-tempered or not.

High agreeableness is often seen as naive or submissive. Low agreeableness personalities are often competitive or challenging people, which can be seen as argumentative or untrustworthy.

Conscientiousness (efficient/organized vs. easy-going/careless). Tendency to be organized and dependable, show self-discipline, act dutifully, aim for achievement, and prefer planned rather than spontaneous behavior.

High conscientiousness is often perceived as stubbornness and obsession. Low conscientiousness is associated with flexibility and spontaneity, but can also appear as sloppiness and lack of reliability.

Openness [labelled Intellect/Imagination in the test above] (inventive/curious vs. consistent/cautious). Appreciation for art, emotion, adventure, unusual ideas, curiosity, and variety of experience. Openness reflects the degree of intellectual curiosity, creativity and a preference for novelty and variety a person has. It is also described as the extent to which a person is imaginative or independent and depicts a personal preference for a variety of activities over a strict routine.

High openness can be perceived as unpredictability or lack of focus, and more likely to engage in risky behaviour or drug taking. Also, individuals that have high openness tend to lean, in occupation and hobby, towards the arts, being, typically, creative and appreciative of the significance of intellectual and artistic pursuits. Moreover, individuals with high openness are said to pursue self-actualization specifically by seeking out intense, euphoric experiences. Conversely, those with low openness seek to gain fulfillment through perseverance and are characterized as pragmatic and data-driven—sometimes even perceived to be dogmatic and closed-minded.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Five_personality_traits

 

[RobbieB]

 

[Nemo2]

That's how self-report questionnaires work. Same thing with just about every personality test ever..

So...totally subjective, and therefore basically meaningless?

 

[W2R]

Was kinda fun... dunno what's good, what's bad. As my son always says, "it is what it is".

Don't guess it will change my life.

Same here. It doesn't really tell me much that I didn't already know. I guess the same is true for Myers-Briggs, in which I am an INTJ. I am pretty used to being me, after 70+ years of it. Here's mine.

 

[haha]

I demonstrate my fantastic agreeableness by trying to refrain from commenting on these threads. I have read a lot about this scale, it is one favored by former professor and current popular writer Jordan Peterson. I like the scale. Many women are agreeable, at least on the surface.

I think truly understanding this might be very helpful for me.

Ha

 

[stepford]

So with an Agreeableness score of 5 does that mean I'm officially an old curmudgeon now?

 

[Amethyst]

This description makes it sound as if the higher your Openness (or "O") score, the less likely you are to FIRE. Yet here I am, with an "O" of 96, and no drug abuse or risky behavior in my background.

It also makes it sound as if people who prize good taste and beauty, can't also be highly disciplined.

"High openness can be perceived as unpredictability or lack of focus, and more likely to engage in risky behaviour or drug taking. Also, individuals that have high openness tend to lean, in occupation and hobby, towards the arts, being, typically, creative and appreciative of the significance of intellectual and artistic pursuits. Moreover, individuals with high openness are said to pursue self-actualization specifically by seeking out intense, euphoric experiences. Conversely, those with low openness seek to gain fulfillment through perseverance and are characterized as pragmatic and data-driven—sometimes even perceived to be dogmatic and closed-minded."

 

[FlaGator]

I'd say I'm stable, but bland

 

[Huston55]

Very similar to the Big Five survey/result I posted on the other “Personality Type” thread.

 

[Sue J]

Hmmmmm......

 

[Walt34]

Pretty much agrees with the INTJ that I consistently come out as on the MB:

 

[ER Eddie]

So...totally subjective, and therefore basically meaningless?

No, not meaningless, just limited. Until we get brain scans that can reveal personality structure, we're limited to people's subjective report of themselves. That's just the way it is. Good tests do have some informative value and predictive power. But they have plenty of limitations.

There are two basic limitations (putting aside psychometric issues):

1. The person's ability to understand themselves accurately (self-awareness).

2. The person's willingness to give honest answers (as opposed to trying to look good, either to themselves or others).

 

[Nemo2]

No, not meaningless, just limited. Until we get brain scans that can reveal personality structure, we're limited to people's subjective report of themselves. That's just the way it is. Good tests do have some informative value and predictive power. But they have plenty of limitations.

There are two basic limitations (putting aside psychometric issues):

1. The person's ability to understand themselves accurately (self-awareness).

2. The person's willingness to give honest answers (as opposed to trying to look good, either to themselves or others).

I appreciate what you're saying, it's just that for some, perhaps many, people the caveats are/can be distorted or flexible, whether deliberately or unintentionally.

 

[davebarnes]

Looks right to me. And, stay off my lawn.

 

[ER Eddie]

So with an Agreeableness score of 5 does that mean I'm officially an old curmudgeon now?

lol, sounds like it.

This description makes it sound as if the higher your Openness (or "O") score, the less likely you are to FIRE. Yet here I am, with an "O" of 96, and no drug abuse or risky behavior in my background.

It also makes it sound as if people who prize good taste and beauty, can't also be highly disciplined.

"High openness can be perceived as unpredictability or lack of focus, and more likely to engage in risky behaviour or drug taking. [....]

Well, this is one of the problems in talking about personality at such a high level of abstraction. These are very broad categories. When you talk at this level, you lose a lot of resolution and detail. That's an unfortunate downside. Talking in big, broad abstractions makes things simple and easy to digest, but you lose a lot of detail and specificity. And that's where people live -- at the level of specifics, not in broad generalizations. So I think maybe that's why several people are sort of responding, "Yeah, so what. Nothing new to see here."

Each of the Big Five categories has a number of subtraits or subfactors. That's where things get a little more interesting. Here's one list of those subfactors:

Conscientiousness subtraits
Competence/Self-Efficacy
Order
Dutifulness
Achievement-striving
Self-discipline
Deliberation

Neuroticism (Emotional Stability) subtraits
Anxiety
Hostility
Depression
Self-consciousness
Impulsiveness
Vulnerability

Extraversion subtraits
Warmth/Friendliness
Gregariousness
Assertiveness
Activity/Activity level
Excitement-seeking
Positive Emotions/Cheerfulness

Agreeableness subtraits
Trust of others
Compliance/Morality
Altruism
Straightforwardness/Cooperation
Modesty
Tender-mindedness/Sympathy

Openness subtraits
Fantasy/Imagination
Artistic Interests
Feelings/Emotionality
Actions/Adventurousness
Intellect/Like complex problems, philosophical discussion
Values Liberalism


So a high score on one of the Big 5 is made up of your individual scores on the subtraits, but that doesn't mean you're high in all the subtraits. You could be high in some but just average in others (or even low in others). So, for example, your high score in Openness could be due to high scores on subtraits related to artistic interests, valuing feeling and imagination, or liberalism (I'm making that up, I have no idea).

The Big 5 description from the wiki is a broad abstraction that tries to cover all the subtraits, or at least some of them. The nuance is, some of the supposed correlations cited (e.g., between Openness and drug use) are really a reflection of a strong correlation between one or two of the subtraits and that behavior. For instance, with drug use, it's probably the Adventurousness subtrait that is correlated with that, maybe liberalism as well. But the other subtraits (e.g., interest in ideas or art) may have very weak correlations with drug use.

I hope I'm being clear. It gets a little tricky, but the devil is in the details. The overall description I posted from the wiki may over-represent some subtraits and under-represent others. The associations mentioned in the description between a Big 5 Factor and some behavior (e.g., lack of discipline) may be due largely to a correlation with one or two of the subtraits, but not the others. And likewise, you can be high on some of the subtraits, but not on the others. It's at the level of the subtraits where you start to get more precision.

 

[braumeister]

I think we're very unlikely to see a completely reliable personality score.

Even outside observers may rate an individual in very different ways.

• My dog thinks I'm the most wonderful person on Earth.
• My cat barely tolerates me, and only when I'm prompt in providing food, treats, and a clean litter box.