# Are personality tests accurate?



## fadango (Aug 14, 2018)

As title say, what is your opinion?
Personally I did not have a good experience and get different results. Like a lot of time i don't know how to answer or i feel like in the middle but maybe is a problem with me i dunno


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## Super Luigi (Dec 1, 2015)

a lot of people say they're not, but then they tell you to take them anyway

I don't know, I can't stop hoping that they mean something important, even if we don't realize it


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## Rascal01 (May 22, 2016)

I don’t know if you can get a definitive answer from a credible source regarding your question.

I’ve taken the MBTI a dozen times. At least 6 of the MBTIs were given by professional psychologists in a group setting. The rest were taken on-line from what appeared to be reliable providers. I have always indicated ISTP.

Yesterday I used a link from a thread on PerC to yet another MBTI provider. That result was ISFP. I don’t think I have switched teams, and I doubt everyone else was wrong.

I had a lot of faith in the MBTI process. Today there is a little crack in the foundation of my beliefs.


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## fadango (Aug 14, 2018)

Thank you for the input Rascal, i appreciate it.
I believe that, regardeless of the possible problems when mistyping, MBTI and the cognitive functions are still useful if used wisely; both for improving our inner self and in relation to others.


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## Lunacik (Apr 19, 2014)

Just about everything in life is relative. This is one of those things.


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## SirCanSir (Mar 21, 2018)

In many cases they are, but for the most part they serve to point you somewhere. 
Its where you begin your research from.
They serve enough to give you a first impression of what you are atleast.
If you are honest with yourself most of them will point you somewhere around your real type.
Though i guess it depends on the test's validity itself. Not every test is the same.


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## Electra (Oct 24, 2014)

Even if the questions are the same for everyone, "everyone", (or at least a lot of people) might have a different reason for the answers they give, and thus a lot of misunderstandings can occur.


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## Lucan1010 (Jul 23, 2018)

I've found MBTI mostly accurate. I haven't given others much thought/research, at least not yet.


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## The Dude (May 20, 2010)

Not really, but the point is to give a direction not a definite answer.


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## Super Luigi (Dec 1, 2015)

The Dude said:


> Not really, but the point is to give a direction not a definite answer.


that's good advice


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## flamesabers (Nov 20, 2012)

I think it depends on the personality test. Poorly worded questions or questions with an implicit bias I would say not so much. However, if the personality test can help you to better understand yourself and people with different personality types, I would say the test is reasonably accurate. 

I think the MBTI is an accurate test. It doesn't describe me to the smallest detail of course, but I do relate to a lot of the information describing ISTJs.


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## incision (May 23, 2010)

Since typologies rely on self-reporting, it depends on how well the test taker understands themselves and perceives in terms of their patterns. With self-report tests, they presume that people are their own best judges. On the other hand, if people and psychologists adhere to the theory of the unconscious mind, coping and defense mechanisms inclusive, how can people perceive themselves clearly?


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## zanah0dia (Apr 8, 2015)

A self administered personality test is only as accurate as the taker is self aware and honest.


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## danthemanklein (Mar 30, 2018)

^Agreed.

Also, as much as I don't use dichotomy tests as an example to type yourself or others, they will give you an idea about what your type may be, but it's best to do one that tests your use of the cognitive functions. Even then, those still get muddy if you're not being as honest or self-aware with yourself taking them, and just trying to go for the ones you wish you were instead.


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## Wohpe (Aug 25, 2018)

They can point you in the right direction. My biggest complaint is that Keirsey style tests that don't focus on cognitive functions need to stress that 90% J doesn't mean you are a super judger, but very likely to be a judger. This confuses a lot of people who are new to MBTI tests. Enneagram tests seem to be more straightforward.


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## Snowflake Minuet (Feb 20, 2016)

They're a good starting point, and their accuracy does also depend on how self aware the individual is about his or her preferences. I think they are pretty accurate and certainly useful tools considering a format which can never be fully comprehensive in my opinion.


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## WhatIsYourConfirmationBias (May 10, 2018)

Don't know...I try to answer the questions as honestly as possible, even if it makes me look bad...So far, I've gotten ENTP, INTP, ENTJ, and ENFP! (Yup I'm now officially a Feeler...) But dig this, I took the keys2cognition test and scored high on Se, Ne, AND Fi! How is that possible? Well it's because I believe we all use these functions when making decisions, as in I don't believe you always use the same Dominant function for EVERY decision you make..Sometimes I use logic, and sometimes I use my values when making decisions...And I think we all do this, because how many times has a Thinker made a dumb decision because they fell in love? 

So how accurate is typology? I'm taking it with a grain of salt...


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## INTxress (Aug 25, 2018)

Depends on the personality test. For example, I do not find 16personalities accurate. The questions are vague and if you know how the system works, it is easy to get the answers you want.


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## Strelnikov (Jan 19, 2018)

I don't rely on them except as a means to see some suggestions, not necessarily to see a clear final answer. Some have given me the right answer, others didn't. What I would do is take the test multiple times on multiple sites and then see how they average out. I was usually stuck on the I/E difference, but in the end after receiving some great help from others I can now definitely say I'm an ENTJ. So from now on, no more tests, since the matter is settled for me. But it can help others to use this method: take more tests and see which results come up more. Look at the types, but also look at the letters themselves.

There are 2 tests which stood out for me and I would recommend them, since they almost always gave me the correct answers:

Personality test based on C. Jung and I. Briggs Myers type theory
https://www.idrlabs.com/tests.php (has 2 MBTI style tests + 1 for cognitive functions)

Other advice for determining your type:

1. Know yourself, since the results pretty much depend on what you say about yourself

2. Look at YouTube channels, especially where people describe the everyday life, thoughts and sensations for each type. I found 2-3 channels on YouTube that really pressed home that I'm an ENTJ. And I mean, you can also watch channels which discuss the functions and the types, they are informative, but they didn't really help with type since the information was too theoretical and abstract. But once you find personal stories and you feel that connection to what is being said, then yes, I think that's better than any theoretical discussion about typology.

3. While you're here, start a thread on the "What's my personality type?" sub-forum, this helped me a lot, just getting feedback and just seeing what I say about myself (it really helped me see how much more visceral and instinctive my reaction is to Fi compared to Se, that's how I realised that should be my inferior function... Se is just tedious, tiring or boring, but fun at times, but Fi triggers a stronger reaction, just by seeing what I wrote as arguments for both as my inferior and comparing them). It's surprising to see the insights you can gain just by writing your thoughts and seeing them on paper/screen.


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## Sciencing (Aug 30, 2018)

I think it depends on how the creator words the questions and interprets their answers, and how the taker interprets the questions and whether they're answering 'honestly', which might be affected by things they already know about personality typing or even recent events that are still on their mind. It also depends on how the results are presented - if you're just given the top scoring type and your 'true' result is near a couple of borders then relatively small changes that affect an answer or two might give very differing types on different days. Who's to say which of those days was the accurate test, or that they're all inaccurate?

Even if a test is inaccurate it might provide a very solid point from you to work from if you can think about why it thinks you're that type and why you disagree.

I get remarkably similar results each time (for MBTI at least - not just letters but how strong each is), which doesn't mean they're accurate, just that in my case they're precise.


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## Westy365 (Jun 21, 2012)

The MBTI system is good. The tests are mostly meh. I find visual typing via interactions and thinking about the Jungian Functions are more helpful at determining type than tests.


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## Sybow (Feb 1, 2016)

Accurate? Depends on how accurate you are pointing to. Its not 100% accurate, but it also depends on the person itself. For one it can be more accurate than for someone else.

Its more a way of understanding yourself and others a bit more.

Also, what @The Dude said, is pretty much on point.


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