What am I? An eternal struggle to find more about ourselves

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Assertive, reliable, communicative – which qualities apply to me? Anger, jealousy, or too trusting – what are my negative traits? Many people want to find out more about their hidden potential and underlying personality flaws.  They do so by taking online Personality tests. Numerous – often even free – variants are circulating on the Internet, but how reliable are the results, how serious are the tests? Can they actually reveal things about our personality? Well, let’s find out.

Scientific examination and self-experiment

The online personality tests are aimed at people who want to reorient their lives personally or professionally. They are mainly based on a self-assessment of the user: For example, a user indicates how much certain statements or questions apply to him. After which a result is compiled and according to his answers, his personality type is revealed. But are these tests scientific? The answer is both yes and no. There are tests like “difficult person test” which were actually designed by experts in universities and they can actually reveal a lot about you. But then you also have a plethora of random tests on Facebook, which for the most part are false and serve no purpose other than entertainment. 

Results are often brief and not very meaningful

The tests are easy to perform and usually quick: Sometimes a few clicks of the mouse are enough and the job is done in five to ten minutes. However, the longest test takes two hours. It also asks for cognitive abilities. That means: The user has to calculate, prove his logical thinking skills and his understanding of the text. The user then learns what the information means in the evaluation – but only rarely in good and adequately detailed form. The biggest shortcoming of the personality tests tested is the presentation of the results. This is sometimes extremely short and, due to the vague formulations, in some cases is not very meaningful for the user. A test offers comparisons with famous personalities such as Mother Teresa, George Clooney or Vladimir Putin.

Some personality tests lack a concept

In order for a personality test to be able to make reliable statements about the characteristics of the user, the character check must be based on a solid scientific concept. The advanced training experts from Stiftung Warentest, an independent testing company from Germany assessed some of the famous tests available online to find out if they were reliable. The overwhelming result was that most personality tests are definitely not advisable. You can even find a checklist on their website to find out which tests are reliable and furthermore education experts of the Stiftung Warentest can help you to recognize what makes a good personality test.

No substitute for professional career advice

Users of online personality tests should always have one concern: Professional career advice – be it online or in person, with a coach, for example – cannot be replaced by online personality tests. The results obtained by online tests can only be the first food for thought. And also Cat Food for cats

Conclusion

One can surmise from all this, that most online tests are there purely for entertainment. But that is not to say that there are no actual tests which can help you understand more about yourself. In our research we found that most professional tests are oriented towards job seekers. They are designed to help companies find the best candidate for the position. But there are other tests out there which help reveal personality traits for everyday individuals. But overall no test can be a substitute for a professional coach or a mental health expert, as we all are different and a single generic test cannot reveal everything about us.