Free Personality Tests - Can They Be Trusted?

Some are completely bogus. Others are very boring and not much use to you. You have to wonder if it is even possible to find a free personality test you can trust?

What is a free personality test?

Well the chances are that any personality test you use will be based on the work of Carl Jung, who is generally recognized as the father of personality profiling. There are other systems based on the lie detector test and some on the ink blot test. Of course they aren’t “tests”. everyone refers to them as such but it is completely inaccurate. Your personality is not something you can pass or fail. As Popeye would say “you is who ye is”. Jung did not believe in “norms”. He didn’t believe one should strive to fit the “norm” and saw this as a misuse of personality profiling. Yet many people, professionals included, insist on trying to “norm” people. A more constructive use is where you use the report to simplify something as complex as human personality.

Where are Free Personality Tests Used?

The most common use for personality reports is in career development and recruitment. However we are seeing free personality tests used in a diverse array of applications such as dating and relationship development.

Can free personality tests be accurate?

There is a misconception that only a test administered by a psychologist or consultant could be accurate. This is not true. Online tests have become more and more sophisticated and although they may not make the consultants redundant, they change the role the consultant plays. no longer is a consultant required to tell you what your report says as they are more often written in plain English so you can read it for yourself. So some free tests are simply amazing quality and others are really bad. It is not just the psychology you have to complain about its the online interface. Many online tests are developed by non-Internet savvy people so they look terrible and are boring to complete and use.

What should you look for?

Look for a website that is up to date and well designed. Crappy old educational sites should be ignored in the main. It should indicate how long the test will take and provide some background about the company or person who devised it. More questions does not mean more accuracy. Often the opposite is true.