Graduate employers are increasingly using personality questionnaires when recruiting and selecting candidates. Personality questionnaires can also help you to recognise your strengths and weakness.
Why take a personality questionnaire?
Familiarising yourself with personality questionnaires will empower you in three ways:
- You will be ready for the personality questionnaires that you will be required to take when applying for graduate roles. You will also have a good idea what report will look like.
- You will have the ability to explain your personal preferences, strengths and developmental needs in language that an employer can recognise and understand.
- You will be able to recognise the roles and environments in which you are most likely to excel and flourish (as well as the roles and environments likely to stretch and challenge you
Key Facts about Personality Questionnaires
Here are some things it may be helpful to know about personality questionnaires:
Personality questionnaires are generally 鈥渟elf-reporting鈥�, meaning that users are required to answer questions about their own personality. Sometimes, if the questionnaire is being used to develop an employee in a role, colleagues may also be asked to complete a questionnaire on eachother, known as a 鈥�360鈥� perspective on personality assessment. 360 assessments are resource-intensive and so their use is generally confined to the development of leaders in large organisations.
Unlike aptitude or ability tests, the scores or ratings produced as a result of taking a personality questionnaire are based on self- judgement rather than performance. That is one of the reasons why psychologists disagree on many issues relating to personality questionnaires, particularly on their appropriate use in the recruitment process.
Recent has found that HR professionals are often unaware of the literature behind personality testing and other assessments. As a result, the tests that they choose may not reflect the traits they seek in candidates. When it comes to recruiting and selecting candidates, only empirically valid should be used, and only as a small part of a combined, 鈥渕ulti-measure鈥� approach that involves several measures, including ability tests.
Given the validity concerns about personality questionnaires some companies opt not to use personality questionnaires to screen candidates. Instead, they use them at a later stage in the selection process to get a deeper understanding of the more successful candidates, and to generate probing interview questions.
Honesty is the best approach for two reasons. Firstly, some personality questionnaires incorporate internal scales that can reveal if a candidate is 'faking' by distorting their responses line with what they believe the recruiter is looking for. Secondly, employers often use personality questionnaires when deciding where you best fit in their company. For these types of assessments, there is no pass/fail result or right/wrong answers, simply your natural preference. Why lie so that you can end up in a role that you don鈥檛 enjoy? So, the best advice is to answer as your true, best self.
Trait versus Type Questionnaires
Personality questionnaires can generally be categorised as 鈥渢rait鈥� or 鈥渢ype鈥� questionnaires:
Trait-based questionnaires are designed to assess the level of a various traits within an individual. A鈥痶rait is a universal, characteristic鈥痯attern of behaviour which is relatively stable over time, e.g. Conscientiousness, Agreeableness. Traits are identified鈥痶hrough a statistical process called 鈥渇actor analysis鈥�.鈥疶rait-based questionnaires are designed to measure 鈥渉ow much鈥濃�痮f a trait鈥痚xists within an individual.鈥疷sers are assigned a score on each trait (as depicted below) that can be used to place them on a鈥痭ormal distribution bell curve.鈥�
Trait-based questionnaires are used in recruitment because they appear to offer recruiters an objective 鈥渕easure鈥� of desired traits,鈥痑nd a means of comparing the candidate objectively with other candidates, and the general population. They are used by clinical and educational psychologists.
The following are all examples of trait-based questionnaires:
; ; ;
Type-based questionnaires鈥痑re not designed to measure 鈥渉ow much鈥� of a trait is in an individual.鈥疶hey are also not used to competence鈥痮r psychological problems. The purpose of type questionnaires is to reveal how 鈥�healthy, &苍产蝉辫;鈥�functioning鈥� individuals differ from one another.鈥� A type questionnaire can deepen you understanding of how you relate to people, and why. For this reason, type questionnaires are useful in career development, coaching, teamwork and leadership development.
Type-based Questionaires:
- Reveal inborn preferences,鈥痩ike鈥痶o a preference to use鈥痶he鈥痳ight hand when writing, or left foot when kicking a ball.鈥�
- Categorise users in a&苍产蝉辫;鈥渂imodal鈥� manner 鈥� i.e. the report will show one preference over another (e.g. Extroversion or Introversion). It鈥檚 not possible to 鈥減refer鈥� both.鈥�
- Measure preference, not ability. With practice, a鈥痽ogi鈥痺ho prefers to鈥痵tand on their left foot could become just as skilled鈥痠n standing on their right foot. However, the preference to stand on their left foot is likely to remain.鈥�
- Reveal the differences between healthy, functioning adults - so there are no 鈥渞ight鈥� or 鈥渨rong鈥� types or preferences.
- Use terms in a way that may differs in meaning from their everyday use.鈥疐or example, somebody with a preference鈥痜or鈥�淚ntroversion鈥濃�痯refers to focus鈥痶heir energy on their inner world.鈥疶his鈥痙oesn鈥檛 mean鈥痶hat they are timid, shrinking violets who avoid social interaction.鈥疢any professionals with roles focused on the outer world, even world leaders, have been shown to have preference for introversion.鈥�鈥�
- Are not designed to鈥痯redict鈥痶o confine your choices or career mobility.鈥�鈥�
- Can provide a greater understanding of how your individual preferences influence your approach to work environments and other people.鈥�
The following are examples of type questionnaires: the , TDI.
Type Dynamics Indicator
Team Focus have developed a Type Dynamic Indicator (TDI) that is available at no cost to students on UCC through the 鈥淧rofiling for Success鈥� platform.
Similar to the 鈥�Myers Briggs鈥� (MBTI), a tool building on and supported by decades of empirical research, the TDI has been designed to help people to gain insight, grow and develop as individuals and to be more effective and satisfied with their lives and relationships.
Those familiar with the Jungian approach to personality will recognise the four dichotomies:
- Extraversion-Introversion
- Sensing-Intuition
- Thinking-Feeling
- Judging-Perceiving
They will also recognise the 16 types associated with a test taker鈥檚 preferences.
Dichotomies and Self-Assessment
The below table outlines the dichotomies in more detail. Take the 'Type Dynamic Indicator' (TDI) assessment and learn more about your personality.
The Type Dynamics Indicator can reveal your personal preferences based on the same Jungian dichotomies as the MBTI.
| Reflection |
Preference |
Jungian Dichotomies (e.g. TDI, MBTI) |
| Where do you prefer to focus your energy? |
Outer world of people and things |
Extroversion (E) |
| Inner world of thoughts and reflection |
Introversion (I) |
| How do you prefer to take in information? |
Through the senses 鈥� Facts, Tangible Details, the 鈥渉ere and now鈥� |
Sensing (S) |
| Holistic combinations and relationships, Patterns, Possiblities |
Intuition (N) |
| What makes a decision comfortable? |
Reason, Objectivity, Logic |
Thinking (T) |
| Subjectivity, Values, Inherent Worth and Importance |
Feeling (F) |
| How do you prefer to manage life around you? |
Boundaries, Decisions, Structure, Order |
Judging (J) |
| Flexibility, Openness, Adaptability, Spontaneity |
Perceiving (P) |
The TDI will combine your revealed preferences in each area to create a 4-letter personality 鈥渢ype鈥� as illustrated in the following diagram:
Source:
