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Personality Test Tips
Read some important information we have gatehered regarding the personality tests used at assessment centres and throughout the job application process.
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Feeling stress and discomfort before taking a personality test is a completely understandable and natural response; you are being asked to take an unfamiliar psychological test without understanding the evaluation criteria. The only thing you do know is that the test is supposed to reveal hidden sides of your personality, and that can be very intimidating.
Feelings of stress associated with test-taking can influence your behaviour in four ways:
- Carelessness
- Over-investment
- Indecisiveness
- Irritating Behaviour
Carelessness Personality questionnaires are long and tiring, and they often contain a number of repetitive questions. After answering a myriad of questions, you may become careless and start answering quickly and systematically. For example, you may take hasty decisions and choose the first response that sounds reasonably "like" you rather than reading each question in full and selecting the most appropriate answer. This type of carelessness can occur with many types of questions.
Here's a tricky question as an example:
"People do not understand my good intentions."
A. Sometimes true
B. Never true
If you don’t consider the two options carefully, you may be tempted to answer B. However, almost everybody has been in a situation where they weren’t properly understood, so the answer 'Never true' is inappropriate. It is absolutely vital to read both the question and each of the possible responses carefully and to pay close attention to words like 'always', 'never', 'sometimes' and 'usually'.
Over-investment Generally, there is no specific time limit for completing a personality test. Some applicants take this instruction too literally and spend too much time on the test. You should know that in many assessment centres and on some computer applications, the time factor does play a hidden role. The overall time taken to complete the test and the hesitations between answers are often noted.
If you are too worried about the outcome of the test you may invest extra time pondering over each question, re-thinking your answers over and over again, erasing and re-completing and ultimately taking way too long to finish the test The evaluators will make a note of any hesitant behaviour and may conclude that you have difficulty dealing with stressful situations
This aspect of the evaluation is kept well hidden from applicants, as the evaluators want to observe your "natural" pace of work
Indecisiveness Some candidates, overwhelmed by stress, become very indecisive. For example,
imagine that you are asked the following question:
"I don't mind being interrupted while I'm working."
Responding indecisively throughout the test can lead the evaluators to conclude that you’re an indecisive person and that you didn’t handle the testing situation well. Indecisiveness won’t help your application, nor will employers appreciate it. In cases where you are tempted to select the neutral option (‘?’), we recommend that you reconsider and evaluate which answer more appropriately represents qualities that are suited to the position you applied for.
Irritating Behaviour Stress can also influence your behaviour towards the examiners. Some applicants are so concerned about their test results that they repeatedly harass the examiners by asking questions and demanding clarifications. This behaviour can make you appear needy and unable to perform effectively in an ambiguous situation. In summary, a high level of stress can impede your performance on the personality assessment. Conversely, when your stress level is low and you know what’s expected of you, your attitude towards the test will be more focused and determined.
The secret to alleviating stress is to come prepared. When your stress level is under control you will display a sound, coherent personality profile that amplifies your strengths rather than your anxiety
When preparing for a personality test be cautious of free advice. For example, many think that when filling in a personality questionnaire it is very important to be consistent. This advice can be misleading and compromise your chances of success! Being very consistent throughout may create an extreme profile, one which suggests you have very strong but also very weak characteristics and suggest you have an extreme personality.
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