The 4 types of personality tests

A summary of the measurement tools used in psychology to know better how we are.

The main objectives of psychometrics are to measure the variables that determine behavior and to compare different individuals on these dimensions. In the context of personality psychology these objectives are manifested fundamentally in the quantification of personality traits in order to predict behavior in a probabilistic way.

Since the beginning of the 20th century a large number of assessment tests designed to assess personality have appeared. In this article we will describe the 5 main types of personality testsThese tests are mainly applied in academic and occupational contexts and, in the case of those measuring psychopathological characteristics, in clinical psychology.

Types of personality tests

The instruments that are used to evaluate the personality are classified by general norm according to the methodological criteria that have determined their construction.. In any case, most of these tests are based on the numerical measurement of personality constructs and on the comparison of the individual evaluated with others.

Thus we find rational personality tests, nowadays practically in disuse, empirical tests (based on external criteria), factorial tests, in which the items are grouped into traits, and those that combine more than one of the above criteria; in this sense, the tests created by Millon and Cloninger are particularly noteworthy.

1. Rational or deductive

Rational or deductive tests are constructed on the basis of elements theoretically related to the variables to be measured.. For this purpose, the authors of the test are based on hypothetical criteria and it is assumed that there is a correlation between these and the test items.

In 1914, shortly after the outbreak of World War I, the American psychologist Robert Sessions Woodworth created the first personality assessment test. The "Woodsworth Personality Data Sheet" (PDS) was a psychopathological screening test that was intended to detect predisposition to neurosis in soldiers.

The PDS was composed of 116 items, consisting of dichotomous ("Yes/No") response questions such as "Do thoughts cross your mind that keep you awake at night?" and "Do you have a strong desire to commit suicide?". This was a test highly susceptible to falsification by men who wanted to avoid military service.

Rational personality tests are the least common of all types, since they were soon replaced by others based on empirical and factorial criteria. were replaced by others based on empirical and factorial criteria, which give rise to more reliable and valid assessment instruments.which give rise to more reliable and valid assessment instruments. However, as we will see below, some authors combine rational criteria with other criteria.

2. Empirical (based on an external criterion)

Instruments of this type focus on assessing the correlation between the subject's correlation between the subject's responses to the evaluation items and a given external criterion. Thus, the test items must be useful in predicting the relevant dimension.

In these cases, a group of subjects showing certain characteristics (such as a psychological disorder) is evaluated and the items are analyzed in order to choose those most representative of the criterion variable. From these the definitive test is constructed, which is applied to other subjects in order to assess the same construct.

The best known empirical personality test is the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI). the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)developed by Starke R. Hathaway and Charnley McKinley in 1942. The MMPI is mainly used to assess the presence of personality traits relevant to psychopathology, such as paranoia, depression or social introversion.

3. Factor or trait tests

Factor personality tests have been the most successful. These tests evaluate various factors, i.e., sets of items that correlate with each other; for example, the "Friendliness" factor would be composed of items that evaluate aspects such as openness, modesty, altruism or sensitivity to the needs of others.

The Raymond B. Cattell Factor Personality QuestionnaireThe "16 PF", better known as "16 PF", has been one of the most widely used personality tests for a long time. This test evaluates 16 first-order (or basic) factors that are grouped into 4 broader ones: Rebelliousness, Self-Reliance, Self-Control and Tension.

However, currently the hegemonic personality test is Costa and McCrae's NEO-PI-R Inventory, which is also based on factorial criteria. This test is framed within the framework of the Big Five personality factor modelThis test is based on the Big Five personality factors model, constructed from research data and with contributions from many different experts.

4. Mixed (with combined criteria)

Certain personality tests cannot be considered strictly rational, empirical or factorial, but have been constructed from a combination of criteria. One of the tests that best exemplifies this type of methodology is Theodore Millon's Clinical Multiaxial Inventory (MCMI), from which several tests have been derived.

The MCMI was constructed through the use of the three criteria we have discussed. First, this author relied on his own theory to choose a large number of items (rational strategy), then he selected a small part of these by comparing them with external criteria (empirical) and finally he identified the correlations between items (factorial).