In 2021, took one of the most scientifically validated and reliable tests to measure personality.

The test consisted of 120 statements that I could either agree or disagree with somewhat or greatly in order to determine who I am as a person. Like its name suggests, The Big Five personality test measured five broad factors of my personality; Openness to experience, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and natural reactions. The score given for each factor of personality is out of 100.


Openness to experience:

For this first category I scored a 63. This is considered to be within the middle range of scores for this category. The test describes me as someone who is partly practical preferring technical methods of problem-solving as well as partly imaginative and preferring to solve problems creatively. I agree that this is an accurate description of myself because I tend to think both practically and creatively about problems I am faced with everyday. The score being higher than 50 indicates that the test believes I lean slightly more towards experimenting than the other part me that is more traditional. If I had taken this test a year ago, I do not think this would be this case and my results would lean a little closer to the other side of 50 because I was less open to being creative and more focused on solving problems the way I had always known.

Conscientiousness (Work Ethic)

I have to thank my parents for my high score in this category, an 89. Those that score highly in this factor of their personality tend to be disciplined, efficient, well organised, and possessing a strong sense of duty. I do believe that this score reflects my personality. My parents have always valued work ethic immensely and this value has rubbed off unto me as I’ve grown up. In their words, “Any job worth doing, is worth doing well,”

Extraversion

My extremely low score of 1 in the extraversion factor shows that I am in no way an extrovert. I identify as an introvert and enjoy my own company rather than the company of many others. The test says that those who score lowly in this category, and are introverted, are more serious, reserved, and quiet than those that score highly. The test also says that someone who scores lowly may also tend to avoid leadership roles where they would have to be more assertive and work closely with groups of people rather than independently. I found that this was an accurate assessment because I have found it difficult to rise to leadership positions in the past. When given the choice, I would prefer to step out of the spotlight and work hard on in the background rather than go against my strengths.

Agreeableness

My score for this category teeters on the edge between high and middle scoring when compared to other test takers. I would say that I aim to avoid conflict wherever possible in my life, so I was a little surprised that it was technically ranked as average for this factor. The higher the score in this category, the more you are compassionate, easily pleased, and good natured. The attributes for a lower scoring person are hard-headed, sceptical, and competitive. I agree that I am hard-headed. I am practical and see things in life realistically, but I also believe that the attributes easy and eager to please fit me well. For these reasons, I agree that my score of 69 is an accurate one for this factor of my personality.

Natural Reactions

This final factor measures the way I respond to stressful situations. I scored 29 in this factor which is considered low in the test. The test describes me as not easily upset in stressful situations, relaxed, resilient, and calm. This is somewhat surprising because as a child I was known in my family as a “worry wart”. I agree that I am generally quite resilient, I do experience feelings of anxiousness especially in situations that are new or I know will be difficult. Overall, the score of 29 for my natural reactions is reasonably accurate in my opinion.


The findings of this test were overwhelmingly accurate to how I perceive myself. Taking a personality test is definitely a worthwhile exercise to reflect on yourself and find out new strengths and weaknesses you have that you may not otherwise notice or think about. Additionally, I find tests like this a lot of fun and if you want to take the test I will add a link at the end of this post.

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