The IQ Workout Series MORE PSYCHOMETRIC TESTING 1000 new ways to assess your personality, creativity, intelligence and lateral thinking Philip Carter and Ken Russell {Jobs}1021jw/makeup/1021ch2.3d {Jobs}1021jw/makeup/1021fm.3d MORE PSYCHOMETRIC TESTING {Jobs}1021jw/makeup/1021fm.3d Titles inThe IQWorkout Series PsychometricTesting: 1000 ways to assess your personality, creativity, intelligence and lateral thinking 0-471-52376-3 IncreaseYour Brainpower: Improve your creativity, memory, mental agility and intelligence 0-471-53123-5 IQTesting: 400 ways to evaluate your brainpower 0-471-53145-6 More IQTesting: 400 new ways to release your IQ potential 0-470-84717-4 MaximizeYour Brainpower: 1000 new ways to boost your mental fitness 0-470-84716-6 {Jobs}1021jw/makeup/1021fm.3d The IQ Workout Series MORE PSYCHOMETRIC TESTING 1000 new ways to assess your personality, creativity, intelligence and lateral thinking Philip Carter and Ken Russell {Jobs}1021jw/makeup/1021fm.3d Copyright# 2003 by Philip Carter and Ken Russell Published in 2003 byJohnWiley & Sons Ltd,The Atrium, Southern Gate, Chichester, West Sussex PO19 8SQ, England Telephone (þ44) 1243 779777 Email (for orders and customer service enquiries): {Jobs}1021jw/makeup/1021con.3d Contents Introduction 1 Section 1 Personality tests 5 Personality tests ^ Part 1 7 Introduction 7 How well do you cope under pressure? 8 Are you a people person? 19 Asking for what you want 26 Do you have the secret of success? 33 How content are you? 39 Are you a control freak? 46 Forward looking, or stuck in a time warp? 54 How soft-centred are you? 61 Attitude 69 Optimist or pessimist? 75 Are you a good team player? 83 How assertive are you? 90 How patient are you? 99 Would you make a good contestant on Big Brother ? 107 Are you a career person? 113 How obsessive are you? 121 How laid back are you? 129 Laterality 136 Creativity 147 Perception 155 {Jobs}1021jw/makeup/1021con.3d Personality tests ^ Part 2 165 Introduction 165 Kindness 166 Humour 170 Jealousy=envy 174 Unafraid 179 Absent-minded 183 Justice 187 Friendship 191 Anxiety 195 Artistic 199 Creativity 204 Thrifty 208 Impulsive 212 Extroverted 216 Success 220 Leader 223 Confidence 228 Aggression 233 Section 2 Aptitude tests 239 Introduction 241 IQ test one 244 Introduction 244 Spatial ability test 245 Logic test 251 Verbal ability test 254 Numerical ability test 257 Answers to IQ test one 259 IQ test two 264 Introduction 264 Test two 265 Answers to IQ test two 272 Introduction The British Psychological Society defines a psychometric test as: an instrument designed to produce a quantitive assessment ofsomepsychological attribute orat- tributes. A meaning of the word metric is measure, and psycho meansmind. Psychometric tests are basically tools for measuring the mind and are used frequently by employers, as part of their selection process, be- cause they believe that such tests assist them considerably in providing an accurate assessment of whether an individual is able to do the re- quired job and whether the person’s character is suited to the work. Psychometric tests have existed since the turn of the nineteenth century, although attempts to measure the differences between the psychological characteristics of individuals can be traced back to Hippocrates at around 400 BC, who attempted to define four basic temperament types as optimistic, depressed, irritable and sluggish. In the last 25^30 years, psychometric tests have been brought into widespread use in industry because of the need by employers to ensure that they place the right people in the right job from the outset. One of the main reasons for this in today’s competitive world of tight purse strings, cost-cutting and low budgets is the high cost of errors, includ- ing the need to readvertise and reinterview new applicants, and rein- vest in training. There can also be serious difficulties involved in dispensing with the services of someone who has just been hired, especially if a contract has been signed. Furthermore, if a new recruit causes personality conflicts within a team or department this may lead to unrest between other members of staff with the result that the team may underperform. 2 More Psychometric Testing Although an organisation will not found its entire decision on the basis of an individual’s test results, the use of psychometric testing in selection is now well established, and can be used to provide objective information about different areas of a candidate’s skills, for example, the extent of their knowledge, motivations, personality and potential. The two main types of psychometric tests used are personality questionnaires and aptitude tests. Aptitude tests are designed to assess a person’s abilities and personality questionnaires help to build up a profile of an individual’s characteristics. It is important that such tests are evaluated in tandem with each other since it does not necessarily mean that if a person scores well on an aptitude test, then they will be suited to the job. While you may be good at doing something, you may dislike it intensely, and success in most tasks depends on your per- sonal qualities and your attitude. Personality refers to the patterns of thought, feeling and behaviour that are unique to every one of us, and these are the characteristics that distinguish us from other people. Our personality implies the predict- ability of how we are likely to act or react under different circum- stances. In reality, of course, nothing is that simple and our reactions to situations are never so predictable. In many ways the word personality defies a simple definition, so broad is its usage. Although through the years theorists have emphasised different as- pects of personality, and have disagreed about its development and ef- fect on behaviour, it is accepted generally that heredity and development combine and interact to form our basic personality. In addition to heredity, many psychologists believe that critical periods exist in personality development, and these periods are when we are most sensitive to a particular type of environmental event, for example, when we are developing our understanding of language and, how well our basic needs are met in infancy, which can leave a perman- ent mark on our personality. Very loosely, therefore, a personality test is any device or instru- ment for assessing or evaluating personality.