…absolute behavior control is imminent…. The critical point of behavior control, in effect, is sneaking up on mankind without his self-conscious realization that a crisis is at hand. Man will… never self-consciously know that it has happened. - Raymond Houghton, ASCD (curriculum arm of the NEA), 1970

There are only a few of us that haven’t taken a personality test. They can be found all over the place, in magazines, websites… Lots of people are taking them to check their compatibility with the loved one, or to see what are the chances that their relationship will last. The problem is that only a few of us realise what these tests really are.

They not only tell us how we are, they also tell us how to be…

The four reasons why personality tests are really bad for your mental health:

1. They are manipulative. Let’s have an example. In a sex personality test, if you answer the question “How important is sex in your life?” with the fourth option (picture), the answer will score poorly. And if the other answers would follow on the same note (normal, not sex addict), the whole test will have a very low score, with a poor conclusion (picture). After a conclusion like this, the person who has taken the test will subconsciously try to change in order to get better test results in the future.
2. The conclusions are simply stupid sometimes, and contradictory.
3. The persons who take such tests are often taking them as a result of an identity crisis. They hope that the tests will get them to know themselves better, but instead of doing that, the only results are a lower self confidence and a distorted view.
4. These tests distort, replace and destroy the real values of life.

The world would be a happier place without these tests… if possible, try to avoid taking fun magazine tests.

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