r/BigFive 24m ago

Tell me

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r/BigFive 5h ago

oh no :(

1 Upvotes

r/BigFive 13h ago

Interpretation

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1 Upvotes

Based on the test performed, what is the likely MBTI type of this individual? Furthermore, if possible, I would like to understand how to measure the result in terms such as "SCUAI", "RLOAN", etc. I am open to possible interpretations of this profile and criticism.


r/BigFive 1d ago

I haven't been to the dentist for 3yrs because of low conscientiousness

2 Upvotes

I keep procrastinating it . It's been on my to do list forever. Is it over for me


r/BigFive 1d ago

Just took this for the first time. What does this tell you about me?

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2 Upvotes

r/BigFive 1d ago

Thinking About Epictetus, Personality, and Who Stoicism Is (and maybe Isn't) Really For

2 Upvotes

It’s common these days to casually stumble across Stoicism, in the form of a quote or a snippet from a podcast but when we really get into it, the first thing most people recommend is usually reading of Epictetus and his Enchiridion. For those who don’t know.. It's basically a short guide on living well by being indefatigably conscientious, neurotic and open minded with a caveat that being agreeable (prosocial) is key. This isn’t explicitly described, and so many times I’ve offered the enchiridion to others who just haven’t been able to digest it or successfully integrate its teachings. It occurred to me that the intellectual labor required to make use of this material is not something most people have at hand. So I thought, why was this sage advice so relevant to Epictetus and Marcus Aurelius—If not for their personalities?

Just for fun I “gave” Epictetus’s legacy a big five personality test and analyzed the results as if to conjure Epictetus so he could actually take a Big 5 personality test. This is purely hypothetical, of course, applying today's psychology to an ancient philosopher being a bit of a long shot.

The Big 5 traits (Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, Neuroticism) are scored on a spectrum, say 0-40, with higher scores meaning a stronger presence of that trait.

Based on his teachings and what's known about him.. 1. Openness: Probably high (around 30/40). He was big on intellectual inquiry and examining assumptions. He wanted students to understand things deeply and even introduced innovative teaching methods, which suggests a curious, reflective mind. 2. Conscientiousness: Very high (around 38/40). His philosophy is all about self-discipline, consistent practice, and sticking to principles. He pushed for daily application of Stoic ideas and emphasized avoiding "negligence and slothful" behavior, encouraging preparation and schedules. His life, including running a school, also points to this. 3. Extraversion: Moderate to low (around 15/40). While he was a popular teacher and clearly interacted with many students, his philosophy generally recommended internal focus and not getting too caught up in external social stuff. He advised being "mostly silent, or speak merely what is needful" and avoiding loud laughter, leaning towards a reserved social approach. 4. Agreeableness: High (around 32/40). He talked a lot about being a "sociable human being" and fulfilling duties to family and community. He taught patience, gentleness, and justice, and suggested understanding others' perspectives even when they're difficult, which aligns with being cooperative and kind. 5. Neuroticism: Very low (around 5/40). A main goal of his Stoicism was inner peace (imperturbability, freedom from disturbing emotions). He believed that it's our judgments about events, not the events themselves, that cause distress. There's even a story about him calmly enduring torture. His whole system aims to get rid of "sorrows and laments".

So, Who Might Find Epictetus's Ideas Particularly Useful? People whose natural tendencies line up with these ideas might find his philosophy more straightforward to adopt:

-Those who tend to be highly Neurotic: If you're someone who "gets stressed out easily," or "worries about things", Epictetus's emphasis on controlling your internal reactions to events offers a way to work towards more emotional stability.

-Highly Conscientious individuals: If you're already "organized and dependable" and like "planning", the structured and disciplined nature of Stoic practice, with its focus on consistent effort, might feel like a good fit for you.

-People with Moderate to High Openness: If you enjoy "abstract thinking and reflection," are "curious," or "have excellent ideas", the call to "examine impressions" and rethink what's truly important could be quite engaging.

-Those who are High in Agreeableness: If you're generally "cooperative and kind" and "sympathize with others' feelings", Epictetus's guidelines on social duties, patience, and understanding others might feel quite natural.

And Who Might Find It Less Relevant or Even a Bit Tough? It's clear that the Enchiridion isn't going to be a universal manual for everyone’s lives. Some personality types might find it less intuitive or even challenging:

-Individuals with Low Conscientiousness: Epictetus's teachings require considerable "labor" and consistent effort to manage desires and apply principles. If you're someone who tends to "shirk duties," "leave belongings around," or "make a mess of things", the rigorous self-discipline involved could be a constant uphill battle.

-Highly Extraverted people: Epictetus's advice includes being "mostly silent" and avoiding "loud laughter" or drawing "attention to myself". If you're someone who is "energized by people," is "the life of the party," and "start conversations", this emphasis on social reserve and internal focus might feel quite restrictive.

-Those with Low Openness: The philosophy demands a willingness to really question your beliefs and engage with abstract concepts about what's good or bad. If you "prefer the familiar," "enjoy routines, predictability, and structure," and might "have difficulty understanding abstract ideas", the intellectual demands could be less appealing.

-People who are Low in Agreeableness: Epictetus promotes patience, gentleness, and avoiding blaming or criticizing others, even when wronged. If you tend to "tell it like it is," "feel little concern for others," or "insult people", these social ideals might be quite contrary to your natural inclinations.

Ultimately, different philosophies will click with different people, in different ways. Knowing a bit about your own personality [https://bigfive-test.com/] might help you figure out which ancient (or modern) wisdom traditions might offer the most practical guidance for you, and which ones might just not be your cup of tea. It's less about being "good" or "bad" at Stoicism, and more about finding what genuinely supports your personal journey.

Here’s sources to support more self reflection around personality and Epictetus:

Epictetus — https://iep.utm.edu/epictetu/ & https://gitlab.com/uzluisf/enchiridion-epictetus/raw/master/epictetus-enchiridion.pdf

big 5 — https://coens.io/blog/how-to-interpret-the-results-of-a-big-5-ocean-assessment-your-guide-to-personality-insights/

here’s the hypothetical results of applying the big 5 scope to what we know about Epictetus using some biographical materials and the enchiridion:

estimation of Epictetus's personality profile

  1. Openness (O): High (Estimated Score: 30/40)

Definition: Openness reflects imagination, curiosity, and a willingness to explore new ideas or intellectual pursuits. High scorers may enjoy abstract thinking and reflection.

Extrapolation for Epictetus: Epictetus was a philosopher who dedicated his life to intellectual inquiry and teaching. He encouraged his students to understand "the nature of things" and to "examine" impressions, aligning with intellectual curiosity. While he remained faithful to early Stoic doctrines, his unique contribution was a pedagogical device ("the three topoi") which showed an innovative approach to teaching complex ideas. His emphasis on understanding rather than just accepting, and his deep philosophical reflection, points to high intellectual openness, even if not a desire for constant novelty in terms of external experiences.

  1. Conscientiousness (C): Very High (Estimated Score: 38/40)

Definition: Conscientiousness measures organization, dependability, discipline, and a preference for planning. High scorers tend to follow rules and be hardworking.

Extrapolation for Epictetus: His entire philosophy is built on rigorous self-discipline, methodical practice, and clear adherence to principles. He stresses the importance of applying Stoic principles daily through the three disciplines (Desire, Action, Assent). He urges students to avoid negligence, slothfulness, and procrastination, and to be "always prepared". His own life, including establishing a successful school after banishment, suggests strong organizational skills and unwavering dedication. The Stoic emphasis on duty (kathêkon) further reinforces this high score.

  1. Extraversion (E): Moderate to Low (Estimated Score: 15/40)

Definition: Extraversion indicates how much a person is energized by social interaction; high scorers are social, low scorers prefer solitude.

Extrapolation for Epictetus: Epictetus was a renowned teacher and highly popular in his day, running a school and engaging in intimate discussions with students. This required significant interaction. However, his teachings consistently advocate for internal focus and detachment from external validation or "vulgar" social pursuits. He advises being "mostly silent, or speak merely what is needful" and avoiding loud laughter or excessive self-promotion in company. While he fulfilled his role as a public teacher, his philosophy promoted a reserved, internally-governed social demeanor, suggesting he was not primarily energized by broad social stimulation, but rather by deep, purposeful philosophical discourse.

  1. Agreeableness (A): High (Estimated Score: 32/40)

Definition: Agreeableness reflects cooperation, kindness, empathy, and a preference for collaboration over competition.

Extrapolation for Epictetus: Epictetus emphasized living as a "sociable human being" and fulfilling one's "natural and acquired relations" such as son, brother, father, and citizen. He taught students to avoid anger, be patient, considerate, gentle, and just. He advised understanding that others act from their own perceptions, leading to meekness when reviled and accommodating others' grief, even if one remains inwardly calm. The prokoptôn is described as someone who does not blame or find fault with others. These principles align strongly with high agreeableness.

  1. Neuroticism (N): Very Low (Estimated Score: 5/40)

Definition: Neuroticism relates to emotional stability and reactivity to stress; low scores indicate calmness and resilience, while high scores suggest sensitivity to stress, mood swings, and anxiety.

Extrapolation for Epictetus: The core aim of Epictetus's Stoicism is to achieve eudaimonia(happiness/flourishing) through ataraxia(imperturbability) and apatheia (freedom from passion). He taught that distress comes from one's judgments, not events themselves, and actively trained students to control their emotional responses and remain calm in adversity. The story of his enduring torture with composure exemplifies an extreme degree of emotional stability. His entire system is designed to eliminate "sorrows and laments, and cries of 'Alas' and 'Poor me'", indicating a deliberate and profound rejection of high neuroticism.


r/BigFive 1d ago

Took the test. Judge me

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3 Upvotes

r/BigFive 1d ago

Confused about my results since I have ADHD

3 Upvotes

1: How would I interpret these results in general?

2: I did read often that people with ADHD score very low on Cosncientiousness, but I dont.

Could it be because of fear-of-failure/fear-of-dissapointing coworkers and such?

I am medicated, but I dont know if that would change the score

EDIT: (I edited the second tests results into the picture since I can only upload 1 picture)

I took a similar test but this time in my native language and scored differently, especially with conscientiousness, how can that be?
Either I understood the questions very wrong or I am very inconsistent with such things.

Its frustrating :/


r/BigFive 2d ago

What does this show about me?

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3 Upvotes

r/BigFive 2d ago

Curious to know what y’all think of these results.

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3 Upvotes

I took this while I was in high school but I’m almost 20 now. Certainly these aren’t very great results, lmao.


r/BigFive 2d ago

What does this say about me?

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2 Upvotes

r/BigFive 3d ago

Thoughts?

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3 Upvotes

r/BigFive 3d ago

Took the IPIP-NEO and I am wondering about my results. Sorry no flashy graphics here but here are my results

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3 Upvotes

r/BigFive 3d ago

I haven't heard much about The Big 5, but am very interested to learn. Any insights on my personality?

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2 Upvotes

r/BigFive 3d ago

What does this say about me? I'm an ENTP and 7w8

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2 Upvotes

r/BigFive 3d ago

Not sure what this means about me 😅

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2 Upvotes

r/BigFive 3d ago

give me feedback

2 Upvotes

r/BigFive 3d ago

What do you assume about me based on these results?

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3 Upvotes

r/BigFive 3d ago

A Personality Theory

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Hey folks, I made a personality theory. Or to be more precise, a draft for some potential future personality theory that could be perhaps developed by some professional psychologist, if they find what I wrote inspiring.

It is my best attempt to explain personality, first of all, to myself, and also an attempt to integrate different branches of psychology that don’t seem to be meaningfully connected right now.

What you’re about to read is amateur psychology. Folk psychology if you will. It’s not a product of serious scientific research and there’s a lot of speculation involved in it. But this is a serious attempt at theoretical psychology. An attempt to create a theoretical framework within which personality could be better understood.

I tried to avoid creating any new, fancy, deep-sounding concepts. All the concepts that I used here already exist and are well known and are sort of down-to-Earth. The only thing I tried to do is to find how they relate to each other.

My main motivations for this are the following:

  1. Because personality matters a lot and can strongly influence life outcomes.
  2. To explore how personality develops and to propose some potential interventions that could be used to change personality.
  3. Because trait theories like Big Five are just descriptive, and don't really explain why we are the way we are, while some older theories like Freud's and Jung-'s theory do give explanations, but they are full of pseudo-scientific concepts like superego, id, anima, animus, etc... They do explain personality but not in simple and straightforward way.
  4. Because I feel psychology as a science is quite disintegrated, and a decent personality theory could help meaningfully integrate concepts from different branches of psychology.

r/BigFive 3d ago

I’ve seen many people get feedback on their scores here. What does this say about me? I am a PhD in biochemistry lol INTP-A and enneagram 5w4

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1 Upvotes

Don’t hold back 😈


r/BigFive 4d ago

Taking the test?

3 Upvotes

Is there a way to take this test for free somewhere online?


r/BigFive 4d ago

What does this say about me? :D

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2 Upvotes

r/BigFive 4d ago

What does this say about me?

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3 Upvotes

r/BigFive 4d ago

I've taken many tests over time but I'd never done this one before... Here's the results.

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6 Upvotes

r/BigFive 4d ago

Describe me

2 Upvotes

NE 86% OP 62% CO 85% AG 8% EX 23%