Enneagram test
An Enneagram test is a questionnaire meant to identify a person's dominant type among the nine of the model. The best known, the RHETI (Riso-Hudson Enneagram Type Indicator), is a registered trademark of the Enneagram Institute. Every questionnaire shares a structural limit: it measures reported behaviors, while the type is defined by a deep motivation that is sometimes invisible to the person. The result works as a starting hypothesis, to be confirmed through self-observation.
Why tests get it wrong
When you answer a questionnaire, you describe the person you think you are, sometimes the one you'd like to be, rarely the one who acts on autopilot. Yet identical behaviors hide opposite motivations: three different types can tick the same box for reasons that have nothing in common. A stressful stretch can also have you answering from your stress arrow rather than from your type.
Using it wisely
Take your result as a shortlist, not a sentence: keep the top two or three types in mind, read their basic fear and basic desire, then watch yourself for a few weeks across varied situations. Helen Palmer in fact favored interviews and typing panels over any questionnaire: nothing replaces listening to what truly sets you in motion.
Sources
- , The Wisdom of the Enneagram (1999)
- , The Enneagram: Understanding Yourself and the Others in Your Life (1988)