If you're looking to an Enneagram test to tell you your Enneagram type then you may find yourself disappointed. Enneagram tests can only suggest your likely type based on the responses you give to the test items.
Discovering your Enneagram type is a journey. It's a matter of trying on one or more types for a while to see how well each fits for you. Tests help to narrow down which type or types are good candidates for you to try on.
Since the accuracy of an Enneagram test also depends on the responses given, there are some things to consider that might make the test results more accurate for you.
Once your basic Enneagram type is set early in life it doesn't change. What often changes as you grow older is your ability to adapt and respond to the world in a less fixated, more flexible way.
Many Enneagram test items explore how you respond to the world. You may find that you often responded in a particular way when you were younger that you seldom do now.
Remember that an Enneagram test is trying to find your type and you can help it do that by responding from a time when your type may have been more obvious. Often that means when you were younger.
Just be careful going too far back to when your type was still in flux. This could be somewhere during your teenage years or before. Your type may have been present but it can be hard separating it from the many other influences at play during those years.
Part of the discovery of Enneagram type has to do with honestly seeing yourself. Often when you find your type there can be an unsettling feeling of being found out.
There may be test items that you see as painting you in a light that you don't like. Resist the temptation to go against what you feel may actually be true.
If you're just taking the test for yourself then there is no one else to criticize or judge you for your answers.
Most Enneagram tests use some sort of Likert scale. A typical Likert scale test will present statements indicative of a certain type with response choices such as Strongly Agree, Somewhat Agree, Neutral, Somewhat Disagree, and Strongly Disagree.
A test of this type is trying to find clear preferences between the different types. The more neutral or weaker your responses are, the less clear your preferences between types and the less differentiation between the final type scores.
You can make the distinctions between the Enneagram types on a test more clear in two ways.
It's probably best to take an Enneagram by yourself the first time you take it. You don't want someone else's personality influencing how you answer.
However, if you're not satisfied with the results then take it again and ask someone who knows you well to offer feedback as you answer each test item.
Taking an Enneagram test with someone offers two types of feedback.
There is no authoritative source on the Enneagram types. Every person interprets the types differently. Sometimes the differences are subtle. Sometimes they're more pronounced.
It's likely that the interpretation of the types as they're used on the test closely aligns with the type descriptions on the website offering the test. Reading those type descriptions should give you a context for how to interpret the statements on the test.
One challenge of taking an Enneagram test cold can occur when test items aren't given any context and the test taker is left to wonder what exactly each statement is saying. This can not only lead to an overthinking of your responses but also a misinterpretation of what the test items mean.
The first time you take an Enneagram test you're not only trying to understand the meaning of each item but also exploring how well it applies or doesn't apply to you.
When the test is over you may think back about the items and responses you gave and wonder if you should have answered differently. Retaking the test may offer you a chance to answer more accurately now that you have a better idea of what's being asked and how you relate to that.
Related Article: Are Enneagram tests accurate? If not then what are they good for?