DISC Personality Test

DISC Profile

DISC is short for the 4 DISC factors that are given as a result of taking a DISC test. The 4 factors given during a DISC profile are:

1. Dominance
2. Influence
3. Steadiness
4. Conscientiousness

These DISC factors are represented visually as a circular grid that is divided into four quadrants.

After taking the DISC profile, you will see your scores for each quadrant. Some scores will be higher, which indicates your most likely personality type.

Dominance is the top left quadrant, followed by influence at the top right, steadiness at the bottom right and conscientiousness at the bottom left.

DISC Styles

When taking a DISC personality test, you will be assigned to one of the 4 general quadrants. The 4 quadrants are the 4 DISC factors that we reviewed above (dominance, influence, steadiness, and conscientiousness).

Dominance

The dominant (D) personality matrix measures your directness and your decisiveness. It can also measure personal focus and determination and normally represents someone who is focused on the end result rather than the journey toward a goal.

Influence

The influential (i) personality aspect measures your sociability, and your extraversion to a lesser extent. It deals with charisma, persuasive ability, and the likelihood that someone will look to make connections with others and attempt to be well-liked by a group.

Steadiness

The steadiness (S) personality matrix deals with even-temperedness. Those with the trait are patient or calm when it comes to handling difficult tasks or working for long hours. It’s normally represented by a moderate personality that isn’t given to bold or aggressive actions or statements.

Conscientiousness

Finally, the conscientiousness (C) personality matrix looks at how analytical a person is, particularly when it comes to their attention to detail or their appreciation for orderliness. They tend to be systematic when it comes to tasks or objectives and aren’t very fast-paced.

DISC Styles Variations

While some individuals may fall specifically under one of the above quadrants (dominance, influence, steadiness, or conscientiousness), many individuals will be a combination of 2 DISC personalities.

We have listed some common DISC personality combinations in the table below.

People who have one of the personality metrics in excess become a “high” version of that type. Again, this doesn’t mean that they don’t have any amount of the other personality matrices – just that they prefer one over the others.

High C

High C personalities are very analytical and measured in their approaches. They are extremely attentive to detail and don’t normally rock the boat, preferring instead to follow the rules and structures set in place by the company or family unit.

High S

People with a High S rating are extremely patient and supportive. They tend to be very loyal to a cause or personality once they deem them worthy of their focus.

High S people can be rocks for the team, as they’re unlikely to become flustered by much of anything.

High I

These are the social butterflies of the group. They’re excellent communicators and are generally outgoing and sociable.

They also tend to be confident, particularly when it comes to meeting new people and forging valuable relationships between themselves and other members of their team or family.

High D

Finally, High D personalities are extremely dominant and are natural leaders, though whether they’ll be effective at corralling support depends on their personality.

They like to control things and, if they can’t lead a group, they may go off on an independent streak and play by their own rules. They’re high achievers and very competitive in most cases.

Please note that everyone is a combination of all four DISC styles. However, most people tend to be one or two styles.

What is the DISC Assessment Used For?

The DISC assessment is primarily used for fun or by companies looking to put together excellent team-building exercises for their organizations.

Many people confuse the DISC test for an intelligence test – this is not the case as the DISC personality assessment has no right or wrong answers.

You can use the DISC assessment to change your workplace culture, understand where a miscommunication might be coming from, or understand whether someone would be good for a new position at your company or organization.

The DISC assessment is sometimes used in conjunction with the Wonderlic test during the hiring process.

How Accurate is the DISC Assessment?

The DISC assessment has been around for about 40 years and has slowly become more accurate over time. Most modern DISC tests utilize an adaptive assessment, which means that the computer administrating the test will offer different questions based on the responses of the person currently testing.

However, the nature of the test, being self-reported, means that any results should be subject to some skepticism.

People have difficulty seeing past their own egos or personal biases, so they may not answer honestly even if they have the intention of doing so. The big 5 personality test has the same issue associated with it.

Ultimately, taking the DISC test multiple times will provide the most accurate results. Remember to answer as honestly as possible for the most accurate results.

Where Do You Take the DISC Personality Test?

You can take a free DISC test online. We listed a free DISC assessment above. Many individuals will take a DISC profile through their employer or during the hiring process. The DISC test is managed by Wiley. We have listed some official DISC resources below.

DISC Test FAQs