If you have ever come across terms like MBTI, the various personality types, the type A or the type B friend poll and so on and thought of taking a little personality quiz yourself, this article is just the right one for you. Self-categorisation or even labelling is something so many of us like to do to seek answers, clarity on why we behave the way we do or why we think a certain way, sometimes even just for fun. This article explains the psychological reasoning behind why we love taking these personality quizzes and a few common personality types as well.
The desire to be perceived just as one sees oneself
Take personality quizzes that pop up on your social media posts, like what is your MBTI type, like the INFT, ENTP, INFJ, and the many others, it makes us curious to get to know which one we might be. To explain this in more detail, let’s understand the self-verification theory by Swann. The theory explains how people have a perception of themselves and like it when the world also views them to be that way.
In a way, it helps them prepare for the world and how others will judge them and what opinion they might have of them. (Swann, 2012) .For example, a person who views themselves as confident might want others to see them as confident too, to have better self-clarity and validation. Two core concepts here are self-concept and clarity, as mentioned before, along with narrative identity. By taking a personality test, one might be able to better classify oneself into one or more categories and hope others will too.
Self-concept and Closure
Self-concept, in simple words, means how we view ourselves. Even how others around us, our close ones, friends, colleagues, view us. Our likes, dislikes, hobbies and more are all included in self-concept. How others view us affects our motivation, self-concept and attitude as well (MSEd, 2024m). This is why taking a personality test can help seek some closure, as if we were easily categorised into something that others can understand, and boost our self-concept.
Narrative Identity and Perception (McAdams, 2011)
Narrative identity is shaped by one’s upbringing and experiences, pieced together into an autobiographical story. This is important for their self-concept and opposition from themselves and others. A personality quiz can help them feel seen (McAdams, 2011). For example, the way school or your family influenced your life, and those are reasons why one acts the way he does. Taking a personality quiz can help put that into perspective temporarily and help give some comfort.
Social identity and belonging
Social identity, as the name suggests, is how we as humans categorise and understand ourselves with how groups and the world \views of us. Society quite literally. It also provides a source of behavioural and cognitive motivation. Sort of feeding off the energy and perspectives of us by society (Ellemers & Naomi, 2017). For example, an A-type person may see themselves as organised, but being seen otherwise, even briefly, can affect their self-concept.
Illusion of control and predictions
In the easiest words, being a Virgo or a Sagittarius or a type B personality might help us think we can predict behaviour or provide reasoning for it. Like they did that because they have this personality, and even relate it to ourselves. This is where the illusion of control comes into play. It is a sense of illusion that we have things under control and we can actually predict and thereby control our reactions, thoughts and decisions on various outcomes that we think we can predict and have control over(MSEd, 2024g).
Cognitive Dissonance and Closure
Cognitive dissonance means internal conflicts. Dissonance occurs when we act against our values, morals, or beliefs. We experience anxiety, confusion, sadness, and even question our identity(MSEd, 2025c). In this case, taking up personality quizzes can help feel a sense of closure in this confusion or even get some clarity.
Conclusion
All in all, this lure of self-categorisation can stem from wanting to be seen, have some clarity and closure on who we are and how we think, perceive and behave the world around us, as well as personality quizzes just seem to get that right in the moment.
FAQs
1. Why do we love personality quizzes in a nutshell?
This lure of self-categorisation can stem from wanting to be seen, have some clarity and closure on who we are and how we think, perceive and behave the world around us, as well as personality quizzes help out.
2. Does being labelled as a personality type boost self-concept?
Social identity, as the name suggests, is how we as humans categorise and understand ourselves with how groups and the world’s view of us. Being labelled as a certain personality can have positive as well as negative perceptions by the world, affecting our motivation and attitudes towards ourselves.
References +
Swann, W. B., Jr. (2012). Self-verification theory. In P. A. M. Van Lange, A. W. Kruglanski, & E. T. Higgins (Eds.), Handbook of theories of social psychology (pp. 23–42). Sage Publications Ltd. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781446249222.n27
MSEd, K. C. (2024, July 29). What is Self-Concept? Verywell Mind. https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-self-concept-2795865
McAdams, D. P. (2011). Narrative identity. In S. J. Schwartz, K. Luyckx, & V. L. Vignoles (Eds.), Handbook of identity theory and research (pp. 99–115). Springer Science + Business Media. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-7988-9_5
Ellemers, & Naomi. (2017, August 16). Social Identity Theory | Definition, History, Examples, & Facts. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/social-identity-theory
MSEd, K. C. (2024, May 24). What to know about the illusion of control. Verywell Mind. https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-the-illusion-of-control-5198406 MSEd, K. C. (2025c, January 27). Cognitive dissonance and the discomfort of holding conflicting beliefs. Verywell Mind. https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-cognitive-dissonance-2795012
