Personal Values Test: Find Your Core Values

Sooner or later a big decision makes you ask: what are my values, and which one comes first? A new job, a move or a family request can pull you in opposite directions. This personal values test turns that tension into a clear order. You see what you protect, what you trade away and why some choices feel so hard.

What the test measures

The test follows the theory of basic values by Shalom Schwartz, a model studied in dozens of countries. Ten values sit on a circle: independence, novelty, enjoyment, achievement, influence, security, shared rules, tradition, care for loved ones and fairness to all. Unlike a simple core values test that asks you to pick words from a list, it measures every value with three statements about real situations. Neighbours on the circle get along, while opposite values compete, so freedom tends to clash with security and personal success with care for others. The circle falls into four directions: freedom and change, success and influence, security and tradition, care and fairness. Each direction gets its own score from 0 to 100, which makes the order far harder to fake.

How it works and how to read the result

There are 30 short first-person statements, and most people finish in about eight minutes. For each one you choose how much it sounds like you, from Not like me at all to Very much like me. A third of the statements are trade-offs, such as taking a risky opportunity that could shake your income, so you cannot simply mark every value as important. This is where the values quiz differs from a wish list: it shows what you choose when you cannot have everything. Your result includes:

• your leading value direction, scored from 0 to 100, and the weakest of the four;
• your three core values in order and the one that matters least;
• the pair of values that pulls you apart when a decision gets hard;
• a comparison with other people who have answered the same statements.

Values are not good or bad, and no order is better than another. People often come back to their result before a career change, a move abroad or a serious talk with a partner, because it names the value that decides for them.