I spent some time recently this reading about a “semi-ipsative psychometric questionnaire that measures 17 motivational dimensions.” I was reading materials prepared by the company that sells the questionnaire and certification to use and interpret the instrument. They are smart people and their presentation was persuasive. I’ll keep my eye on them and on what they offer.
The whole thing (especially the descriptive language, which appears to be tailored to convince skeptics of its rigor and science — why else use words like “semi-ipsative”?) made me think about George Box, and his famous aphorism:
All models are wrong; some models are useful.
This is my perspective on personality assessment tools. I read and think a lot about them, but I’ve not yet chosen to get certified or deploy them in my practice. Partly because I can’t decide which version of “wrong” is most useful.
We all need to develop the vocabulary to understand and articulate our motivations, the activities that energize or drain us, and the means to work well with people who see and behave very differently than we do.
I’m open to anything that gives people a framework for insight and self-acceptance. Some clients find it in astrology; others in tools and language built to be purchased and deployed by corporate HR departments.
In one-on-one work with clients, I have a number of exercises and strategies designed to sharpen and describe the self-knowledge that matters for success at work. But maybe they would be better if they were more semi-ipsative….
