ChristianKl comments on Useful Personality Tests - Less Wrong

9 Post author: seez 11 February 2014 11:18AM

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Comment author: ChristianKl 11 February 2014 09:53:49PM 0 points [-]

One of my university professor once told me that if you have a strong reaction to either the sentence: "I'm a normal human." or "I'm not a normal human." that means that you probably have an issue worth addressing in detail.

An astrology test might tell you: "One the one hand you are a human like everybody else, but on the other hand there something were unique about you."

If the statement that the test says that you are a normal human like everybody else triggers you, that has meaning. If you get an angry reaction, where you say: "No, there no way in which I'm like other people." that's a topic worth further exploration.

Just to be clear, I don't have meaningful personal experience with astrology I'm extrapolating from other personal experience and general knowledge.

Comment author: adbge 11 February 2014 11:00:51PM *  1 point [-]

If the statement that the test says that you are a normal human like everybody else triggers you, that has meaning.

I wouldn't read too much into such a reaction. It seems to be a fairly common thing, resulting in the creation of a uniqueness-seeking scale in psychology. There is some support for a "need for uniqueness" as a human universal, with a review here.

From my notes on the Handbook of Positive Psychology:

As predicted, the students who were told that they were mod- erately similar to other respondents reported more positive moods than did those students who were told that they were either highly sim- ilar or highly dissimilar to other respondents. (page 415)

The establishment of a sense of uniqueness is emotionally satisfying to individuals. Moreover, it is necessary for our psychological welfare. (page 423)

And here's some just-for-fun trivia:

Specifically, evidence of a higher than usual need for uniqueness has been found among (a) women with unusual first names (Zweigenhaft, 1981); (b) women whose nearest sibling is male rather than female (Chrenka, 1983); (c) students who are firstborn or only children versus latter born (Fromkin, Williams, & Dipboye, 1973); and (d) children of interfaith marriages (Grossman, 1990). (page 416)

Comment author: ChristianKl 12 February 2014 09:42:12AM 0 points [-]

It seems to be a fairly common thing

The fact that something is common doesn't mean that it's healthy. In general people who are strongly triggered by the assertion that they are normal might engage in behavior that cuts them off from their fellow humans in order to feel more unique.

There are a bunch of people who make uncommon clothing choices and then complain when they draw attention by strangers when walking in public. When I personally walk around in Vibrams (which I got 3 years ago) I do it welcoming attention by strangers.

I have no issues with practicing my dance turns in public while waiting for a train which is not standard behavior but I don't do it out of a desire to prove that I'm unique, practicing the dance turns is about practicing the dance turns regardless of who's looking.

If you engage in a bunch activity to either prove that your normal or to prove that you are special, than you aren't doing what's most beneficial for your other goals.

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