Enneagram tests seem to be proliferating on the Internet as we speak. As I observe this phenomenon, I am growing more and more concerned about the work of upholding the integrity of the Enneagram as a valid tool for self study, psychological counseling, and personal, professional, and spiritual development.

We see Enneagram tests being used inappropriately on dating websites and for online contests in a way that sullies the academic validity of the Enneagram, gives the taker the wrong impression of the Enneagram, and indeed gives them a false measurement of their Enneagram type.

As I write this opinion, we are developing an online version of the Cohen-Palmer Enneagram Inventory (CPEI), an Enneagram type assessment tool that that I developed with Marlene Cresci-Cohen. We are updating it for an online presentation, and it is being validated by literally hundreds of Enneagram students whose type is known by virtue of their considerable study of the Enneagram.

No single Enneagram test can insure the accurate typing of every person that takes it. We suggest that people take more than one test, compare the results, and consider them a guide as to their Enneagram type. We heartily recommend inquiring about it’s statistical validity before taking it. We suspect that many of the new Enneagram tests we see proliferating on the Internet have been proven to provide accurate results.

There are at least three current online tests with statistical merit, and each has a different format for type selection. We think the Enneagram tests on the following sites are of high quality, and surely worth investigating.

www.EnneagramWorldwide.com David Daniels and Virginia Price

www.Enneagramspectrum.com Jerome Wagner

www.Enneagraminstitute.com Don Riso and Russ Hudson

 

Helen Palmer and the Enneagram.com Team