Thomas Assessment Guides for Candidates
Whether you are taking a Thomas assessment as part of a recruitment process or for your own personal or professional development, we want to help you feel prepared.
Have you been asked to complete a Thomas assessment?
We understand that taking an assessment can seem intimidating. By having a good understanding of the assessment and what to expect, you are more likely to perform at your best and have more confidence when completing other assessments in future.
Thomas' Behaviour assessment
The Thomas Behaviour assessment (also known as the Personal Profile Analysis or PPA) explores how a person prefers to behave and communicate in the workplace.
Background & Theory
Dr. Thomas Hendrickson developed William Moulton Marston’s DISC theory to produce the Thomas Behaviour assessment (PPA) for the workplace in 1958. The assessment is linked to Marston’s theory of human behaviour (Marston, 1928, 1931), which asserts that our behaviour is influenced by how comfortable we feel in a given situation, and how motivated we feel to change the situation. These two dimensions provided a matrix of four characteristics from which a person’s typical pattern of interaction could be described. These characteristics are: Dominance, Influence, Steadiness, and Compliance.
Assessment Instructions
It is important to note that there is no universal or ideal behavioural style. Most individuals prefer some behavioural approaches more than others, and this is what the assessment measures.
Therefore, you cannot pass or fail the assessment, and there are no ‘correct’ or ‘incorrect’ answers. However, your initial response to the questions is usually the most accurate, so it is important to be as spontaneous and honest as possible when answering.
We find that completing the assessment in isolation and without interruption allows people to focus better. It is not timed but takes approximately 8 minutes to complete.
Ensure that you answer based on your experience of yourself in your current job or most recent professional context. If you do not have professional experience, then please answer based on your behaviour at home.
During the assessment, you will be presented with sets of four words. Choose one word or phrase that MOST describes how you operate in your current job and one word or phrase that LEAST describes how you operate in your current job.
Some of the questions might be more difficult to answer, especially if none or all the words sound like you. These questions allow us to identify nuances in your behaviour, so it is important to try to select the words that most and least describe you.
Thomas' Aptitude assessment
The Thomas Aptitude assessment assesses a person’s speed of learning and how quickly they retain new skills and information.
Background & Theory
The assessment was developed by Dr. Peter Dann in 2022. The American Psychology Association inc. (Frank L. Schmidt & Jon E. Hunter, 1998) reviewed 85 years of research and found that higher cognitive ability, or aptitude, as measured by the Thomas Aptitude assessment, is directly linked to higher employee productivity and performance in a role. This assessment places an objective filter on an individual’s ability, regardless of their qualifications and experience.
Assessment Instructions
This assessment is timed and comprises of 5 individual sections, each of which lasts between 2 to 5 minutes.
Overall, including instructions and examples, the assessment lasts between 30 – 45 minutes. We find that most individuals perform best if they complete the assessment in one sitting.
We strongly recommend reading the Aptitude Example Booklet below before completing the assessment. This provides more information on the types of questions you will be asked to complete.
If you are aware of anything that could adversely affect your ability to complete this assessment, please inform the person who requested you to complete it.
Technical Requirements
Before completing the assessment, please ensure that you have considered the following technical requirements:
- Use a PC or Mac (desktop computer or laptop) as the assessment will not run on a mobile device such as tablet or mobile phone.
- Use the latest version of the web browser you choose (Mozilla Firefox/Internet Explorer (Edge)/Google Chrome/Safari); the assessment is not supported in Internet Explorer 11 and earlier versions.
- Close any programs running in the background. Pop-up windows and Java script should be enabled.
- Avoid completing the assessment at work as the security-controlled environment may affect some parts of the assessment (or completely block it); using your home PC or Mac is recommended.
- The assessment is not affected by internet connectivity interruptions as each part of the assessment is loaded before the assessment begins. Nothing is downloaded in the middle of the assessment.
- If the assessment still does not work as expected, we recommended trying a different web browser first and then another computer.
If you are still experiencing difficulties with the assessment functionality, please consider the following:
- If you are using Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox, turn on Chrome Incognito mode or the Firefox Private Window feature to ensure extensions are not interfering with the assessment.
- You may also consider temporarily disabling any ad-blocking extensions.
Thomas' Personality assessment
The Thomas Personality assessment (also known as the HPTI or High Potential Trait Indicator) explores a person’s personality traits and provides insight into how they work and interact with the people around them.
Background & Theory
The assessment was developed by Ian MacRae and Adrian Furnham at University College London (UCL) and High Potential Psychology Ltd in 2016. It was designed using a trait model of personality, in which an individual’s personality is described as a location on a continuum of stable factors. Different locations on a particular trait continuum describe the absence or presence of similar thoughts and behaviours that make up each trait. Certain trait levels can indicate a high potential to succeed, or characteristics that could derail an otherwise successful person. Informed by contemporary personality psychology such as the Big Five Model, extensive research was conducted to identify specific traits that were most predictive of performance in the workspace. Research shows that different levels of personality traits relate to success in different jobs, which is why it is useful to measure personality at work.
Assessment Instructions
When completing the assessment, there are no right or wrong answers, and you cannot pass or fail. It is not timed but takes approximately 8 – 10 minutes to complete.
Try to not think for too long about the exact meaning of the statements. Instead, try to be as spontaneous and honest as possible when answering. We find that completing the assessment in isolation and without interruption allows people to focus better.
In the assessment, you will be presented with 78 statements. You will need to indicate the degree to which you agree with a particular statement from 1 (disagree completely) to 7 (agree completely).
Thomas' Emotional Intelligence assessment
Thomas’ Emotional Intelligence psychometric test (also known as the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire or TEIQue), assesses a person’s capacity to understand and control their own emotions and recognise and manage those of others.
Background & Theory
The assessment was developed, and is continually updated, by K.V. Petrides, PhD at his London Psychometric Laboratory, currently based at University College London (UCL). It is based on Petrides' trait emotional intelligence (trait EI) theory, which views emotional intelligence as a constellation of emotional self-perceptions that relate to personality. ‘Trait EI’ offers an overview of the affective aspects of personality, or the emotional world of the individual. Emotional intelligence tells us a lot about how an individual likes to work and interact with others, which is why it is often used in the workplace.
Assessment Instructions
When completing the assessment, there are no right or wrong answers and you cannot pass or fail. It is not timed and takes approximately 20 minutes to complete.
Your first response is usually the most accurate, therefore, try to be as spontaneous and honest as possible when answering. We find that completing the assessment in isolation and without interruption allows people to focus better.
During the assessment, you will be presented with 153 statements and asked to select one of seven possible responses, ranging from 1 (disagree completely) to 7 agree completely).
There is also a shorter version of the Thomas Emotional Intelligence assessment known as the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire-Short Form or TEIQue-SF). This version provides a snapshot of a person’s overall level of emotional intelligence.
The same instructions can be followed for this version of the assessment. The only difference is that this version comprises 30 statements.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are psychometric assessments?
Psychometric assessments are measures developed from validated psychological theories explaining specific elements of human functioning. They objectively and scientifically measure specific aspects of a person, and are often used to challenge subjective feelings, opinions, and biases. Such assessments provide in-depth, objective insights into the underlying aspects of a person, such as behavioural preferences, personality traits, and abilities. At Thomas, our assessments are based on strong, highly validated psychological science and over 40 years of academic and applied research.
What are psychometric assessments used for?
Psychometric assessments can be used across business, education and sport settings to address an array of people decisions. Commonly, they are used to recruit new individuals, identify individuals with the potential to be developed in specific areas, to increase team cohesion, provide career advice, coach individuals in attaining personal or professional goals, and to optimise organisational structure.
What makes a good psychometric assessment?
Good psychometric assessments are valid, reliable and fair. A valid assessment can be shown to measure what it says it does, and to be related to workplace outcomes such as performance or engagement. A reliable assessment can be shown to be accurate, i.e., if you completed it twice you would get very similar results. A fair assessment can be shown not to adversely impact any group of people. Thomas assessments are independently audited by the British Psychological Society (amongst other international bodies) to ensure we meet their strict criteria.
What influence do the assessment results have on hiring decisions?
Assessments are designed to be used in conjunction with other elements of the recruitment process, such as interviews, references, work simulation activities, etc. They objectively and scientifically measure specific aspects of a person and are often used to challenge subjective feelings, opinions, and biases. However, assessments are just one piece of the puzzle when getting to understand a person.
