Core Values Test

Which of the ten basic human values matters most to you?

8 min · Free · No account

Core Values Test: Hands holding a job offer letter at a kitchen table beside a family photo, a set of house keys and an eTestor mug

What are core values?

Core values are the few goals that matter most to you across situations: the ones you fall back on when two good options compete. Psychologist Shalom Schwartz described ten basic values that are recognized across cultures: self-direction, stimulation, hedonism, achievement, power, security, conformity, tradition, benevolence and universalism. Most people care about all ten to some degree; what differs is the order. This core values test ranks the ten for you, and your top value is free when you finish.

About this test

Psychologist Shalom Schwartz identified ten basic values that are recognized across cultures, from self-direction and achievement to tradition and universalism. They sit on a circle: values next to each other are easy to pursue together, and values on opposite sides pull against each other. This test asks 50 statements about everyday choices, such as how you spend a free evening, how you feel about rules and what money means to you, and scores all ten. Your top value is your highest score, and the full profile shows the other nine and where they compete. It shows what you prioritize, not whether your values are right.

What you'll discover

Self-Direction
Thinking for yourself and choosing your own path.
Stimulation
Novelty, excitement and challenge.
Hedonism
Pleasure and enjoying life for its own sake.
Achievement
Doing well and being recognized for it.
Power
Status, influence and control over resources.
Security
Safety and stability for yourself, your people and society.
Conformity
Holding back from what would upset others or break the norms around you.
Tradition
Respect for the customs of your family, culture or faith.
Benevolence
Caring for the people you are close to.
Universalism
Fairness and care for all people and for nature.

Understanding the Core Values Test

This values test gives you 50 statements about everyday choices, five for each of Schwartz's ten values, and takes about 8 minutes. Your top value is free when you finish. The full report ranks all ten, which matters more here than in most tests, because a value is easiest to read next to the ones it competes with.

Schwartz's central idea is that values sit on a circle. Neighbors fit together: self-direction and stimulation both favor openness to change, and achievement and power both favor getting ahead. Values on opposite sides pull against each other: openness to change against security, conformity and tradition, and getting ahead against benevolence and universalism. That is why some decisions feel hard. Picture someone weighing a better-paid job against more time with their family: achievement and benevolence, from opposite sides of the circle, both have a claim. Your report shows which side of each tension you lean to.

Read your result as an order, not a set of absolute amounts. People differ in how generously they rate every statement, so we worded two statements per value the other way round, which keeps agreeing with everything from deciding the result. It also helps to know the average order. Across dozens of countries, benevolence, self-direction and universalism tend to come out most important, and power, tradition and stimulation least (Schwartz and Bardi, Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 2001, doi:10.1177/0022022101032003002). A top value from the bottom of that list sets you apart more than benevolence does. Our statements are our own, not Schwartz's questionnaires, and have not been validated against them.

Where the Core Values Test comes from

Shalom H. Schwartz set out the theory of basic human values in 1992, testing it in 20 countries, and later reported evidence from 82. He identified ten values, each defined by the goal it serves, and arranged them in a circle that shows which values are compatible and which conflict: openness to change against conservation, and self-enhancement against self-transcendence.

How the Core Values Test is scored

Ten scores, one per value, each the sum of five statements (5 to 25), two of them reverse-worded so that agreeing with everything does not decide the result. Your top value is the highest of the ten. What counts is the order of your values, not the size of the numbers, because people differ in how generously they rate every statement. The statements are eTestor's own, not the Schwartz Value Survey or the Portrait Values Questionnaire, and have not been validated against them.

Based on a published, peer-reviewed model

Schwartz, S. H. (2012). An Overview of the Schwartz Theory of Basic Values. Online Readings in Psychology and Culture, 2(1).

Questions people ask

Is the core values test free?

Yes. The test and your top value are free, with no account needed: just your email at the end. Every score, the written analysis and the certificate are in the full report: $1.99$2.41 in the first 30 minutes after you finish, $3.99$4.83 after that, or included in eTestor Unlimited.

How do I find my core values?

Look at what you choose when two good things compete, not at a list of nice words: almost anyone would tick honesty and family. A real trade-off tells you more, such as a promotion that means moving away, or a weekend of rest against a favor for a friend. This test asks about choices like those and ranks Schwartz's ten values by your answers. Your top two or three are a fair first answer to "What are my core values?"

What are some examples of personal values?

Schwartz's ten cover most of them: self-direction (independence), stimulation (novelty and challenge), hedonism (enjoyment), achievement (success), power (status and influence), security (safety and stability), conformity (restraint and following norms), tradition (respect for customs), benevolence (caring for people close to you) and universalism (fairness and care for everyone and for nature). Words like honesty, loyalty or freedom fit inside them: honesty and loyalty belong to benevolence, freedom to self-direction.

Can my values conflict with each other?

Yes, and the theory predicts which ones. Values on opposite sides of Schwartz's circle are hard to pursue at the same time: self-direction and stimulation against security, conformity and tradition, and achievement and power against benevolence and universalism. Hedonism sits between openness and getting ahead. If your top two values come from opposite sides, you probably feel that pull in real decisions.

Is this a work values test?

No. It covers values across your whole life, and work is one place they show. Someone high on self-direction wants room to decide how to do the job; someone high on security wants a stable employer and a predictable income. If you are choosing a career, read your result next to the career aptitude test.