Oxford Capacity Analysis - How The Test Works

How The Test Works

Two hundred questions make up the Scientology personality test. Each can be answered yes, no, or maybe. Typical questions:

3. Do you browse through railway timetables, directories or dictionaries just for pleasure?

6. Do you get occasional twitches of your muscles, when there is no logical reason for it?

27. Do you often sing or whistle just for the fun of it?

30. Do you enjoy telling people the latest scandal about your associates?

59. Do you consider the modern prisons without bars system "doomed to failure"?

69. Does emotional music have quite an effect on you?

105. Do you rarely suspect the actions of others?

124. Do you often make tactless blunders?

196. Do you sometimes feel that your age is against you (too young or too old)?

The OCA test is often given at the same time as a "Novis Mental Ability Test," a short 30 minute test which is claimed to measure IQ. After the two tests have been completed, a computer program is used to plot the results on a personality profile graph. This gives the testee's IQ rating and score in personality characteristics such as "Stable," "Happy," "Composed," "Certainty," "Active," "Aggressive," "Responsible (Causative)," "Correct Estimation" (meaning the testee's ability to look at a situation and determine what is needed to deal with it), "Appreciative," and "Comm Level" (meaning the testee's ability to communicate with others).

The scale on the graph of each trait ranges from +100 to −100, with three main bands marked "Desirable State" (+100 to +30), "Normal" (+30 to 0) and "Unacceptable State" (0 to −100). In the middle are two shaded bands, "Acceptable under perfect conditions" (about +32 to about +6) and "Attention Desirable" (about +6 to about −18). A legend at the foot of the graph sheet warns that a point below the latter band indicates "Attention Urgent."

After the graph has been plotted, a Scientology staff member reviews the results with the testee.