Questions?

Sophiometrics helps organizations measure and better understand decision-related self-awareness under cognitive uncertainty. Our approach is novel enough that it can be challenging to comprehend initially.

Is this another intelligence test?

Not in the conventional sense. If you think in terms of multiple intelligences, then what we measure could be considered intrapersonal, i.e., self-awareness, a domain typically neglected. While our MetaKnowledge Index does correlate somewhat with conventional cognitive ability, it still provides distinctive predictive information. Thus, we emphasize the difference between “smart” and “wise”.

Put another way, intelligence is typically tested by solving external problems while Sophiometrics measures skill with perception and processing of internal information about the self.

Is this another personality test?

Also not in the conventional sense. Our MetaKnowledge Index is not explained by the Big Five but does correlate somewhat with the HEXACO Honesty/Humility factor and Altruism facet. More importantly, most personality assessments involve agreement ratings to statements, a time-consuming, ambiguous process that invites social-desirability response bias. We avoid that and use only objective, behavioral measurements.

Does this use the Dunning-Kruger effect?

No. The famous “Unskilled and Unaware” Dunning-Kruger effect became widely known but contradictory subsequent research did not, probably because people liked to think that if they were skilled, they were also self-aware. The reverse effect, where more expertise leads to worse performance, is well-documented but less well-known. Unlike most research on overconfidence, Sophiometrics strictly isolates wise judgment from ability – we capture wisdom distinctly across the spectrum of intelligence.

Hasn’t overconfidence been thoroughly studied?

Yes, and no. About a century ago, when the social and economic value of cognitive ability testing was being established, researchers began exploring broader characteristics related to intelligence, such as tendencies for overstatement. While that approach fell out of use, subsequent research identified overconfidence broadly as overestimation, overplacement, and overprecision. Another approach examined overclaiming behavior. Curiously, these different lines of research produced contradictory models of underlying psychological processes, and often showed confounds with general intelligence. The proprietary technology used by Sophiometrics integrates insights from this literature (as well as cognitive psychology and computational psycholinguistics) while eliminating confounds and contradictions. The result is a trait assessment unlike any other.

Can outcomes be faked?

Not really. Imagine a task where you’re checking numbers against a list, where speed and accuracy compete: Going faster leads to more errors while double-checking slows you down. Sophiometrics competes ability against humility so that exaggeration of one undermines the other. Optimal scores require, as the sages advise, confidence in what you know, and humility in what you don’t know.

Is this ethically and legally defensible?

People justifiably resist the subjectivity of most psychological assessments, especially if revealing less desirable traits. Thus, the dangers of dark personalities stay hidden because it is too risky to probe for them, and organizations find out too late. A key advantage of the Sophiometrics approach is that our wisdom metrics inversely capture anti-wisdom dark personality characteristics. We avoid the ambiguities of conventional personality assessments (which have been legally challenged) because we rely on objective test behavior that directly relates to job performance.

How can Sophiometrics help our organization?

The unmeasured often goes unnoticed. Subjective assessment of wisdom can be dangerous. We provide objective metrics for actionable improvement in human management. There are several ways to apply our technology, which can be customized for any situation.