How this test is built
Here is where the numbers in your result come from, with nothing hidden.
01
What OCTA is
OCTA evolves the 16-type theory known from MBTI®. That theory sorts people into four-letter types, but real people sit somewhere along each axis. OCTA keeps the four letters as a summary and makes the profile itself the substance: eight poles (both ends of E/I, S/N, T/F and J/P) as percentages, plus purity (how far to the edge you sit), a fifth axis (Assertive -A / Turbulent -T), the neighbouring types that were close, and how two people match. Those eight poles are the internal structure of layer one, character — the name OCTA comes from the eight layers.
02
Eight layers
The 16-type theory measures one thing — preference — and explains a person with it. OCTA separates a person into eight layers: five inward (character, thinking, sensibility, integrity, spirit), one outward (social), one bodily (body), and one you never chose (fate). The name OCTA comes from those eight. Each layer is measured differently and we do not hide that: some by self-report, one by forced choice, and one that is not measured at all but derived from a birth date. The octagon shows how much has been measured, not a score. No layer ranks above another.
- CharacterInnerSelf-reportWhether people charge you or drain you — how you take things in, decide, and proceed
- ThinkingInnerSelf-reportPrinciples first or examples first. Widening the field or narrowing it
- SensibilityInnerSelf-reportOrdered beauty or living beauty. Space or density
- IntegrityInnerForced choiceDuty or feeling. What you really think, or what keeps the peace
- SpiritInnerSelf-reportMeaning or felt experience. Reflecting to find out, or acting to find out
- SocialOuterSelf-reportMoving closer or keeping distance. Leading or supporting
- BodyOuterSelf-reportMorning or night. When you're spent, do you recover by moving or by stopping
- FateGivenStated fact, not measuredWhat was set the day you were born — your sign and its element
03
How to read an OCTA code
Your eight layers fit on one line: "INTJ-A-BD-OM-GH-MW-CL-MV ♋". The first block is the MBTI-compatible four letters plus the deep axis (-A/-T); we leave that alone, because the compatibility is the point. After it, two letters per layer, in order — Layer 2 Thinking (abstract B / concrete C, diverge D / converge V), Layer 3 Sensibility (order O / alive L, minimal M / dense D), Layer 4 Integrity (duty G / heart K, honest H / role R), Layer 5 Spirit (meaning M / grounded G, within W / act C), Layer 6 Social (close C / keep K, lead L / back B), Layer 7 Body (morning M / owl O, move V / rest R). Layers 2 to 7 never use E, I, S, N, T, F, J, P or A, so they can never be confused with the first block. Seventeen letters cover twenty-four slots, so a letter can appear in more than one layer — MBTI itself uses T for both Thinking and Turbulent. Because the order is fixed, position decides the layer and the reading is unambiguous. Layer 8, fate, is not a measurement, so it stays out of the string and sits at the end as a zodiac sign.
04
19 questions, 5 axes
Energy (E/I), information (S/N), decisions (T/F) and lifestyle (J/P) get 4 questions each; self-assurance (-A/-T) gets 3. The 4 cover different situations (a day off, conversation, work, relationships, learning, decisions, recovery) so no single habit decides an axis. The fifth axis runs in the same pass because it is part of personality too — the fifth Big Five factor.
05
The 5-point answer
Each question asks which of two statements is closer to you, and how much (much closer = ±2, a bit closer = ±1, in between = 0). Answers are summed per axis to a range of −30 to +30: the sign picks the letter (E or I) and the magnitude sets the percentage (50%–100%). A tie at 0 is decided by the last answer that leaned either way, and the result shows 50%/50%.
06
Purity
“100%” appears only when all 15 answers sit at the same extreme. A sum within ±6 (60% or less) is labelled “hybrid”; everything in between is “standard”. Hybrid is described as range you can switch between, not indecision.
07
Deep layer (-A / -T)
After the result, five more questions decide Assertive (-A) or Turbulent (-T) in the same way. The judgement is free; the reveal is part of the full report.
08
Share of population
Type percentages are guideline figures based on widely cited estimates from abroad, not measurements from this site. They vary a lot by country and age.
09
Compatibility “mesh score”
We compare the four axes of two types: sharing S/N weighs most, then J/P, and differing on T/F is read as complementary. It is a score for reading, not a verdict. A low number means “many axes differ”, not “incompatible”.
10
Limits
Answers are self-reported and shift with mood and circumstance; the same person can get a different result on another day. This is not a medical or psychological assessment and should not be used for hiring, health or legal decisions. It is an independent model built on the 16-type theory known from MBTI®, unaffiliated with the trademark owner.
11
When another test disagrees
Disagreement is normal. Studies going back decades find that about half of people get at least one letter changed when they retake a test of this kind five weeks later (e.g. Pittenger, 1993). Many free quizzes also skew toward N. Each test asks from a different angle, so put them side by side and keep what fits. The result page's "What did another test say?" explains any axis that differs.