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Free psychological test · Transactional Analysis (TA)
The Passivity Test — Why You Stall in Front of a Problem
Freezing · Going along · Circling · Blowing up
Why do I always come to a stop in front of what I have to do? It is not putting things off. Your body goes rigid. When you ought to refuse, you smile and go along instead. The problem itself stays just as it is while you circle busily around it. And then one day you suddenly blow up, or simply sink down. It is not laziness, and it is not a lack of will.
Transactional Analysis (TA) calls moments like these passivity. It is not that you lack the strength to solve the problem. When you cut down some part of the problem, of yourself or of the other person without knowing it — that is, when a discount takes place — you use one of four “ways of stopping” instead of solving the problem.
With 24 questions, this test finds which of those four ways — freezing, going along, circling, blowing up — is your specialty. Once you know your specialty, the first step toward moving again from the spot where you stopped becomes far more concrete.
Quick sign-up, then start right away · About 3 minutes · 24 questions
The theory behind this test
The theoretical root of this test is the theory of passivity of Schiff and colleagues (Schiff et al., 1975), who led the Cathexis school of Transactional Analysis. In clinical work they observed that when people do not solve a problem, they do not act at random. They use four set passive behaviors: doing nothing, overadaptation, agitation, and incapacitation or violence.
The common engine of the four behaviors is discounting — a habit of mind that unconsciously minimizes something: the existence of the problem, its seriousness, the possibility of solving it, or your own ability to solve it. This account by the Schiff school went on to become the standard framework in Transactional Analysis counseling for explaining “why people know and still do not move.”
The types you will meet in your result
Doing nothing (freezing)
This is the way of stopping both thought and action in front of a problem, and freezing. It is not that you have no energy. You are using all of it on “not reacting.” You look unconcerned on the outside, but inside, time goes by without your knowing what to do, and the people around you often end up moving in your place.
Overadaptation (going along)
This is the way of moving to fit what you think the other person wants, instead of what you want. On the surface you are diligent and cooperative, so you are praised, but “your own problem” is left unsolved. It is also the hardest of the four to notice — because both you and the people around you easily mistake it for problem-solving.
Agitation (circling)
This is the way of going busily around the problem instead of toward it. Repetitive behaviors appear that use a lot of energy but are not aimed at the goal: jiggling a leg, biting your nails, binge eating, endless searching for information, or cleaning. It is a state in which anxiety is leaking out through the body, and its mark is the feeling that you are busy and yet nothing is getting solved.
Incapacitation / violence (blowing up)
This is the way of discharging built-up energy inward (incapacitation — your body gets sick, or you suddenly sink down) or outward (violence — fierce anger, throwing things). The two look like opposites, but they have the same aim: instead of solving the problem yourself, you move your surroundings so that someone else solves it for you. It is the most intense passive behavior.
Who this test is for
- People who cannot lay a hand on what they have to do, as if their body had gone rigid in front of it
- People who keep smiling and going along where they ought to say no, and regret it once they turn away
- People who, the more pressed they feel, end up not doing the thing itself and only cleaning, searching or snacking
- People who hold it in and hold it in and then suddenly blow up one day, or whose body gets sick first
- People who often ask themselves, “I’m not lazy, so why can’t I get moving?”
Frequently asked questions
Is the test free? Do I need to log in?
Yes, it is free. With a quick sign-up your test result is saved, and it is used automatically in later AI analysis and counseling, so you can go on working with your pattern of stopping.
Is this test a medical diagnosis?
No. This test is not a tool for identifying disease. It is a self-understanding tool for looking at the way of stopping that you use in front of a problem. Whatever type comes up, it is not the name of an illness. It is the name of “the way that has protected me until now.”
Once my specialty type comes up, is that the end of it?
Your specialty is a starting point. The four passive behaviors appear mixed together depending on the situation, and along with the degree of each way, the result points out the discount working underneath it — what you are minimizing. From the moment you notice it, stopping begins to turn into a choice.