Understanding Behavior Styles will help you understand your style of behavior and the style of others. It will help you manage relationships in your workplace AND at home. These Behavior Styles are not designed to change a person. It is a tool for building productive relationships.

The model is based on four style types:
• Driver
• Expressive
• Analytical
• Amiable

You can take the personality styles test by clicking here

Example of scoring:
• For each situation, select a number for each answer. Use the number 1 for the response that is most like you and the number 4 for the situation that is least like you. Then assign the numbers 2 and 3 to the other responses for that situation.

• You must provide a number for each answer, and each answer must have a different number.

For example:

When I see chocolate:

3 – I close my eyes and pray.
1 – I eat it before anyone can see.
4 – I offer it to my husband.
2 – I hide it for later.

• After assigning numbers to all the answers, place the numbers for each situation in the appropriate space at the bottom of the page.

• Total each column.

Your lowest score will be your dominant style.

To better understand the different styles, it is important to keep in mind that the behaviors represented are neutral. There are no strong, weak, effective, or ineffective styles. There is just observation and then a choice on how you want to interact with the different styles.

What is a social style?

A social style is a particular pattern of actions which others can observe and agree upon for describing a person’s behavior. What you’ll find today is that you’ll have a tendency to fall into one of the four social styles. Each style has a pattern of actions that can be observed, described, and agreed upon by others for describing a person’s behavior. If you have a greater awareness of your style, and those around you, you will be able to communicate with others more effectively.

Having an awareness of your style and having the skill in determining the style needs of others will improve your effectiveness to communicate with everyone.

The 4 dimensions of the Behavior Styles are the tendency to dominate or yield to others and the tendency to be socially reserved or outgoing. There is no right, wrong, good or bad place to be on the scale. Each has its own aspects and liabilities. Think of your boss. Where would you put him or her on the scale? Is he/she more or less reserved that you? People who are on the yield side of the scale tend to ASK questions whereas people on the dominant side of the scale TELL people rather than ASK. 

The Assertive Scale

The assertive scale is determined by the degree to which a person is seen as attempting to influence the thoughts and actions of others.

The Sociability Scale

The sociability scale is determined by how you show or hide feelings in interpersonal interactions. This can sometimes give you a false impression of a person. For example, someone who is extremely reserved may come across as being cold, and yet they may be very warm hearted people—they just don’t show it.

The red circle is about where you should be in your ability to understand and communicate with people. Your job is to be able to understand each behavioral style and then to mirror that style for maximum communication. We call it “flexing” your style: being flexible in your behavior.