Psychometrics: Measuring Unseen Client Characteristics Psychometrics is the science and practice associated with the measurement of human characteristics. These are often referred to as “unseen” individual characteristics, including cognitive ability, personality, and knowledge. Typically, psychometricians are borne out of applied psychological and educational fields. Psychometrics has been used for over a century in a variety of fields for decision-making, counseling and coaching, and self-assessment, including, but not limited to: Clinical psychology and psychiatry Educational …
Knowledge is power, and the basis of all knowledge is having the right data. Datapoints (or, data points, if you like) are the smallest form of data. Think of them like information atoms. Alone, they’re seemingly small and insignificant. But when you combine them, you can discover trends, uncover essential information, and better understand the world around you. These minuscule particles of information can be essential to learning about others and ourselves. Here’s what …
Earlier this month (September 2023) the team at Kitces.com released its 2023 financial advisor technology usage report titled Kitces Report: The Technology That Independent Financial Advisors Actually Use (And Like). (Download the Report here.) The Kitces Report provides a detailed analysis of data compiled from roughly 1,400 independent financial advisors’ responses regarding the technology applications they use (and don’t use) in their practice. Advisors rated their perceptions of value and satisfaction for the various …
A class of personality tests, known generically as “type indicators,” places clients into one of several categories based on responses to a series of questions and then provides broad descriptions of the category. Some examples of “type indicators” include the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) and the very popular Enneagram.  Type tests are so much fun! It’s fun to see which category you (or your clients) fall into, what other movie stars or sports figures align …
Personality tests help individuals understand how their unique behavioral traits and tendencies relate to their saving, spending, and investing patterns. General personality factors, like those included in the so-called “Big Five” personality traits, impact money-related outcomes like income and net worth. So while we’re helping clients understand their unique traits with individual reports and insights, this same data can help firms predict what clients might do in the future. We can also predict which …

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