What Is The Forest Personality Test? The TikTok Trend, Explained

Publish date: 2024-04-21

The mind is a magical thing, and there’s still so much we don’t know about it. Sometimes, though, psychological tests can help us uncover a little more about ourselves. Yes, it's true that not every test floating around out there has a boatload of research backing it up — but that doesn't stop them from being a ton of fun. It also doesn't stop us from wondering things like, "what is the Forest Personality Test?" Because apparently the Forest Personality Test is a thing, and like many other similar tests that have come before it, it can be eerily accurate.

The Forest Personality Test is of the type known as a "relational psychology" test — that is, it's a mental walk-through adventure (similar to the recently-hyped cube personality test) that works by taking you on a psychological journey of self-discovery. It builds up a scenario in your head step by step, ultimately encouraging you to reflect on the meaning and significance of each element of the scenario for you as an individual.

With the Forest Personality Test, you’re first asked to imagine yourself positioned in — you guessed it — a forest; then you’re asked a series of questions relating to different interactions and activities taking place within that forest. The answers you give are thought to reflect the values and ideals you hold in your personal life.Although the origins of the Forest Personality Test aren't known, it bears enough similarity to the cube test for it to sound kind of like "kokology."

Like many personality tests before it, the Forest Personality Test has officially gotten the TikTok treatment. On the platform, users are sharing screenshots of them texting their partners questions from the test — and unbeknownst to them they’re being judged for their answers, no matter how innocent they might seem. The TikTok trend is a more abbreviated version of the actual test, but the results are pretty hilarious. Check out one user, @wendi.lizola, as she asks her significant other questions from the Forest Personality Test.

By this point, I’m sure you’re desperate to gain access to your inner id (Freud buffs will know all about this), so here’s a link to the Forest Personality Test; and for the curious, here’s another variation on it. I'd suggest checking those out first and recording your answers before reading on... or you could just skip to the analysis below if that's your jam.

Here's what each of the elements in the Forest Personality Test represent:

1. Your Accomplice

The person you’re walking through the forest with is supposed to be the most important person in your life.

2. The Animal

The size of this animal is indicative of the size of your problems, while how you interact with it shows how you deal with those problems: If it’s a passive interaction, you are thought to be less confrontational, while if you face the animal head-on, then you aren’t afraid to face hardship.

3. The House

Different tests ask you imagine either “a house” or a “your dream house,” but all tests agree that it’s the size of this house which is most important; it’s representative of the size of your ambition. Whether or not it's got a fence is also worth noting, though — it's a classic indicator of how open you are across many personality tests. If your house is fenced in, that means you’re generally more guarded and display a more closed-off personality; if, however, your house is on free land, then you’re an open book.

4. The Table Inside The House

Apparently if your answer for what was around the table did not include food, people, or flowers, then you’re not as content as you could be right now.

5. The Cup In the Garden

If you imagined the material of the cup as something hard and durable, this represents your perceived durability of your relationship with the person in the forest with you. Foam, paper and glass are considered delicate, but metal and plastic are durable. What you do with the cup is representative of your disposition towards the person.

6. The Body Of Water

It's thought that the body of water is representative of the size of your desire for sex and love. If you’re prepared to wade in and get yourself soaked, it’s supposed to indicate the relative importance of love and sex in your life. If you only dip your toe in, or if you cross the water on a raft, then you don’t prioritize sex and in your life as much.

And there we have it! Another introspective journey complete. Congratulations; you’re one step closer to uncovering the meaning of life. Or... something. Is the Forest Test incredibly scientific? Not so much — it's worth talking to a therapist if you really want to dig into your inner feelings — but hey, it's all fun and games in the meantime.

Take the Forest Personality Test in full here.

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