Hogan Assessment: Complete Guide to HPI, HDS & MVPI

Hogan Assessments is a US-based psychometric publisher founded in 1987 by Robert Hogan and Joyce Hogan. Robert Hogan was a pioneering personality psychologist who argued that personality tests could validly predict workplace performance — at a time when this was controversial. His research built on the Five-Factor (Big Five) model of personality, extended with a focus on leadership effectiveness and derailment.

Today, Hogan is one of the most scientifically respected personality assessment publishers in the world. Its instruments are used by Fortune 500 companies, multinational financial institutions, military and government agencies, and executive search firms across more than 50 countries. Hogan assessments appear most frequently in:

• Leadership selection — senior management, director, and C-suite roles
• Graduate and professional hiring — particularly in financial services, energy, and consulting
• High-stakes roles — public safety, aviation, healthcare, military officer selection
• Succession planning and development — identifying high-potential employees and their development areas

The Hogan Personality Inventory (HPI) measures normal, bright-side personality — how you typically behave when you're at your best and seeking to make a positive impression on others. It is based on the Five-Factor (Big Five) model and consists of 7 primary scales and 42 subscales. The HPI typically takes 15–20 minutes to complete (206 true/false items).

Scores are reported as percentiles relative to a norm group (typically working adults or a sector-specific sample). There is no single "ideal" profile — employers look for specific combinations that fit the role's demands. A role requiring independent analysis and creative strategy (e.g. R&D, consulting) values high Inquisitive. A role requiring rule compliance and accuracy (e.g. audit, finance control) values high Prudence.

The Hogan Development Survey (HDS) is the most distinctive and counterintuitive of the three Hogan instruments. Rather than measuring positive personality strengths, it measures personality risks — the overuse of strengths under stress that can derail careers and relationships. These "derailers" are typically not visible in normal performance but emerge when individuals are under pressure, tired, or feel secure enough to relax their guard.

The HDS has 11 scales, each corresponding to a personality risk pattern. A high score on an HDS scale means the risk is salient — the behaviour described by that scale is likely to emerge under stress. The HDS typically takes 15–20 minutes (170 true/false items).

The Motives, Values, Preferences Inventory (MVPI) measures what a person fundamentally wants and values — what motivates them, what kind of culture they thrive in, and what goals drive their decisions. Unlike the HPI (which predicts performance) or HDS (which identifies risks), the MVPI predicts engagement and cultural fit. A technically excellent hire who values autonomy will disengage in a highly controlled environment; the MVPI helps predict this mismatch.

The MVPI has 10 value scales, each approximately 15 items. The full instrument takes 15–20 minutes.

Hogan assessments appear across industries globally, but are especially prevalent in financial services, oil & gas, professional services, aviation, and public safety. In the UK and US, major investment banks, consulting firms, and large corporates routinely include Hogan instruments in their leadership pipeline and senior hiring processes. Some also use Hogan for graduate and early-career programmes where leadership potential is being assessed.

For candidates who have faced SHL's OPQ32, the Hogan HPI will feel different — True/False rather than forced-choice triads — but the underlying task is the same: respond honestly about your typical work behaviours. The Hogan HDS is genuinely unique; no other major publisher has a direct equivalent to its derailer-focused approach.

Hogan assessments are rarely used as standalone pass/fail filters in the way that aptitude tests are. Instead, they inform the overall assessment picture alongside interviews, cognitive tests, and work samples. Here is how they typically function:

• Profile matching: Employers define a "success profile" for the role based on data from high performers. Your HPI profile is compared to this success profile. A close match increases your likelihood of progression.
• Interview question generation: HDS derailer scores flag potential risks that interviewers probe specifically. If your HDS flags Bold (arrogance risk), you may be asked "Tell me about a time you received difficult feedback" — the interviewer is testing whether the risk is mitigated by self-awareness.
• Cultural fit assessment (MVPI): Your MVPI values profile is compared to the organisation's culture profile. A candidate who scores very high on Tradition applying to a startup-culture employer creates a predictable mismatch — Hogan data makes this visible early.
• Development planning: In development programmes (not hiring), all three instruments together form the basis of a coaching conversation about performance strengths, derailment risks, and motivational alignment.

Unlike aptitude tests, you cannot "prepare" for Hogan personality instruments in the sense of studying correct answers. But there are meaningful ways to approach them that improve the quality and authenticity of your results.

• Don't try to construct an "ideal" profile: Hogan instruments — especially the HPI with 206 items — are designed to detect response distortion (extreme social desirability bias). Attempting to fake extreme Adjustment and Prudence while deflating Excitable and Mischievous will create an implausible pattern. Assessors who read Hogan reports are trained to identify this.
• Answer for "typical you" not "best-case you": The HPI instructions specifically ask how you typically behave. If you sometimes get impatient under pressure, don't mark False on every Excitable item. Hogan's validity depends on accurately capturing your typical self, not your ideal self.
• Be consistent: Because Hogan items are semantically similar across the scale, inconsistency within a scale is flagged by the algorithm. If you answer True to "I rarely lose my temper" but also True to "I get frustrated when things go wrong," this inconsistency reduces scale reliability.
• Know your MVPI before the process: Reflect genuinely on what you value in work environments — autonomy vs structure, money vs impact, stability vs change. These are things you know about yourself. Answering MVPI items quickly and authentically produces a more accurate and useful profile than overthinking.
• Use the HDS for self-awareness: Before sitting a Hogan assessment, it's worth reading the 11 HDS scales and honestly considering which 2–3 might apply to you under stress. This self-knowledge isn't about faking — it's about being prepared for debrief conversations and interview questions that may probe these areas.