Dependent Personality Test

The IDRlabs Dependent Personality Inventory (IDR-DPI) was developed by IDRlabs. The IDR-DPI is based on the work of Nicole M. Huber, who created the Dependent Personality Inventory (DPI). The IDR-DPI is not associated with specific researchers in the field of psychopathology or any affiliated research institutions.

The test uses the following scales:

Indecisiveness: High scorers have difficulty making everyday decisions. People with dependent personalities have great difficulties with making daily decisions. They need excessive amounts of reassurance and advice from others regarding their choices which is caused mainly by their self-perception that they are unable to function adequately without the help of others.

Other-Reliance: High scorers need others to assume responsibility for most major areas of their lives. Individuals with dependent personalities tend to be passive and prefer that others take the initiative and assume responsibility for significant areas of their lives. This need goes beyond age-appropriate and situation-appropriate requests for assistance from others.

Diffidence: High scorers have difficulty expressing disagreement with others because of fear of loss or support from others. People with dependent personality disorders feel so unable to function alone that they will agree with things they feel are wrong rather than risk losing the help of those they seek for guidance. They do not get appropriately angry at others whose support and nurturance they need for fear of alienating them.

Passivity: High scorers have difficulty initiating projects or doing things independently because of a lack of self-confidence in judgment or abilities rather than a lack of motivation or energy. One feature of dependent personality disorder is the lack of self-confidence in starting and finishing tasks. Individuals with this condition believe they need help to carry responsibilities and present themselves as inept and requiring constant assistance. There may also be fear of appearing competent because they think this can lead others to abandon them.

Deference: High scorers go to excessive lengths to obtain nurturance and support from others to the point of volunteering to do unpleasant things. One characteristic of dependent personality disorder is being willing to submit to what others want, even if the demands are unreasonable. Their need to maintain an important bond often results in imbalanced or distorted relationships. They may make extraordinary self-sacrifices or tolerate verbal, physical, or sexual abuse since they find the prospect of abandonment more frightening than the abuse.

Helplessness: High scorers feel uncomfortable or helpless on their own because of exaggerated fears of being unable to care for themselves. Individuals with dependent personality disorders will “tag along” with important others to avoid being alone, even if they are not interested or involved in what is happening. They may also seek overprotection and dominance from others.

Submissiveness: High scorers feel they must never be without a significant other and urgently seek another relationship as a source of care and support whenever a close relationship ends. Since individuals with dependent personalities believe they cannot function without a close relationship, they are motivated to become quickly and indiscriminately attached to another individual as soon as possible. Their social relations tend to be limited to those few people on whom they are dependent.

Clinging: High scorers are unrealistically preoccupied with fears of being left to care for themselves. Individuals with dependent personality disorders are so dependent on the advice and help of important others that they worry about being abandoned by them, even if there are no grounds to justify such fears. The essential feature of this condition is a pervasive and excessive need to be taken care of, leading to submissive and clinging behavior and fears of separation.

As the publishers of this free online dependent personality spectrum test, which allows you to screen yourself for the signs and symptoms of this condition, we have strived to make the test as reliable and valid as possible by subjecting this test to statistical controls and validation. However, free online quizzes such as the current dependent personality inventory do not provide professional assessments or recommendations of any kind; the test provided is entirely “as-is.” For more information about any of our online tests and quizzes, please consult our Terms of Service.