What is DISC?
By the 123test team. Updated May 2025
DISC is a quadrant behavioral model based on the work of Dr. William Moulton Marston (1893-1947) to examine the behavior of individuals in their environment or within a specific situation (otherwise known as environment). It therefore focuses on the styles and preferences of such behavior measured with a standardized test generally termed DISC assessment.
Dimensions
There are four main personality dimensions or traits within the DISC model. These dimensions are:
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Describes the way you deal with problems, assert yourself and control situations. |
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Describes the way you deal with people, the way you communicate and relate to others. |
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Describes your temperament - patience, persistence, and thoughtfulness |
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Describes how you approach and organize your activity, procedures and responsibilities. |
DISC Quadrant The DISC theory is often visualized as a quadrant where the top/bottom and left/right sides represent specific behavioral tendencies. People who score high on Dominance and Compliance tend to be more task-oriented where people scoring higher on Influence and Steadiness are more people-oriented. Those scoring high on Dominance and Influence are generally more assertive and active, higher scores on Compliance and Steadiness give rise to calm and more cautious behavioral styles. |
DISC Profiles
To help interpretation, communication and understanding, The DISC Typology experts have defined fifteen DISC Profiles or 'Classifications'.
Refer to the DISC Profiles article for a detailed description of the DISC Profiles. You can take a free DISC personality test here.