Abstractedness: Innovative or grounded thinking style

The abstractedness trait shows where people prefer to pay attention: simple and practical or big-picture and abstract. Those who score on the high end of this scale tend to be oriented towards internal ideas and mental functions. They have ease in generating new ideas, so this scale is related to creativity. Those who score on the low end tend to be oriented on practical matters. The trait has two opposite poles, namely Practical and Imaginative. Let’s look into both poles to better understand how we assess the abstractness trait.

Practical: Individuals who easily capture the essentials of a situation. On that basis, they define how they fit into their plans and act, making sure not to stay lost in details. More than just looking at how things could be, they look at how they really are. Practical people reach conclusions faster, take decisions quickly, can measure things in the correct perspective faster, and have a greater understanding of common sense. In the workplace, they are considered people who get the work done.

Common Descriptors: grounded, prosaic, solution-oriented, steady, conventional

Imaginative: Individuals who are imaginative are prone to be inventive and original. People who are imaginative can develop a unique solution to a problem or issue. At times, their solutions may not be realistic. In the workplace, they are usually considered to be innovative contributors.

Common Descriptors: abstract, absentminded, impractical, absorbed in ideas

In accordance with research findings, Bryq assessment provides an evidence-based way to assess the abstractedness trait in order to provide you with insights that can assist in making informed decisions about the suitability of the candidates based on candidates scores on this specific trait.

Abstractedness Interview Guide

The interview questions listed below can draw revealing answers and get you on your way to finding whether employees tend to think more on realistic or inventive terms and assess the degree of how practical or imaginative a candidate is.

Note: There is no right or wrong answer, the answer you are seeking is based on what best fits the role and your company culture.

Top 2 questions and expected answers

1. When have you taken an existing process and used your own creativity to make it better?

Practical: Individuals who score closer towards the practical end of the scale are most likely to answer that they tend to be pragmatic regarding the optimization of a process. They will thoroughly think of the inefficient steps of a process and figure out a realistic solution. They tend to have a down-to-earth focus rather than a creative or innovative mindset.

Imaginative: Individuals who score closer towards the imaginative end of the scale are most likely to answer that they have frequently used their creativity to generate new ideas to optimize processes. Given that they are highly idea-oriented with an active fantasy, they are likely to elaborate on many of their ideas. It would be useful to ask about the end result of each idea that the candidate describes as they tend to propose ideas that are not always realistic and cannot be easily actualized.

2. How do you prioritize your work?

Practical: Individuals who score closer towards the practical end of the scale are most likely to answer that they prioritize their work based on the practical needs of their environment or on the established procedures that need to be followed. Given that they have a great understanding of common sense they are able to place the correct priorities and get the job done which makes them highly reliable.

Imaginative: Individuals who score closer towards the imaginative end of the scale are most likely to answer that they generally prioritize working on ideas that they find interesting instead of processes, tasks or designated steps to complete a project. Considering that they are highly prone to innovation they are likely to pay less attention to practical matters that may be required of them if they find them uninteresting.

Question Pool:

3. What is the most creative or innovative project you have worked on?

4. Tell me about a time when you created a unique idea or solution and it was rejected by your colleagues. How were you able to bounce back?

5. Creative people seem to offer fresh insights frequently. Give me an example of when one of your insights was well received by others.

6. What is your work-style like?