Braverman Nature Assessment

PART 1: DETERMINING YOUR DOMINANT NATURE 

Instructions: Answer the question by choosing either true or false. At the end of each group, record only the total number of true statements. Answer the questions in terms of how you feel most of the time. For example, if you’ve had a bad night’s sleep and feel tired today, answer the questions that pertain to your energy levels based on how you feel on a more average day. 

1A – Dopamine

Memory and Attention 

1. I find it easy to process my thoughts.  
2. I concentrate effectively.  
3. I am a deep thinker.  
4. I am a quick thinker.  
5. I become distracted because I do so many tasks at once.  
6. I enjoy intense debate.  
7. I have a good imagination.  
8. I tend to criticize and analyze my thoughts.  

Physical 

1. I have a lot of energy most of the time.  
2. My blood pressure is often elevated.  
3. Sometimes in my life I have had episodes of extreme energy.  
4. I have insomnia.  
5. I find exercising invigorating. 
6. I don’t ordinarily need coffee to jump-start me in the morning.  
7. My veins are visible and tend to look as though they might pop out of my skin. 
8.  I tend to have a high body temperature.  
9. I eat my lunch while I’m working.  
10. I engage in sexual intercourse any chance I get.  
11. I have a temper.  
12. I eat only to reenergize my body. 
13. I love action movies.  
14. Exercising makes me feel powerful.  

Personality 

1. I am a very domineering individual.  
2. I sometimes don’t notice my feelings.  
3. I often have trouble listening to others because my own ideas dominate.  
4. I have been in many physical altercations.  
5. I tend to be future-oriented.  
6. I am sometimes speculative. 
7. Most people view me as thinking-oriented.  
8. I daydream and often fantasize. 
9. I like to read history and other nonfiction books.  
10. I admire ingenuity.  
11. I can be slow in identifying how people can cause trouble.  
12. I don’t usually get tricked by people who say they need my help.  
13. Most people view me as innovative.  
14. People have thought I have had some strange ideas, but I can always explain the basis for them rationally.  
15. I am often agitated or irritated. 
16. Little things make me anxious or upset.  
17. I have fantasies of unlimited power.  
18. I love spending money. 
19. I dominate others in my relationships.  
20. I am very hard on myself. 
21. I react aggressively to criticism, often becoming defensive in front of others. 

Character 

1. Some individuals view me as tough-minded.  
2. Most people view me as achievement-oriented.  
3. Some people say that I am irrational. 
4. I will do anything to reach a goal.  
5. I value a religious philosophy.  
6. Incompetence makes me angry.  
7. I have high standards for myself and for others.  

Total number of True responses: _____ 

2A – Acetylcholine

Memory and Attention 

1. My memory is very strong.  
2. I am an excellent listener.  
3. I am good at remembering stories.  
4. I usually do not forget a face. 
5. I am very creative.  
6. I have an excellent attention span and rarely miss a thing.  
7. I have many good hunches.  
8. I notice everything going on around me.  
9. I have a good imagination. 

Physical 

1. I tend to have a slow pulse.  
2. My body has excellent tone. 
3. I have a great figure/build.  
4. I have low cholesterol.  
5. When I eat, I love to experience the aromas and the beauty of food.  
6. I love yoga and stretching my muscles. 
7. During sex I am very sensual.
8. I have had an eating disorder at some point in my life.  
9. I have tried many alternative remedies.  

Personality 

1. I am a perpetual romantic.  
2. I am in touch with my feelings. 
3. I tend to make decisions based on hunches. 
4. I like to speculate.  
5. Some people say I have my head in the clouds.  
6. I love reading fiction.  
7. I have a rich fantasy life.  
8. I am creative when solving people problems. 
9. I am very expressive; I like to talk about what’s bothering me.  
10. I am buoyant.  
11. I believe that it is possible to have a mystical experience.
12. I believe in being a soul mate.  
13. Sometimes the mystical can excite me. 
14. I tend to overreact to my body.  
15. I find it easy to change; I am not set in my ways.  
16. I am deeply in touch with my emotions.  
17. I tend to love someone one minute and hate him or her the next. 
18. I am flirtatious.  
19. I don’t mind spending money if it benefits my relationships.  
20. I tend to fantasize when I’m having sex. 
21. My relationships tend to be filled with romance.  
22. I love watching romantic movies.  
23. I take risks in my love life.  

Character 

1. I foresee a better future.  
2. I am inspired to help other people.  
3. I believe that all things are possible, particularly for those who are devoted.  
4. I am good at creating harmony between people.  
5. Charity and altruism come from the heart, and I have plenty of both.  
6. Others think me of as having vision.  
7. My thoughts on religion often change.  
8. I am an idealist, but not a perfectionist.  
9. I’m happy with someone who just treats me right.  

Total number of True responses: _____ 

3A – GABA 

Memory and Attention 

1. I have a stable attention span and can follow other people’s logic. 
2.  I enjoy reading people more than books.  
3. I retain most of what I hear. 
4. I can remember facts people tell me.  
5. I learn from my experiences.  
6. I am good at remembering names.  
7. I can focus very well on tasks and people’s stories.  

Physical 

1. I find it easy to relax.  
2. I am a calm person.  
3. I find it easy to fall asleep at night.  
4. I tend to have high physical endurance.
5. I have low blood pressure.  
6. I do not have a family history of stroke.  
7. When it comes to sex, I am not very experimental.  
8. I have little muscle tension.  
9. Caffeine has little effect on me.  
10. I take my time eating my meals. 
11. I sleep well. 
12. I don’t have many harmful food cravings such as sugar.  
13. Exercising is a regimented habit for me.  

Personality 

1. I am not very adventurous.  
2. I do not have a temper.  
3. I have a lot of patience.  
4. I don’t enjoy philosophy. 
5. I love watching sitcoms about families.  
6. I dislike movies about other worlds or universes.  
7. I am not a risk taker.  
8. I keep past experiences in mind before I make decisions.  
9. I am a realistic person.  
10. I believe in closure.  
11. I like facts and details.  
12. When I make a decision, it’s permanent.  
13. I like to plan my day, week, month, etc.  
14. I collect things. 
15. I am a little sad.  
16. I’m afraid of confrontations and altercations.  
17. I save up a lot of money in the event of a crisis. 
18. I tend to create strong, lasting bonds with others.
19. I am a stable pillar in people’s lives. 

Character 

1. I believe in the adage “Early to bed, early to rise.”
2. I believe in meeting deadlines.  
3. I try to please others the best I can.  
4. I am a perfectionist.  
5. I am good at maintaining long-lasting relationships.  
6. I pay attention to where my money goes. 
7. I believe that the world would be more peaceful if people would improve their morals. 
8. I am very loyal and devoted to my loved ones. 
9. I have high ethical standards that I live by.  
10. I pay close attention to laws, principles, and policies. 
11. I believe in participating in service for the community. 

Total number of True responses: _____ 

4A – Serotonin 

Memory and Attention 

1. I can easily concentrate on manual-labor tasks.  
2. I have a good visual memory.  
3. I am very perceptive.  
4. I am an impulsive thinker. 
5. I live in the here and now. 
6. I tend to say, “Tell me the bottom line.”  
7. I am a slow book learner, but I learn easily from experience.  
8. I need to experience something or work at it hands-on in order to understand it. 

 Physical 

1. I sleep too much.  
2. When it comes to sex, I am very experimental.  
3. I have low blood pressure. 
4. I am very action-oriented.  
5. I am very handy around the house. 
6. I am very active outdoors. 
7. I engage in daring activities such as skydiving and motorcycle riding. 
8. I can solve problems spontaneously.  
9. I rarely have carbohydrate cravings. 
10. I usually grab a quick meal on the run.
11. I’m not very consistent with my exercise routine; I may exercise daily for three weeks and then skip it for a month. 

Personality 

1. I live life in the immediate moment.  
2. I like to perform/entertain in public.  
3. I tend to gather facts in an unorganized manner.  
4. I am very flexible.  
5. I am a great negotiator.  
6. I often just like to “eat, drink, and be merry.”  
7. I am dramatic. 
8. I am very artistic.  
9. I am a good craftsman.  
10. I’m a risk taker when it comes to sports.  
11. I believe in psychics.
12. I can easily take advantage of others.  
13. I am cynical of others’ philosophies.  
14. I like to have fun. 
15. My favorite types of movies are horror flicks.  
16. I am fascinated with weapons.  
17. I rarely stick to a plan or agenda.  
18. I have trouble remaining faithful.  
19. I am easily able to separate and move on when relationships with loved ones end. 
20. I don’t pay much attention to how I spend my money.  
21. I have many frivolous relationships.  

Character 

1. I always keep my options open in case something better comes up. 
2. I don’t like working hard for long periods of time. 
3. I believe things should have a function and purpose. 
4. I am optimistic.  
5. I live in the moment. 
6. I pray only when I’m in need of spiritual support.
7. I don’t have particularly high morals and ethical values.  
8. I do what I want, when I want to. 
9. I don’t care about being perfect; I just live my life. 
10. Savings are for suckers. 

Total number of True responses: _____ 

Results 

1A. Total number of True responses: dopamine nature ___ 

2A. Total number of True responses: acetylcholine nature ___ 

3A. Total number of True responses: GABA nature ___ 

4A. Total number of True responses: serotonin nature ___ 

The category with the greatest number of true responses will identify your dominant nature. A classically dominant nature is typically a score of 35 and above in any one category, which suggests a less-than-balanced life. 

Note: When any other nature is 10–15 points lower than the dominant one, the nature with the lower score is probably a lifelong relative deficiency and needs balance even in times of good health. For example, if your score is 40 dopamine, 33 acetylcholine, 25 GABA, and 17 serotonin, you likely have long-standing relative deficiencies in both GABA and serotonin.