[cookiecaper]

I think it'd be cool if instead of left, middle, or right, the user was allowed to drag a dot that approximated their leanings onto the graph that these fancier tests usually display. That'd give the user a lot more flexibility and would provide more information about their self-perspective.

The most important thing to remember in all such engagements is that self-reported values are never reliable. People are always subconsciously biased to report themselves as more like what they want to be, and what they want to think of them as. A real evaluation of their place on the political spectrum would need to be compiled from data on their history/expressed opinions.

Though it'd be difficult, an interesting potential use of a site like this is helping people realize that they are more left or right leaning than they previously thought. You'd have to be careful about the messaging since a lot of people would be offended if the computer told them "I know you said you're a lifelong Democrat, but we think you agree with Trump 75% of the time". But if it's done right, this type of tool could open a lot of minds and neutralize the poisonous, vindictive political discourse that people often use to pit groups against one another.