The Hubbard Chart of Human Evaluation was originally published in the back of Science of Survival (1951) by L. Ron Hubbard. You can view this chart using the links below.
If you’d like to download this chart, click on the link below and then click on the download arrow button in the top right-hand corner.
Here is the PDF version—Hubbard Chart of Human Evaluation (PDF)
Here it is in web page form—Hubbard Chart of Human Evaluation (HTML)
1. Theta (positive emotion and life force) that has been agitated into a negative state.
Example:
Lena is having a good day and feeling happy and optimistic. Then she gets a phone call from her son’s teacher saying he got in trouble at school and is getting suspended. This causes Lena’s positive feelings to dissipate. Now she feels angry and frustrated and wants to yell at the teacher and her son.
2. Undesirable emotions or ways of being. These are found at 2.0 and below on the Chart of Human Evaluation. These could be anger, despair, apathy, joking around as a defense mechanism to avoid one’s unhappiness, inability to persist in getting things done, etc
Example:
Gino is generally a grouchy guy. He goes through his days upset and complaining about the way other people do things. He feels people are thwarting him and he can’t get ahead in life. He’s in a chronic state of entheta.
1. A scale of human emotion. The full scale ranges from negative 40.0 all the way up to positive 40.0. From the most negative emotions at the bottom to the most positive emotions at the top, this is the most-used gradient scale in Scientology.
If you are new to the Tone Scale, the abridged version will probably be more useful to start with.
The Tone Scale is one of the most important tools an auditor has. When auditing a preclear, an auditor gauges the preclear’s tone level. Knowing where a preclear is on the tone scale helps an auditor and case supervisor determine what processes can be most beneficial to the preclear.
Understanding emotions and how they can apply to people or situations takes a lot of practice and knowledge. This scale may raise more questions than it answers at first glance.
Each level of this scale is referred to as an Emotional Tone or Tone Level or Affinity Level.
Why the word ‘tone’? In physics, tone refers to the vibrations of things. Each tone level has its own vibration that corresponds to the physical universe. (Ref: Tape Lecture Number 5904C08)
The Tone Scale is meant to be used. Not just in auditing, but in daily life. Anyone can benefit from learning about the tone scale. Doing so helps one understand and predict the behavior of the people around them better. This understanding can enable better and more meaningful relationships with the people in your life.
Social Tone Level refers to the more polite veneer people use in social interactions when it isn’t considered appropriate to get into deeper interactions.
Acute Tone Level refers to a temporary Tone Level caused by circumstances. For example, a normally happy person will experience sadness when someone they love dies. And a normally sad person can experience short-term happiness when they get a raise. Acute Tone Levels generally last somewhere between minutes and days. Then the person will revert to their chronic tone level.
Chronic Tone Level refers to a person’s habitual tone level in most areas of life. A person may not obviously exhibit this tone in daily interactions.
Band or Range on the Tone Scale—people will move on the tone scale within a narrow band or range. Sometimes one refers to a tone level by saying something like, “James is in the anger band,” or “Julia’s tone hovers in the conservative range.”
A. Linda likes to play it safe in the workplace. She doesn’t want to rock the boat, but she wants to do a good job. She’s not brave or confident enough to innovate or make suggestions to improve things, but she can learn what her boss wants and provide that. At work, Linda is at a tone level of Conservatism.
When Linda goes home, she takes care of her mother who has Alzheimer’s. Understandably, this is a tough situation for Linda to deal with. She may rotate through emotions like Resentment, Despair, and Grief over her mom’s situation and feeling trapped caring for her mom. The longer the situation with Linda’s mom goes on, the more likely it will start to effect Linda in other areas of life. Her overall tone level will start to drop, so she may get bored or even angry with customers.
B. Jacques, like so many of us, acts a little higher-toned when he goes to social events. He comes across as Cheerful and Enthusiastic. But after the evening comes to a close and Jacques goes home, a more realistic tone level reveals itself. Jacques harbors some unhappiness from his childhood and takes it out on his family at home. In his home environment he often snaps at his kids impatiently and treats his wife with disdain. Sometimes, he even screams at them until they cower away. Jacques’ tone level toward his family is Hostility and occasionally drops to Anger.
If an auditor started working with Jacques, they might uncover some causes of his unhappiness. Because Jacques’ own father used to verbally and physically abuse him and his mother and siblings, Jacques has an underlying tone level of Fear that affects everything he does in life. After some auditing that addresses these childhood incidents of abuse, Jacques begins let go of the underlying Fear and no longer feels compelled to treat his own family so poorly.
In order to best understand a person or situation, you want to determine their Chronic Tone Level.
The Tone Scale in Full is below. To learn more about the Tone Scale, a good reference is The Chart of Human Evaluation. Column A gives you the numbers associated with emotions. Columns F and G are good for initial study. For in-depth information on the 0-4 range of this scale and all the columns of The Chart of Human Eval, read Science of Survival (SOS).
(Ref: HCOB Tone Scale in Full, 25 SEPT 1971RB)
1. Each level of the Tone Scale (or Tone Scale in Full) is an emotional state. Someone’s tone level refers to the emotional condition they are in.
A person’s tone level can be a Chronic Tone (long term), Acute Tone (when events can cause a temporary shift in emotions), or a Social Tone (social emotions we use in daily activities).
Why use the word ‘tone’? In physics, tone refers to the vibrations of things. Each tone level has its own vibration that corresponds to the physical universe. (Tape Lecture Number 5904C08)
Harriet has a chronic tone level of Grief. She lost her parents and brother in a car accident when she was a child and this has permeated her whole life. When her boyfriend surprised her with a trip to London, she had an acute rise in tone level to Enthusiasm. But once the trip was over, she slipped back into her chronic tone of grief.
Paul has a chronic tone level of Conservatism. He’s generally mildly satisfied with his life, as long he can maintain a sort of status quo. When he is in situations that feel risky to him, like going to a party and meeting new people, he develops an acute tone level of Anxiety.
Tone level can also refer to the overall emotional state of a situation or group.
Leslie’s household is at a tone level of Enthusiasm because it’s almost Halloween. Leslie, her husband David, and their three kids are all very excited. Their Enthusiasm is an Acute Tone stemming from Halloween being their favorite holiday. Once the holiday is past, the tone level of the household will fall back into its normal emotional tone, whatever that is.
Howard is a flight attendant. He and his team normally are pretty cheerful at work and do their jobs well. However, one day their plane gets hijacked. It’s a terrifying and traumatic experience for Howard and his co-workers, not to mention the passengers. This incident is permeated with a tone level of Terror.
During a war, an entire country can be in its own tone level. The attacking nation might be in a tone level of Hate. And the country being attacked could fall into Covert Hostility and try underhanded means to get the better of the attacking nation.
Political parties have tone levels toward one another. During productive and peaceful times, parties may feel respectful toward one another despite disagreements (Conservative). But under difficult circumstances, that respect could turn to Anger, or Hate, which could lead to civil war.
To learn more about Tone Levels and how to spot them, read Science of Survival and its Chart of Human Evaluation.
1. Refers to the more pleasant tone people present to the world. From a young age, most of us are taught to be friendly and polite towards others. Good manners go a long way towards helping us get along in the world. But it’s important to recognize that just because someone seems nice and mannerly that doesn’t mean they have a high tone level. A Social Tone is the facade we use as part of our daily interactions in order to get along in life. It’s a short term tone level used in social interaction.
You are at the coffee shop and the barista asks how you’re doing. Although you feel super stressed because you missed a work deadline and your boss is angry at you, Rather than communicating that to your barista, you say, “Fine, thanks.” And you smile politely. Or let’s say you decide to be a little more honest about. When the barista asks how you’re doing, you say you’re feeling a little stressed due to work, and smile casually when you say it. But you don’t emote about how stressed and give the nitty-gritty details.
Victor has been more depressed than normal. He doesn’t have a job and doesn’t know how he’s going to pay his rent. Today though, he’s heading to a job interview. Rather than tell his potential employer how rough things are and perhaps showing how down he’s feeling, he puts forward a positive, friendly manner in order to make a good impression.
Henrietta’s chronic tone is anger. Because she knows this is not socially acceptable, she tries hard to keep a lid on it. She often mumbles under her breath about things that piss her off. Her workmates think of her as a sweet and happy person because she always says hi and smiles when she walks past them in the hall.
Having a better understanding of people’s emotional tones can help you have better and more meaningful relationships. If you are an auditor, understanding the Tone Scale is invaluable. But remember, people and their lives are complex. It’s best not to jump to conclusions about someone’s chronic tone level.
To learn more about the Tone Scale and how to use it in your life, read Science of Survival and its accompanying Chart of Human Evaluation.