The goal for the breeder interested in this aspect of their breed will be to maximize the positive qualities and minimize the negative ones, while retaining balance in the temperament produced. It is unrealistic to expect any animal to excel in all areas, and indeed selection for certain traits may improve performance in one arena, while presenting challenges in another. If you want to know which working attributes your dog has, you're going to have to work your dog. This will provide you with a more in-depth knowledge about your dog's working temperament for the qualities that your particular sport happens to tap into. The longer you participate in your chosen sport, and the more advanced you become, the more opportunities you will have to learn about your dog's working qualities.
Some sports require a high degree of independent decision making and complex problem solving skills.
The closer the sport is to an actual working application, the better your opportunities will be to see a wide range of work-related temperament components. Both herding and protection sports are excellent examples of this. Herding requires that the dog have the natural ability and interest to work stock. The stock must be inherently interesting to the dog in order to get the dog trained. At the same time, the dog must be willing and able to subvert his drives according to the wishes of his trainer.