Share
“I’m ENTP – I’m guessing you are ESFJ – but what do you think J Is? ISTJ or INTP?”
What on earth is this gibberish? If you’ve never been “MBTI’d” it will mean absolutely nothing. If you have – you will immediately be leaping to a set of information about me and the others, based on the Myers Briggs type Indicator.
What is MBTI all about? Is it just so much pink and fluffy psychobabble, or is there really something based on sound research and scientific fact?
It all started in the last century, based on Swiss psychiatrist, Carl Jung’s theories about personality types. Katherine Cook Briggs and her daughter Isabel Briggs Myers expanded on Jung’s work, and applied his ideas to form the Myers Briggs Type Indicator in the years following the second world war.
They believed that if people understood their psychological type, it would help them appreciate difference and human functioning. More than 3.5 million people now access MBTI each year across the world. Questions are tailored to different cultures (so the USA has different questions to the UK, for example) and the questions continue to be refined and adjusted.
There are four sets of preferences:
Extraversion and Introversion(nothing to do with being loud, or talkative, nor shy or inhibited!)
This is about where you prefer to focus your attention, and where you get your energy – do you focus on the external, or drawn to the inner world?
Sensing and Intuition
This is about how you prefer to take in information, and what sort of information you like – are you big picture or detail?
Thinking and Feeling (felling is not being emotional!)
This is about how you make decisions – are you logical and able to stand back, or do you prefer to make decisions based on your values?
Judging and Perceiving(not judgemental or percentive!)
This is about how you deal with the outer world. Do you prefer to get decisions made and out of the way, or do you prefer spontaneity and keeping your options open?
So – I’m ENTP – that means I draw energy from the outer world of people and activity, I like to see patterns and connections – the big picture. I use logical analysis in decision making, and I like a flexible and adaptable life. What do you think you are? Some organisations think the benefits of using MBTI in management and leadership development, and in team development are worthwhile – it’s one of a range of diagnostic tools that are available.
Have your say
You must sign in to make a comment.
From The People Grower
Anne Axford is associate director for learning and development at Portsmouth PCT.
Readers' comments (9)
Barbara Allen | 9-Oct-2009 7:15 pm
No it really is just gibberish.
Organisations that bother to do Myers Brigs aren't better than other organisations that haven't.
In an organisation designed in a top-down hierarchical way, it doesn't make any difference because the hierarchy quickly crushes all exuberance out of the person whatever their psychological types.
MBTI? I say C&COCPPA!
That is Command and Control Organisations Crush People's Personality Anyway!
Unsuitable or offensive?
Derek Mowbray | 9-Oct-2009 7:48 pm
There isn't nearly enough use of Type Indicators and other validated and reliable psychological instruments. Face it - the NHS is a human disaster; all the staff surveys indicate the same trend - a lack of commitment, trust, engagement, and a diminution of professionalism. How has this happened? Probably because the NHS has become responsive, completely, to the political cycle of 5 years, where only people who have quick fix answers to complex questions get the audience and ear of those who govern us. This favours the superficial; the macho; the wholly inadequate for the complicated task. Managing people is a skill that requires experience combined with behaviours that engage people. We have to find out who is inclined towards this skill, as a result of their upbringing, education, and how they have used this skill to expand their own attributes. We cannot find this out without some validated assessment tool; even the most skilled interviewer cannot do this in the timescale that interviews last. The Myers-Briggs Personality Type Indicator is built on people, who they are and what their preferences are. Applied appropriately as an Indicator it can assist in the identification of people who can make the NHS great once again.
www.derekmowbray.co.uk
www.the-stress-clinic.net
www.orghealth.co.uk
Unsuitable or offensive?
Mary Hawking | 10-Oct-2009 9:55 am
Does anyone else remeber a 1960s book "How to succeed in business without really trying"?
It had a very useful piece at the end about presenting the right psychological profile. Things like "I love my father and my mother but my father a bit more than my mother" (or possibly vise versa!)
When a profile - of any sort - is used as a tool for selecting candidates for development or promotion, how long before job candidates study the questionnaire and acceptable attributes, and manipulate their answwers accordingly?
Unsuitable or offensive?
Barbara Allen | 12-Oct-2009 10:53 am
The only thing that Myers Briggs does to your organisation is increase costs.
Why? Normally have to get in a consultant to do administer the test.
The people you have are the people you have.
MIntzberg once said 'if you want people to do a good job, give them a good job to do'.
That is the challenge. When you do that you get organisations full of committed people who are all contributing. Not just the few managers sitting in a room doing Myers Briggs to each other instead of being in the work removing the things that get in the way of people doing a good job.
Unsuitable or offensive?
Julie Fabian | 12-Oct-2009 3:29 pm
MBTI is used extensively as management tool in commercial world, to very good effect. Having moved from private sector to NHS 5 years ago, I was amazed at low standard of management capability in NHS. I have never known an organisation where raising a grievance is an accepted way of dealing with differences between people. MBTI doesn't provide all the answers but it is a useful component as a self management tool - understanding how to work with others who are different. This builds much more effective team working. It is not just down to managers to say how it should be, it is down to individuals to manage their individual relationships and peformance. MBTI can help. Management isn't just top down!
Unsuitable or offensive?
Anonymous | 12-Oct-2009 4:12 pm
The issue with Myers Briggs is that it is an indicator... idaelly used to build teams with all interacting indicators..... Therfore it does not apply to any work environment I know. Who has the luxury of recrutingt he ideal candidate to suit the team with all the I's and E's dotted to suit and all the N's and the J's all working nicely together. A tool iis all it is, it is helpful to understand preferences and styles, but that might just be team buliding with out the cost!! Just a thought... get the right leadership and who knows what could be achieved???
Unsuitable or offensive?
Sarah FRASER | 18-Oct-2009 9:09 pm
From the various comments it seems some people believe MBTI can be used to identify, choose, interview people. The instrument is not designed nor intended for this and if used in this way would be unethical. Its purpose lies in developing self-awareness and in enhancing the ability of one individual to work with another in a constructive way.
It doesn't need a consultant to administer it. Most NHS organisations I know of have their own trained staff who can administer and debrief the instrument.
www.sfassociates.biz
Unsuitable or offensive?
Emily Thatcher | 20-Oct-2009 12:36 pm
I thought i was an ISFJ but according to my results i am an ENTJ. I think that MBTI is useful in that it does get you thinking about the different ways in which people learn, interact and develop but beyond that it is limited and quite easy to manipulate. The facilitator explained that my results reflect my working head (i was sat at my desk at the time) and perhaps if i had been in a more relaxed setting i would have come out nearer to my natural inclination. So it is definitely an indicator...its just not always obvious of what!
Unsuitable or offensive?
Anne Axford | 30-Oct-2009 1:18 pm
Love it or hate it, it clearly provokes opinion!
It shouldn't ever be used in recruitment, as Sarah Fraser clearly states. She is also right that it doesn't have to be costly. Command and Control may have its place in life and death scenarios - but the NHS does need managers whose emotional intelligence and self awareness brings a more skilled and sophisticated management style to the table. MBTI can help people understand how to communicate effectively with others....not a bad start!
Unsuitable or offensive?