PAR46772


 * Personality Assessments Response **

This time, you are going to take two assessments: one based on the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) and another based on the Five Factor Model (Big Five). The first assessment is at [|http] [|://] [|www] [|.] [|teamtechnology] [|.] [|co] [|.] [|uk] [|/] [|mmdi] [|/] [|questionnaire] [|/], and the second is at [|http] [|://] [|www] [|.] [|personality] [|test] [|.] [|org] [|.] [|uk] [|/]. Click on the links, either in the email that was sent to your campus address, or on Blackboard.

Before you begin, open a new document and put your student number at the top, followed by the title “Personality Assessment Response.” Go through the following steps.

Part 1: Take Both Assessments Make sure you have enough time to take them without rushing--30 minutes each should be plenty. Copy down your results for each assessment into your document. Label this section “Part 1”

Part 2: Give Your Opinion Write up to 250 words of your opinion of the assessments and the results. Label this section “Part 2” Some questions to consider in your opinion: Which do you think was most accurate? Which was the easiest to take? Which was the easiest to interpret?

Part 3: Weigh the Criticism Read and consider the following online articles:

//Journal of Career Planning and Employment:// "Measuring the MBTI...And Coming Up Short." [|http] [|://] [|www] [|.] [|indiana] [|.] [|edu] [|/~] [|jobtalk] [|/] [|HRMWebsite] [|/] [|hrm] [|/] [|articles] [|/] [|develop] [|/] [|mbti] [|.] [|pdf]

PubMed Abstract: Reinterpreting the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator from the perspective of the five-factor model of personality. [|http] [|://] [|www] [|.] [|ncbi] [|.] [|nlm] [|.] [|nih] [|.] [|gov] [|/] [|pubmed] [|/2709300]

Part 4: Your Response As the article and abstract explain, scientists are moving from the MBTI to the Big 5, but the MBTI has decades of popularity, and remains very popular outside of academia. Write 500-1500 words about why scientists are making this change. Use terms from the textbook as necessary, such as “type” and “norm” (Human Growth textbook) or “validity” and “reliability,” (Gen Psych textbook). (Remember to stick to the facts; if you want to speculate whether the change will continue, or whether it’s good or bad, add that to your opinions in Part 2.

Save your assignment as “PAR” followed by your student number. For example, if my student number was 13866, I’d save the assignment as PAR13866.

Email your response to me at matthewbarrett@sjrstate.edu.

Student number - __46772__

** Personality Assessments Response ** Assessment #1

Part 1.The Four Preferences The easiest way to look at your personality uses //four preferences//. They provide an introduction to the theory that, whilst a simplification, is easy to understand. You combine your results, shown by the green bars in the table, to get your personality type code, i.e.:**ESFx** (//x// denotes an equal preference). The significance of the //x// will become apparent when we discuss the //whole type// approach. There is more information about the four preferences in the optional Personality Type report. These letters are too simple to rely on for important decisions, such as career choice. As an analogy, the world has two hemispheres: North and South, but countries in the same hemisphere can be very different (compare, say, Greenland and Somalia). When looking for somewhere to live, you would not simply choose 'any' country in your hemisphere. Similarly, it is not sensible to base important decisions about your future on your personality type letters alone. Top of Form Bottom of Form
 * || **E **  ||  **I **  ||   ||
 * Do you prefer to direct energy towards the outer world of peopleand things (E) or the inner world of ideas and information (I)?  ||
 * Extraversion involves interacting with people, having broad interests, and tending to act first and then think. |||| Introversion involves concentrating on a few, deep issues, and thinking things through before acting.   ||
 * || **S **  ||  **N **  ||   ||
 * Do you prefer to deal with facts and tangibleoutcomes (S) or possibilities and potential (N)?  ||
 * Sensation looks at facts, takes a practical approach and tends to be interested in clear, detailed information. |||| iNtuition looks at potential and possibilities, and tends to be interested in what is not yet known.   ||
 * || **T **  ||  **F **  ||   ||
 * Do you prefer to decide on the basis ofobjective logic (T) or subjective values (F)?  ||
 * Thinking involves using principles, taking a detached, objective view as an onlooker, analysing and criticising. |||| <span style="color: windowtext; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 11px;">Feeling involves using values, taking a personal, subjective view as a participant, valuing and appreciating.   ||
 * || **<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">J **  ||  **<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">P **  ||   ||
 * <span style="color: windowtext; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 11px;">Do you prefer to live an organised and structuredlife (J) or be flexible and go with the flow (P)?  ||
 * <span style="color: windowtext; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 11px;">Judgement structures and controls life, making decisions and establishing closure or stability. |||| <span style="color: windowtext; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 11px;">Perception retains flexibility, inquiring, being spontaneous, keeping options open and waiting to see what develops.   ||

Influencing Although the four letters are too simple for some decisions, they can increase your ability to influence other people and improve relationships. When you deal with people who have different preferences to you, adapting your style to suit their preferences can make you more persuasive.

Working out others' preferences
You can't ask everyone you meet to complete a questionnaire, so the first step in becoming more influential is learning how to work out other people's preferences through observation. This is beyond the scope of this report, but is described in the book //Influencing People Using Myers Briggs//.

Become more influential
As your preferences are for Sensation, your natural tendency is to influence other people by providing facts, evidence or detail. However, when trying to persuade an "N", there is a risk that you might swamp them with too much information (iNtuitives usually want the general picture, not the detail). To be more influential, adapt your style to his/her preferences. Give an overview and then focus on the possibilities. Don't go into detail unless asked. Discuss the most important pieces of information, in order of importance, rather than going through each step in chronological order. There is much more information on how to influence others in the //Influencing People// book. Top of Form <span style="color: windowtext; font-family: 'times new roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> Compare Personality Types: Bottom of Form <span style="color: windowtext; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">The second way to look at your personality uses //whole types// as reference points to understand your individual personality. This is similar to using landmarks on a map to identify your location. Although some people are close to one type, most are between two or more types.1 <span style="color: windowtext; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">The MMDI thinks your personality is closest to **ESFP**, and 2nd closest to **ESFJ**. If your closest personality type is ESFP then you are an action-oriented people person. You seek to live life to the full, and enjoy applying your people-skills (and other practical skills) to achieve a tangible benefit for people. You have a strong sense of immediacy or urgency - realising what needs to be done now - and are probably often urging your colleagues to stop talking and get on with doing something. <span style="color: windowtext; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">However, important decisions, such as choosing a career, need to be based on your individual personality rather than your closest personality type. The 16 types are only landmarks. Whilst you have some features in common with your closest types, they lack accuracy - i.e., they do not pinpoint your unique combination of preferences.
 * **<span style="color: #699644; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 15px;">STJ60% ** ||  **<span style="color: #619d44; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 15px;">ISFJ63% **  ||  **<span style="color: #827d44; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 13px;">INFJ50% **  ||  **<span style="color: #897544; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12px;">INTJ47% **  ||
 * **<span style="color: #788744; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 13px;">ISTP54% ** ||  **<span style="color: #699644; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 15px;">ISFP60% **  ||  **<span style="color: #788744; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 13px;">INFP54% **  ||  **<span style="color: #897544; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12px;">INTP47% **  ||
 * **<span style="color: #5aa544; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">ESTP66% ** ||  **<span style="color: #52ac44; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">ESFP69% **  ||  **<span style="color: #738c44; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14px;">ENFP56% **  ||  **<span style="color: #7d8244; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 13px;">ENTP52% **  ||
 * **<span style="color: #649b44; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 15px;">ESTJ62% ** ||  **<span style="color: #52ac44; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">ESFJ69% **  ||  **<span style="color: #649b44; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 15px;">ENFJ62% **  ||  **<span style="color: #758944; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14px;">ENTJ55% **  ||
 * <span style="color: windowtext; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> ESFPISTJISFJISTPISFPINTJINTPINFJINFPESTJESTPESFJESFPENTJENTPENFJENFP || <span style="color: windowtext; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> ESFJISTJISFJISTPISFPINTJINTPINFJINFPESTJESTPESFJESFPENTJENTPENFJENFP || <span style="color: windowtext; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> ||

Your Mental Muscle Diagram
A better way to describe your individual preferences is using //type dynamics//, which is the third perspective on your personality. It provides the most accurate description of your unique, individual personality.

What makes you tick
In Type Dynamics your personality is a complex system - there are four mental functions which correlate with regions of the brain. These functions grow and develop different characteristics in different people. You can develop a better self knowledge by understanding the role these functions play in your personality.

Becoming more self aware
The depth of Type Dynamics makes them beyond the scope of this online report. There is an optional report that uses your 'mental muscle diagram' (above right) to deepen your self-understanding. Also, the Careers and Leadership Reports use your type dynamics (in the form of a wheel) to match your individual personality with different careers or leadership roles.

Eden Salcedo
**Your leadership Profile** Your leadership profile is closely related to your personality type.

Your preferred style
You like to use several styles, the most natural being as an action-oriented leader. Action-oriented leadership involves taking action and leading by example. An action-oriented leader has a strong sense of immediacy, focusing on the task in hand and seeing it through to fruition. The role of other people in the organisation is to support the action-oriented leader (e.g.: a sports captain, or racing driver). The Leadership Report examines this style, and the rest of your leadership profile, in more depth. At times, you will have to use all the styles, so it makes suggestions for your leadership development, based on your natural strengths and weaknesses.

Discovering what makes a good leader
One of the challenges of leadership is to find a balance between your leadership profile and the demands of the role. Too much emphasis on your preferences can limit your performance as a leader. Too much emphasis the other way round can cause you excessive stress or executive burnout. The Leadership Report compares your profile with the differing demands of various leadership roles, to help you find the right balance.

Eden Salcedo
Knowing your preferences can help you find a career in two ways.
 * Career Report Contents**
 * 50 pages (A4/Letter size)
 * over 100 careers
 * ratings that ESFPs and ESFJs gave for job enjoyment;
 * how much ESFPs and ESFJs enjoy working on their own, in a team, as a team leader or as a senior manager;
 * the enjoyment ratings all types gave to each career;
 * scores to show how closely your personality matches each job;
 * what people doing each job liked and disliked about it;
 * descriptive analysis and our unique //stretch diagrams//, which show how your profile differs from each career group

Personality Type and Enjoyment
The first method is to identify careers that are associated with your closest personality type. We conducted research with approximately 17,000 people, asking them to rate their job for enjoyment. We then compiled lists for each personality type, showing which jobs they enjoyed most. The Careers Report includes the career lists for ESFP and ESFJ. You can choose another two types at the time of ordering.

Matching your individual profile
The second method matches your individual personality to potential careers, using your unique type dynamics. As part of our research, we asked people doing various jobs to complete a questionnaire about it. The results show the particular type dynamics required in over 100 careers, which are matched with your personality in the Careers Report. It uses //stretch diagrams// (which are explained in the report) and feedback from the research to identify what you might like or dislike about each career.

= Assessment #2 = = Feedback = The test that you have just taken is based on the Five Factor Model of personality. There is a broad consensus amongst personality theorists that this model, which describes five major 'domains' or traits, is the best current description of the structure of personality. The five major dimensions, and your scores on them, are described below. Try to interpret your results on the basis of the overall pattern, rather than just concentrating on particular scores.

This trait reflects preference for, and behavior in, social situations. People high in extraversion are energetic and seek out the company of others. Low scorers (introverts) tend to be more quiet and reserved. Compared to other people who have taken this test, your score on this dimension (33) is //<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">about average //.

This trait reflects how we tend to interact with others. People high in agreeableness tend to be trusting, friendly and cooperative. Low scorers tend to be more aggressive and less cooperative. Compared to other people who have taken this test, your score on this dimension (32) is //<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">relatively high //.

This trait reflects how organized and persistent we are in pursuing our goals. High scorers are methodical, well organized and dutiful. Low scorers are less careful, less focussed and more likely to be distracted from tasks. Compared to other people who have taken this test, your score on this dimension (41) is //<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">relatively high //.

This trait reflects the tendency to experience negative thoughts and feelings. High scorers are prone to insecurity and emotional distress. Low scorers tend to be more relaxed, less emotional and less prone to distress. Compared to other people who have taken this test, your score on this dimension (15) is //<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">relatively low //.

This trait reflects 'open-mindedness' and interest in culture. High scorers tend to be imaginative, creative, and to seek out cultural and educational experiences. Low scorers are more down-to-earth, less interested in art and more practical in nature. Compared to other people who have taken this test, your score on this dimension (26) is //<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">about average //.

A word of caution - your score on each scale was interpreted relative to a large (2448) sample of other people who have done the test: 'relatively low' means your score was in the bottom 30%, 'relatively high' in the top 30%, and 'about average' somewhere in the middle. However, it is known that different groups of people (e.g. men and women) are likely to score differently on various measures. Therefore, the people you were compared to in generating the feedback may not have been people exactly like you. If you wish to know more about this personality inventory and how it was developed, you may find the following paper useful: If you wish to know more about the scientific study of personality, personality assessment, or the Five Factor Model, try the following websites:
 * Buchanan, T., Johnson, J. A., & Goldberg, L. R. (2005). Implementing a Five-Factor Personality Inventory for Use on the Internet. European Journal of Psychological Assessment, 21, 115-127.
 * [|The Personality Project] - Lots of information and references about personality theory and research.
 * The [|International Personality Item Pool] web pages.

Thank you for your participation in this project.
Part 2. The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) assessment test is more difficult to answer because it employs a different type of questionnaire wherein you are presented with two ideas and let you decide on which of the two ideas best fit yourself. The result of the MBTI discusses several information on finding out about your personality. It discussed on discovering uniqueness, self-awareness, ability to influence others, leadership skills, and careers that match personality type. There are four optional reports that can help to find out more about personality, deepen self-awareness and help apply that information to life. This type of assessment is more detailed and more accurate. However, you will need to further take another set of assessment test based on the report to know more about your uniqueness.

The other assessment test which is the Five Factor Model (Big Five) is easier to answer because, unlike in MBTI, there is only one question and you try to answer it based on the 5 categories of possible answer which you think is best fitted to you. However its feedback is more of a general observation based on certain number of persons who previously took the test. In this test, one must try to interpret the results on the basis of the overall pattern, rather than just concentrating on particular scores. But this test is easier to interpret for me.

Measuring the MBTI...And Coming Up Short by David J. Pittenger*

Some research has shown that the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator test doesn't really measure what it purports to measure. The author, too, has his reservations as to its reliability and validity.

Imagine a test that would allow you to predict the type of career for which a person is best suited. For example, Mary comes to you for career counseling. She presents you with her education and work history, and an outline of her career objectives. Specifically, she says that she would like to find an entry-level position where she can help people, and is interested in a career in the social services.

You then administer a personality inventory. The scores suggest to you that Mary is a logical person who is achievement oriented, quick to identify flaws in others, and values truth over tact in herself and others. Based on these observations, you conclude that Mary may not be well suited for work that requires empathy for others' feelings and tolerance for ambiguity. Instead, you suggest to Mary that her strong points are tile ability to focus her attention upon objective information and to make rational decisions. You then advise Mary to consider alternative careers that match her education, abilities, values, and personality.

Many claim that such a test is available with the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI).1 Recently, Paul D. Tieger and Barbara Barron-Tieger described how the MBTI can be used by career counselors to help clients find jobs for which they are best suited and with which they will be most satisfied.2 Indeed, they claim that understanding a person's type is one of the most important factors to consider when helping that person make career decisions. The Tiegers also provide a brief summary of the MBTI test and review how it can be used in job counseling.

The MBTI is a very popular test of personality. Each year millions of copies of the test are administered in the workplace, schools, churches, community groups, management workshops, and counseling centers. Many people see the MBTI as an invaluable tool that helps them understand their own behavior as well as the behavior of others.

In spite of the popularity of the MBTI, there are many problems with its use. There is a large body of research that suggests that the claims made about the MBTI cannot be supported. In other words, although the MBTI appears to measure something, many psychologists are not convinced that any significant conclusions can be based on the test. In this article I will review the basic research that questions the validity of the MBTI.

A Brief History of the MBTI

The MBTI was developed by Isabel Briggs Myers and her mother, Katherine Briggs. Katherine Briggs became interested in type theory after reading Carl Jung's book, Psychological Type. Isabel Briggs Myers shared her mother's interest in type theory and began to create the MBTI in the early l940s as a test to be used for personnel selection.3 Myers believed that different occupations favored different personality orientations, and that Jung's theory provided a theoretical link between personality and job performance. In 1957, the Educational Testing Service (ETS) began to distribute the MBTI for research purposes. ETS spent considerable time and resources in deciding whether the MBTI should have been adopted as a part of its vast library of proprietary tests. After an unfavorable internal review of the test, ETS chose not to pursue the further development and ended its relationship with Myers.4 In 1975, Consulting Psychologists Press acquired the right to sell the MBTI. Since then, the test has been successfully marketed to an extremely wide audience. The test is now available to licensed counselors and psychologists, to college instructors and personnel who have had graduate training in the theory of testing, and to individuals who have completed short courses on the administration and interpretation of the MBTI. There are currently many professional organizations that support the study of type. The Journal of Psychological Type is a scholarly periodical that publishes original research and reviews of research on type theory. There are also several professional organizations for individuals who use the MBTI as a part of their work. The Center for Applications of Psychological Type provides training on the administration and interpretation of the test, offers scoring services, and maintains a data base of MBTI profiles. The Association of Psychological Type (APT) represents the interests of professionals who use the MBTI. The APT also provides workshops that quality non-psychologists to purchase and administer the MBTI in nonclinical settings.

A Brief Theory of Type

The primary feature of the theory behind the MBTI is that each person's personality fits into only one of 16 types. These categories are based on four features of personality, each consisting of two opposite preferences. According to the theory, all people have an innate preference that determines how they will behave in all situations. The four dimensions are:5

Extroversion (E) vs Introversion (I). This dimension reflects the perceptual orientation of the individual. Extroverts are said to react to immediate and objective conditions in the environment. Introverts, however, look inward to their internal and subjective reactions to their environment.

Sensing (S) vs Intuition (N). People with a sensing preference rely on that which can be perceived and are considered to be oriented toward that which is real. People with an intuitive preference rely more on their nonobjective and unconscious perceptual processes.

Thinking (T) vs Feeling (F). A preference for thinking indicates the use of logic and rational processes to make deductions and decide upon action. Feeling represents a preference to make decisions that are based on subjective processes that include emotional reactions to events.

Judgment (J) vs Perception (P). The judgment-perception preferences were invented by Briggs and Myers to indicate if rational or irrational judgments are dominant when a person is interacting with the environment. The judgmental person uses a combination of thinking and feelings when making decision, whereas the perception person uses the sensing and intuition processes.

Because the MBTI is a theory of types, a person can have only one preference. Although it is possible for people to develop the complimentary style (an introvert, for example, could learn to be more extroverted when speaking in groups) the primary preference will always dominate the person's personality. A person's MBTI score determines his or her type, a label based on his or her dominate preference for each of the four dimensions. Since there are two preferences within each dimension, there are 16 potential personality types.

Each personality type is said to be different from the others. That is, an ESTJ is a different person than an ISTJ. Many books and other printed materials about the MBTI provide descriptions of each type. Tieger and Baron-Tieger's article provides examples of these summaries as they are applied to career planning.

Assessment of the MBTI

Given this short introduction to the MBTI and its theory, we can ask a very basic question: Does the MBTI measure what it claims to measure? To answer this question we must examine the basic issues concerning the foundations of any psychological test: its statistical structure, its reliability, and its validity.

Statistical Structure

Because the MBTI is a typology, we would expect that its scores would be distributed bimodally and not be normally distributed. Let me give an analogy. If you randomly selected 500 people between the ages 18 and 25, measured their heights, and then drew a graph of the results, you would probably have a normal or bell-shaped distribution. Most people would have a height close to the mean, say 5'8". Of course, some people would be very short, and others would be very tall, but these extreme scores would be rare. Now, imagine what would happen if you divided your sample by sex. When you redraw the data you should get a bimodal distribution.

Women, on average, are shorter than men; but within each sex there will be a normal distribution of heights. The same thing should happen for the MBTI. We would expect that since people are either introverts or extroverts, the test results should yield two different curves. One curve would represent all the introverts, the other, all the extroverts. True, some people may be more extroverted than others, but we would expect that all the extroverts would be different from all the introverts. What we should find is that there are two normal curves representing the two preferences, and that there is little or no overlap of the curves. The data indicate that there is no evidence of bimodal distributions for the MBTI.6 Instead, most people score between the two extremes. This means that although one person may score as an E, his or her test results may be very similar to those of another person's, who scores as an I.

Reliability

Reliability refers to the consistency in measurement of a test. Tests that are highly reliable are preferred because we can be sure that we will get the same result each time we measure the same thing. If the test is not reliable, we do not know if the changes in the score are due to changes in the person we are measuring or to some type of error in the testing process. It is important that the MBTI be reliable for many reasons. As Tieger and Barron-Tieger note in their article, "The Type to which you are born will be the one you take to your grave." In other words, once an INTJ, always an INTJ.

Therefore, we would expect the reliability of the MBTI to be extremely high and that people's type will not change. The primary method for testing reliability is to give the test to a person on two occasions. This procedure is known as “test-retest reliability." Typically, the test-retest interval can range from several weeks to more than a year. Because type is said to be a constant characteristic, we would expect that people's personality would not change over time. Several studies, however, show that even when the test-retest interval is short (e.g., 5 weeks), as many as 50 percent of the people will be classified into a different type.7 The reliability data of the MBTI bring into question the stability of the test. How is it possible that there can be a change in personality, across a short interval, when such a change should not occur? The reliability data also bring into question whether there are meaningful differences across the preference categories.

Standard Error of Measurement. This testing concept is really a statistic that psychologists use to decide when the difference between two test scores is meaningful and when the difference is trivial. For example, two people could take the same test. One receives a score of 100, the other a score of 105. The standard error measurement helps us decide whether that 5-point difference represents a substantial difference between the two people or if the difference reflects simply an error in measurement. There are two factors that influence the standard error of measurement: the standard deviation and the test-retest reliability of the test. If the standard deviation of the test is small and the reliability is high, it is possible that small differences among scores can represent significant differences among the items measured, which, in this case, are individuals' personalities. If, however, the standard deviation is large and the reliability is low, then large differences among scores must be found before we can assume that there are meaningful differences among the individuals. The standard error of measure for each of the four dimensions is fairly large.8 Unfortunately, the MBTI method of scoring obscures this important distinction. It classifies people into a rigid dichotomy. Thus, two people could have raw scores that are close to one another but that define different classifications. This occurs because there are cutoff points that divide the dimensions. When the score is above the cutoff, one classification is given; if the score is below the cutoff, the opposite classification is given. Although some users of the MBTI try to interpret how close the score is to the cutoff, this practice is inconsistent with the theory of the MBTI. For example, Carskadon argues that the raw scores are overused and contends that "it is probably better to use dichotomous classification." In summary, the differences between the two-letter categories are not as sharp and clear cut as it would appear. Because the MBTI uses an absolute classification scheme for people, it is possible for people with relatively similar scores to labeled with much different personalities.

Validity As the degree to which a test measures what it is supposed to measure, validity is a difficult property to evaluate in a test. Consider tests of intelligence. Many people are skeptical of the results of these tests. Some people are concerned that the tests measure only "book learning" and do not test "common sense." Other people feel that intelligence tests have cultural, racial, and gender biases. Therefore, to conclude that a test is a valid measure of intelligence, it must be shown that the test measures intelligence independent of the testee's education, culture, race, and sex. There are many ways to evaluate the validity of the MBTI test. I will examine two important pieces of evidence. First, we can determine if the four dimensions described in the MBTI theory really exist. This is accomplished by using a statistical procedure known as "factor analysis." Secondly, we can determine whether knowing a person’s MBTI type really allows us to predict how that person will perform under different circumstances. The importance of this question of validity is obvious. It must be shown that there is a consistent and meaningful relation between MBTI results and success in career placement.

Factor Analysis. The factor analysis is a type of statistic procedure that consists of making an analysis of the correlations among the questions in the test. If the MBTI theory is correct, three results should come from the factor analysis. First, the results should show that there are four clusters, or factors, of questions. Each of the questions within a factor will be highly correlated with the other questions in the factor. Moreover, the questions within the factor should be related to the MBTI dimension that is measured. For example, a question like "I like to be the life of a party" should be in the factor related to extroversion-introversion. Secondly, we would expect each factor to be independent of the other factors, inasmuch as the MBTI theory states that each of the four preference dimensions stands alone. That is, questions within one factor should not correlate with questions in the other factors. If two factors are correlated, it means they are probably measuring the same thing. Finally, we would expect that the factors would account for most of the differences among individuals. Here is an example that will illustrate this point. A test consisting of many unrelated questions would produce no consistent pattern in the differences among the people tested, and we would say that there is a large amount of measurement error. If, however, the questions are highly related, there should be consistent patterns that can be accounted for by the test, and the measurement error would be relatively small. Research on the factor analysis of the MBTI has not produced convincing results. In one study, based on the results of l,29l college aged students, six different factors were found.10 In addition, the study authors found a high level of measurement error. Specifically, 83 percent of the differences among the students could not be accounted for by the MBTI. The results led the authors to conclude that the factors found in the statistical analysis were inconsistent with the MBTI theory. In other studies, researchers found that the JP and the SN scales are correlated with one another.11 In sum, the statistical analysis of the test does not support the theory used to describe the MBTI. Relation Between MBTI Type and Occupation. Many people have examined the relation between type and occupation by examining the proportions of type within each profession. For example, one might observe that many elementary teachers are ESTJs and conclude that ESTJs prefer to be elementary school teachers or to work in a related occupation. Although it sounds appealing, such a conclusion runs into many fundamental problems. First, we need to examine the normative data to judge the relation between type and profession. For example, the proportion of ESTJs in the teaching profession is the same as the proportion of ESTJs in the general population, or 12 percent. This similarity suggests that there is nothing special about the type of person who becomes an elementary school teacher.

Another problem stems from jobs that are dominated by men or women. Nursing is a good example. If we compare the distribution of type for nurses against managers, there appears to be a different pattern of type. We could conclude that certain types are more likely to enter nursing while other types are more likely to become managers. There is, however, an alternative interpretation. Nursing has been and remains a profession dominated by women. There is a high correlation (r = .91) between the percentages of types for all women and people in nursing. The correlation between all men and people in nursing is, by contrast, small (r= .21). In a male dominated profession such as management, there is a high correlation between types in management positions and men in general (r=.92), but a smaller correlation for women (r = 60).12 If it is true that certain types are attracted to certain professions, then these correlations should be much smaller. Instead, these data suggest that the proportion of MBTI types within each occupation is equivalent to that within a random sample of the population. Finally, there is no evidence to show a positive relation between MBTI type and success within an occupation. That is, there is nothing to show that ESFPs are better or worse salespeople than INTJs are. Nor is there any data to suggest that specific types are more satisfied within specific occupations than are other types, or that they stay longer in one occupation than do others. In summary, it appears that the MBTI does not conform to many of the basic standards expected of psychological tests. Many very specific predictions about the MBTI have not been confirmed or have been proved wrong. There is no obvious evidence that there are 16 unique categories in which all people can be placed. There is no evidence that scores generated by the MBTI reflect the stable and unchanging personality traits that are claimed to be measured. Finally, there is no evidence that the MBTI measures anything of value.

Conclusions In a recent review of the MBTI, commissioned by the Army Research Institute, it was concluded that the instrument should not be used for career planning counseling.13 The Institute's analysis of the available research showed no evidence for the utility of the test. Indeed, with respect to career planning they note that "the types may simply be an example of stereotypes." I agree. The MBTI reminds us of the obvious truth that all people are not alike, but then claims that every person can be fit neatly into one of 16 boxes. I believe that MBTI attempts to force the complexities of human personality into an artificial and limiting classification scheme. The focus on the "typing" of people reduces the attention paid to the unique qualities and potential of each individual. Many readers may be surprised by my interpretation and objections to such a popular test. It has been my experience that this reaction stems from how they view the MBTI. In many cases, the popularity of the instrument is interpreted as an indication of its accuracy and utility, which then leads to wider use and less inclination to question the foundations of the test. As a consequence, the MBTI has become a popular instrument for reasons unrelated to its reliability and validity.

The publishers do a very good job of promoting the test and providing support for its users. The MBTI also has much intuitive appeal. The descriptions of each type are generally flattering and sufficiently vague so that most people will accept the statements as true of themselves. If you tell people that they are "innovative thinkers and good problem solvers, and good at understanding and motivating people, but may have trouble following through on details of a project," they will believe that the statement is an accurate description of themselves regardless of the truth of the statement. This phenomenon is known as the "Barnum Effect," named in honor of the great entertainer.14

Because of its apparent simplicity, the MBTI may be misused unintentionally by some people. A manager, for example, may come to believe that only certain personality types are appropriate for specific jobs. After learning about type, such a manager may conclude that only ISTJs make good accountants whereas the best people for the sales force will be the ESFJs.15 Thus, the type label may bias a manager's decisions on hiring, firing, evaluating, and promoting. Similarly, employees may use type labels inappropriately. Thus, one might feel that "She's an INFP, so I will never be able to work with her on an assignment," or that "I'm an ESTP and don't do well when it comes to details." It has been my intention here to raise questions about the fundamental concepts that underlie the MBTI, and to caution against undue reliance upon its use without fully investigating the accuracy of its test results. There is considerable more research available than I have cited that supports my allegations. My hope is that career counselors and recruiters who use or plan to use the MBTI will review this research and take a long look at the value of using personality type labels in their work.

Endnotes (l) The Myers-Briggs Type lndicator and MBTI are Registered Trademarks of Consulting Psychologists Press. (2) Tieger, Paul, D. and Barbara Barron-Tieger. “Personality Typing: A First Step to a Satisfying Career.” Journal of Career Planning & Employment, Vol. 53, No. 2 (January 1993), pp. 50-56. (3) For a complete history of the development of the MBTI, see Saunders, F. W. Katherine and Isabel: Mother’s Light, Daughter’s Journey. Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press, 1991. (4) Stricker, L. J. And J. Ross. A Description and Evaluation of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (Research Bulletin (5) A more complet account of the theory behind the MBTI can be found in: Myers, I. B. and M. H. McCaulley. Manual: A Guide to the Development and Use of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press, 1985. And: Myers, I. B. Gifts Differing. Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press, 1980. (6) See Stricker and Ross (1962). Also: Stricker, L. J. & J. Ross. “An Assessment of Some Structural Properties of the Jungian personality Typology.” Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, Vol. 68 (1964), pp. 62-71. (7) Howes, R. J. and T. G. Carskadon. “Test-Retest Reliabilities of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator as a Function of Mood Changes.” Research in Psychological Type, Vol. 2, No. 1 (1979), pp. 67-72. (8) Based on a short interval (5-week) test-retest reliability of 0.82 and a standard deviation for the E1 scale of 25 (Howes & Carskadon, 1979), The standard error of measurement is approximately 10.6 = 25 V 1.82Z points. This means that raw scores with a 21-point difference are considered statistically significant. (9) Carskadon, T. G. “Clinical and Counseling Aspects of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator: A Research Review.” Research in Psychological Type, Vol. 2, No. 4 (1979a), pp. 2-31. (10) Sipps, G. J., R. A. Alexander, and L. Friedt. “Item Analysis of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator.” Educational and Psychological Measurement, Vol. 45, No. 4 (1985), pp. 789-796. (11) “McCrae, R. R. and P. T. Costa. “Reinterpreting the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator from the Perspective of the Five-Factor Model of Personality.” Journal of Personality, Vol. 57, No. 1 (1989), pp. 12-40. (12) These analyses are based on information in Myers and McCaulley. (13) Druckman, D. and R. A. Bjork, Eds. In the Mind’s Eye: Enhancing Human Performance. Washington, DC: National Academy Press, 1991. (14) Dickson, D. H. and I. W. Kelly. “‘The Barnum Effect’ in Personality Assessment: A Review of the Literature.” Psychological Reports, Vol. 57, No. 2 (1985), pp. 367-382. (15) Auerbach, E. “Not Your Type, But Right for the Job.” The Wall Street Journal, January 6, 1992, editorial, p. 11. Reprinted from the Fall 1993 issue of the Journal of Career Planning & Placement, with permission of the College Placement Council, Inc., Copyright holder.
 * 1) RB-62-6). Princeton, NJ: Educational Testing Service, 1962.

= = = = = = =Reinterpreting the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator from the perspective of the five-factor model of personality.= [|McCrae RR], [|Costa PT Jr].

Source
Gerontology Research Center, National Institute on Aging, Baltimore, MD 21224.

Abstract
The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI; Myers & McCaulley, 1985) was evaluated from the perspectives of Jung's theory of psychological types and the five-factor model of personality as measured by self-reports and peer ratings on the NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI; Costa & McCrae, 1985b). Data were provided by 267 men and 201 women ages 19 to 93. Consistent with earlier research and evaluations, there was no support for the view that the MBTI measures truly dichotomous preferences or qualitatively distinct types; instead, the instrument measures four relatively independent dimensions. The interpretation of the Judging-Perceiving index was also called into question. The data suggest that Jung's theory is either incorrect or inadequately operationalized by the MBTI and cannot provide a sound basis for interpreting it. However, correlational analyses showed that the four MBTI indices did measure aspects of four of the five major dimensions of normal personality. The five-factor model provides an alternative basis for interpreting MBTI findings within a broader, more commonly shared conceptual framework. PMID: 2709300 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Part 4: Response

Although the MBTI has decades of popularity, and remains popular in the academic world, eventually it will come to an end. Scientists have been testing the MBTI for its reliability and validity throughout the years and came to conclude that the instrument should not be used for career planning counseling. Evidences to support this claim were substantially supported. In terms of the consistency in measurement of a test, MBTI was found to be as not reliable because the results tend to be different each time they measure the same thing. Tests that are highly reliable are preferred because we can be sure that we will get the same result each time we measure the same thing. If the test is not reliable, we do not know if the changes in the score are due to changes in the person we are measuring or to some type of error in the testing process. Factor Analysis, a type of statistical procedure that consists of making an analysis of the correlations among the questions in the test was also employed in testing MBTI theory. MBTI test consisting of many unrelated questions will tend to produce no consistent pattern in the differences among the people tested, and there would be a large amount of measurement error. If, however, the questions are highly related, there should be consistent patterns that can be accounted for by the test, and the measurement error would be relatively small. Research on the factor analysis of the MBTI has not produced convincing results.

I certainly agree that all people are not alike but not all people can fit neatly in the 16 types of personalities as depicted or described by MBTI. If this is the case there is always the possibility of misusing the results of the test by a certain person and can lead to misjudgments in the course of their job that can eventually turn into a nightmare.

It is about time to let the people in the workplace, schools, churches, community groups, management workshops, seminars, counseling centers and professional organizations that MBTI should not be used for career planning counseling and that there is a better way to determine personalities of people. If millions of people use MBTI to select personnel for a certain job then we could lose important jobs for the right people because they were made to believe that they are best fitted to specific jobs based on their MBTI personality test which is found out to be unreliable. If this trend (use of MBTI) will continue the effect to the society and the nation as a whole would be unquantifiable. But how can the shift be realized? Publishers must be discouraged in using the MBTI. A massive information drive should be undertaken and there couldn’t be a better place to start than in schools. The course content of psychology subjects should be reconstructed to gradually eliminate MBTI. Professional organizations’ conferences, trainings and workshops also offer a venue for the information drive. But the most efficient and effective way is through the use of advertisement in television, radio and print media. Little by little and step by step the gradual shift from MBTI to the Big 5 will come to fruition. By then people would better understand their personality types in relation to their job performance.