Type Preferences
During
World War II, a young woman named Isabel
Myers decided to do her part for the war
effort by creating a self-report inventory
that would make Carl
Jung's theory of psychological types
available to more people. At this time
self-report instruments were just beginning
to be developed. Prior to that time, only
psychologists "assessed" personality.
Her goals were two fold; 1)help people
find a better fit for their work and so
make the work in factories and in the
military more effective and 2)promote world peace by helping people develop
more appreciation for individual differences
and how to use the differences constructively
rather than divisively. Her work resulted
in world-wide use of the Myers-Briggs
Type Indicator® and spawned an industry
of professional "type practitioners" who
apply type theory to business effectiveness,
communication, career development, cross-cultural
understanding, education, spirituality
and more.
The
MBTI® (and
all psychological type instruments) report
preferences on four dichotomies, with
two opposing preferences on each dichotomy.
|
Your
Preferred World or Attitude
|
E |
Extraversion
Energized by interaction with others
|
or
|
I
|
Introversion
Energized by solitary activities |
|
Mental
Process
Perception - Accessing / Gathering
Information
|
S |
Sensing
Concrete, experiential awareness |
or
|
N
|
iNtuiting
Abstract, symbolic awareness |
|
Mental
Process
Judgment - Organizing / Evaluating
/ Deciding
|
T |
Thinking
Information/situations assessed objectively
based on criteria |
or
|
F
|
Feeling
Information/situations assessed subjectively
based on worth/values |
|
Orientation
to the
Outer World
|
J |
Judging
Plan ahead and
follow the plan |
or
|
P
|
Perceiving
Keep options
open to adapt |
The
following is adapted from Linda V. Berens,
Linda K. Ernst, and Melissa A. Smith,
Quick
Guide to the 16 Personality Types and
Teams: Applying Team Essentials™
to Create Effective Teams (Telos Publications,
2004) *Used with permission.
|
Aspects
of the Types
|
Characteristics
|
|
Looking at
the Preferences
|
|
Extraversion vs.
Introversion
E/I
|
Extraversion
is being primarily oriented to and
energized by the world outside oneself.
Introversion is being primarily oriented
to and energized by the world inside
oneself. |
|
Sensing vs. iNtuiting
S/N
|
Sensing
refers to tangible, experiential awareness.
Intuiting refers to symbolic, conceptual
awareness. |
|
Thinking vs. Feeling
T/F
|
Thinking
judgments are based on criteria or
principles. Feeling judgments are
based on appropriateness or worth. |
|
Judging vs. Perceiving
J/P
|
A
Judging preference indicates liking
to live one’s outer life with
closure and structure using the preferred
judging process of Thinking or Feeling.
A Perceiving preference indicates
liking to live one’s outer life
in a more emergent manner using the
preferred perceiving process of Sensing
or iNtuiting. |
Looking at Function Pairs
The columns
of the type table list the functional
pairs. This tells us the kind of
information (Sensing or iNtuiting)
we pay attention to and the kind
of decisions (Thinking or Feeling)
we tend to make.
|
|
Sensing and Thinking
ST
|
Attention
to the tangible realities based on
current and past experiences with
a focus on “objective” facts,
criteria, or principles. A just-the-facts
approach. |
|
Sensing and Feeling
SF
|
Attention
to the tangible realities based on
current and past experiences with
a focus on the people and the values
involved. A sensitive-and-caring approach. |
|
iNtuiting and
Thinking
NT
|
Attention
to concepts, meanings, interrelationships,
and probable or possible futures with
a focus on the principles and criteria
involved. An abstract, problem-solving
approach. |
|
iNtuiting and
Feeling
NF
|
Attention
to concepts, meanings, interrelationships,
and probable or possible futures with
a focus on the people and values involved.
A growth-and-development approach. |
The Type Preferences
and the 16 Personality Types
|
