The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) is a tool that is used to take an inventory of the personality traits of a specific individual. It is presented in the form of a questionnaire that has been meticulously designed to measure a person’s psychological preferences, to identify how a person perceives the world around himself or herself, as well as to show what factors influence a person when he or she makes a decision.
You might have taken a test like the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator when you applied for employment at certain companies or corporations. In general, employers who use this kind of testing are looking for employees who have a certain kind of personality. The MBTI is a great tool to use if you are trying to discover what your own personality type happens to be. Naturally, your personality is going to influence the style of parenting that you choose to use. This test can also be used to determine the personality of your child, and the results can be extrapolated from to figure out what career path a child with that particular personality type might be successful in when he or she becomes an adult.
The basic concepts used in the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator come from ideas described by C.G. Jung, in his book “Psychological Types” In a given situation, one person may behave a certain way, while another person, in the same exact situation, may behave in an entirely different way. This may seem random, when, in reality, the behaviors a person exhibits are based on the person’s individual personality. The behavior isn’t random at all, but very orderly, consistent, and based on each person’s ability to perceive and judge the world around him.
The MBTI was created to help make the ideas of C.G. Jung more easily understood. The original creators of the test were Katharine Cook Briggs, and her daughter, Isabel Briggs Myers. They designed this test during World War II, as a tool to be used to help women who were entering the work force to find employment where they would be the most comfortable and effective. The original test was expanded upon, to become the MBTI that we are familiar with today.
There are sixteen different personality types. Each type is made up of four components. The questions in the MBTI are designed to identify which component is a part of an individual’s personality, and which component is not. Your personality will be identified by a combination of four letters. Knowing what each letter stands for can help you learn more about your own personality, or the personality of your child.
Your personality either includes Introversion (I), or Extraversion (E), depending upon if you prefer to interact with the outside world, or to stay within your own, personal, inner world. When you are presented with new information, you might focus on “just the facts” which is called Sensing (S), or you might prefer to interpret those facts, and add meaning to the basic information, which is called Intuition (I). When you need to make a decision about something, you either use logic and consistency, or Thinking (T), or use what you know and feel about the people and the circumstances you are going to make a decision about, which is called Feeling (F). Each person either deals with the outside world by working from their pre-formed ideas, called Judging (J), or by being open to new ideas, called Perceiving (P). These letters are combined into a code that describes your personality type.
Check out these articles to learn more about each different personality type:
The Inspector/ Certifying Personality Type
The Protector / Securing Personality Type
The Mastermind / Entailing Personality Type
The Crafter / Instrumenting Personality Type
The Composer / Synthesizing Personality Type
The Healer / Conciliating Personality Type
The Architect / Designing Personality Type
The Performing / Demonstrating Personality Type
The Promoter / Persuader Personality Type
The Counselor / Guiding Personality Type
The Champion / Motivating Personality Type
The Inventor / Devising Personality Type
The Supervising / Enforcing Personality Type
The Provider / Supplying Personality Type
The Teacher / Educating Personality Type
The Field Marshal / Mobilizing Personality Type