Photo: David Boyle

As any one who has read my blog for any length of time knows, I’ve taken the Myers-Briggs personality test. I’ve also taken the DiSC personality test, but that’s for a different post. It was the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator that first gave me a name for my personality years ago, so I feel a sort of affinity for it – a gratefulness I suppose. Looking carefully at my own type, I’ve begun to understand myself better and I’ve also started to see the differences in style between all the personality types named by the MBTI. This is a good thing.

Many experts in the field of psychology applaud the MBTI and many others feel that it is unproven balderdash. I’m not here to talk about that. The MBTI has been accurate in my case, especially considering that each time I’ve taken it I’ve done my best to be completely honest and accurate with my self-reported answers. This is what I’m here to talk about…

In a world where labels of all kinds, some with negative connotations, fly about and stick so easily, how can we use the results of a test like MBTI for good and not evil?

In the corporate world, personality tests such as the MBTI are more and more commonly being used on prospective hires. This is supposedly to help facilitate communication and productivity when the person begins his or her new career with the new company.

For example, if an ESFP needs to have an INTJ complete a project, the potential for miscommunication on both sides is certainly there. But if the ESFP and INTJ know they possess very different work and communication styles, they can find middle ground and achieve success at a common goal, right? That’s the theory anyway.

There are a couple potential problems with using the Myers-Briggs test before hiring occurs. First, because the overall trend in our gregarious, me-too culture, including our corporate culture is to favor extroverts over introverts, using the MBTI as part of the screening process for hiring could mean that introverts get left outside in the cold, regardless of their skills and qualifications, and regardless of the fact that introverts are extremely valuable in corporate culture (we work instead of flit from cubicle to cubicle chatting).

The second is that the MBTI is a tool that looks at personality traits as static. It does not take into account the fact that many people’s personalities will drift a bit over time – probably not drastically, but still. It also doesn’t take into account that both introverts and extroverts have the capability to adapt when they need to, to accommodate a situation or a need.

I would also assert that in the hands of someone who is not trained to administer and interpret the MBTI, it’s possible that the results could be misunderstood and misused. If a company is highly focused on the extrovert-introvert aspect of the MBTI, and pays less attention to the second, third and fourth letters in any of the 16 possible sequences, they will be doing themselves, their employees and possible hires a disservice.

The MBTI is a great tool for an individual to learn more about his or her personality. And truly, when it comes to you or me taking the test for our own edification and learning, it’s fine. We can better understand the communication dynamic in our own relationships, and how people process and interpret information. We can better understand how others replenish their energy in contrast to our preferences, or why one person becomes frustrated in a chaotic situation, while another becomes energized.

But potential problems can occur when we as individuals allow ourselves to be pigeon-holed because of a set of four letters, or when a larger entity (society or corporate culture) deems certain personality types as better than others. When the MBTI is used after a hire, to pair two introverted people in a work space for better productivity and general enjoyment of their jobs, or to create teams that will be balanced, or to help employees truly understand how each different style offers a different set of valuable tools, it can be a good thing.

To use the MBTI prior to hiring to bolster the “everybody join in” mentality is unfair to the company doing the hiring, it’s employees and it’s qualified, but quiet potential hires.

If you liked this post, please share it with others and bookmark it. If you are into taking surveys, the Introvert Survey awaits you. And if you have a comment, I’d love to hear from you.