One of the best known tools for increasing personal-understanding of yourself is the Myers-Briggs Personality Test. The beginning of the test began with C. G. Jung when his theory of psychological archetypes was formalized. He based his research on subjective clinical observations, and introspection. Jung broke down his research on personalities into four cognitive functions: feeling, sensation, thinking and intuition. He then extrapolated the opposite cognition’s.
The modern Myers-Briggs test was built on Jung’s originating theory when in 1917, Katharine Cook Briggs began her research into the human personality. Along with her daughter, Isabel Briggs Myers, she postulated a complete outline that was able to categorize personality profiles into: intuition or sensing, introversion or extroversion, feeling or thinking and perception or judging. They also broke down the four segments into subjective deductive, subjective-inductive, objective-deductive and objective-inductive.
Since its creation it has aided millions of people to realize their preferences. This knowledge can be applied to career choice, hobby choice and personal friendships. It offers users a way to understand themselves better as they make important life choices.
MAIN ASPECTS OF THE TEST
The test involves a battery of questions in which the user qualifies him or herself on different phrases. For example, one phrase may be “I find it easy to meet new people” and then the user chooses highly agree, agree, mildly agree, neutral, mildly disagree, disagree or highly disagree. There are many questions like this and at the end, questions add up to show a proclivity to one or the other of each of the four divisions of subjective-deductive, subjective-inductive, objective-deductive and objective-inductive.
When taking the test, it also is important to be quick with answers and not think them out. Many people have a tendency to talk themselves into what they think the right answer is and sway the test to an inaccurate result. This is why it is critical to read the questions quickly and choose the first answer you feel is right. Try to not leave neutral answers if they are an option on the test.
It is important also to realize that categories signify preference rather than actual persona. For example, if someone scores an I for introversion, it just means that they prefer the more internal dialogue of thought. They still may be a very successful and boisterous division manager at work who has to command attention. The “introversion” score just means they prefer to sort things out within themselves. It has no bearing on whether or not they can manage extroversion when needed. For this reason, preconceived notions about your personality should be put aside when taking this test. Finally, it should be understood that the test has no “better” or “worse” option. The goal is to get a deeper understanding of appreciation of preferences. As with any preference, no one choice is a “better” option than another.