Katherine Myers was developing a theory of personality of her own when she read Jung. She found what he was suggesting clarified her thinking, so she adopted his theories into her framework. During the 1940's, she and her daughter, Isabel Briggs Myers, set out to design a rigorous and reliable instrument that would test Jung's theory. They developed a tool to identify an individual's preferences; this was aimed towards greater understanding and constructive use of the differences between people.

C.G. Jung's theory of psychological types suggests that human behaviour is not random, but is the result of a few basic, observable differences in mental functioning. These differences are centred on how people prefer to use their minds, specifically how they choose to perceive and make judgements. He identified four functions at work: perception via sensation or intuition, judgement via thinking or feeling.

The MBTI includes four types of distinct preferences:
Index Preferences between Affects choices as to
EI (E) Extraversion or
    (I) Introversion
Whether to direct perception judgement mainly on the outer world (E) or mainly on the world of ideas (I)
SN (S) Sensing perception
    (N) Intuitive perception
Which kind of perception is preferred when one needs or wishes to perceive.
Sensing (S) perception pays attention to details and current realities;
Intuition (N) perception pays attention to meanings, patterns, and future possibilities.
TF (T) Thinking judgement
    (F) Feeling judgement (human and aesthetic values. subjective )
Which kind of judgement to trust when one needs or wishes to make a decision.
Thinking - analyzes information. Logcal
Feeling - human and aesthetic values. Subjective
JP (J) Judgement
    (P) Perception
Whether to deal with the outer world in the judging (J) attitude using (T or F) or in the perceptive attitude (P) (using S or N)
Type Dynamics:
Dominant Function:
Everyone has a favorite function. Some people, for example, give the most weight to their Intuition. They trust that function the most, and they are the most energized when they use it.

Auxiliary Function:
The second preferred function. "It is critical to understand that the basis for good type development is a well-developed auxiliary function that can support the dominant function."
Dominant Intuitive types, for example, have Thinking or Feeling as their auxiliary function. Development of this function tends to come later in life (about midlife).

Tertiary Function:
The letter of this function does not appear in your type. It is the opposite function from the auxiliary function. If, for example, your auxiliary function is Thinking, then your tertiary will be Feeling.
Myers-Brigs have a term "in the grip" when this function takes over without conscious intention. This may also come out in times of stress.

The Fourth or Inferior Function
The preference that is the least strong. Also comes in late midlife. For example, if Thinking were your dominant function, Feeling would be your least-preferred function. See Understanding MBTI Type Dynamics at MyersBriggs.org

Understanding your MBTI at PersonalityPathways.com
Suggested Careers for Myers-Briggs Types Know Your Type personality testing inidividual, career, team, ... reports

Online Testing:
At PersonalityPathways.com they say:
Since it is considered a breach of professional ethics to administer an MBTI® without person-to-person follow-up verification by a qualified practitioner, none of the "type" inventories on the Web are the "real thing."

MyPersonality.info

Results Analysis:
Summary Here
Characteristics Frequently Associated with each MBTI Type at AnalyticTech.com
The 16 MBTI® Types at MyersBriggs.org
Robert Munafo's MBTI Proximity Chart - A Karnaugh map of the Myers-Briggs personality types
keirsey.com


Books:
"Introduction to Type", Isaabel Briggs Myers
Amazon.com: In the Grip: Understanding Type, Stress, and the Inferior Function: Naomi L. Quenk: $85

See also DISC.

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last updated 24 Nov 2010