The MBTI: Tips and Tricks for Typing Others
Princess Diana, Shakespeare, and Anne of Green Gables were INFPs. Jesus and Gandhi were INFJs, and so is J.K. Rowling. Barack Obama is probably an ENFJ, and Donald Trump is unmistakably an ESTP (in the company of Britney Spears and Madonna, might I add). So what do these four-letter acronyms represent, and why is everyone so eager to share them on dating sites, through social media, in the workplace, and — as I have done — on their blog’s “About Me”?
These letters refer to a system of personality typing known as the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), one of the most widely used personality inventories popularized by laypeople and mental health professionals alike. I, personally, have found it to be useful in understanding how and why people act the way they do since it offers insight into the values and motivations of others. The MBTI was developed by Katharine Cook Briggs and her daughter Isabel Briggs Myers in the mid 20th century. Like most women of their day, neither Katharine nor Isabel had formal credentials in psychology. But that didn’t stop these self-taught pupils from perusing the writings of Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung — a venerable giant in the world of psychology whose departures from Freudian psychoanalysis shaped the field as we know it today.
MBTI Preferences
In his 1921 work Psychological Types, Jung maintained that personality can be categorized according to four main psychological functions: the perceiving functions of sensation (S) vs. intuition (N), which dictate how information is absorbed; and the judging functions of thinking (T) vs. feeling (F), which determine how decisions are made. In addition, the ways in which these functions are expressed are modified by a person’s propensity toward either extraversion [sic] (E) or introversion (I), which describe one’s default approach to the wider world. Myers described a total of 16 personality types based on combinations of the following four dichotomies:
Extravert (E) — conversationalists who are comfortable working with others; say what comes to mind; more present in the “outer world” of people and objects; energized by socialization; drained by too much alone time.
vs.
Introvert (I) — tend to be quieter people who are less comfortable in large groups; think carefully before they speak; focus on “inner world” of thoughts and ideas; expend energy through socialization; need alone time to recharge;
Sensing (S) — concrete thinkers; live in the “here and now”; especially in tune with physical senses.
vs.
Intuitive (N) — abstract thinkers; great at recognizing patterns; appreciate complexity and subtle layers of meaning;
Thinking (T) — make decisions based on facts; rational and logical; follow head over heart; more concerned with correctness and efficiency than with group harmony; can appear aloof.
vs.
Feeling (F) — make decisions based on emotions; compassionate and empathetic; follow heart over head; value group harmony; cooperative and friendly;
Judging (J) — goal-oriented; value structure; like schedules and to-do lists; meet deadlines.
vs.
Perceiving (P) — process-oriented; value flexibility; like to keep options open; struggle to meet rigid deadlines.
According to the MBTI, everyone has a natural inclination — analogous to the proclivity for left- or right-handedness — for either extraversion or introversion, sensing or intuition, thinking or feeling, and judging or perceiving. It is important to note that one person’s preference for one letter over another does not mean that they are incapable of effectively exercising the other letter’s function; a T can still experience great depth of feeling, while an F can make fact-based decisions. In addition, these personality features exist on a spectrum, meaning there can be notable differences even between individuals of the same Myers-Briggs type.
If you’re interested in discovering your own Myers-Briggs type, you can purchase a book on the subject (such as David Keirsey’s Please Understand Me II, which I’ve consulted while writing this blog post) or find a paid questionnaire on the Internet. Alternatively, here’s a free online quiz I’ve used over the years that seems to be fairly reliable.
The Four Temperaments — Guardians, Artisans, Rationals & Idealists
So how can this information be useful to you in understanding yourself and others though the practice of personality typing? Well, rather than obsessing too much over memorizing the unique characteristics of the 16 different Myers-Briggs personality types, let’s take a step back and explore broader groupings of similar types — think “big picture” here. After reading about Myers’s theory of personality, psychologist David Keirsey observed four clearly defined groups, which he called “temperaments,” emerging from Jung’s and Myers’s conceptual groundwork: the SJs (sensing-judging types known as “Guardians”); the SPs (sensing-perceiving types known as “Artisans”); the NTs (intuitive-thinking types known as “Rationals”); and the NFs (intuitive-feeling types known as “Idealists”).
I think of Guardians (ESTJs, ESFJs, ISTJs, and ISFJs) as the pillars of society. These hard-working traditionalists value law and order; live in concrete reality; and are responsible, dependable, cautious, well-organized, and respectful of authority — people like George Washington, Queen Elizabeth II, Sandra Day O’Connor, Warren Buffet, Dr. Laura Schlessinger, Megyn Kelly, and Inspector Javert (from Les Misérables). They tend to thrive in highly structured, hierarchical work environments where they find fulfillment completing tasks that yield practical, observable results. Guardians are the most prevalent of the four temperaments.
Artisans (ESTPs, ESFPs, ISTPs, and ISFPs), on the other hand, are bold, adaptable, and unconventional risk-takers who live in the “here and now.” Naturally charming, clever, and tactical, the world is their oyster. They can be impulsive and hedonistic and may have a penchant for artistic creation or performance (even if this means “the art of the deal” in business). Occupational flexibility and the opportunity for action-packed, “hands-on” work are both essential for Artisans; these types quickly grow frustrated with the delays and abstractions associated with overly complex or bureaucratic systems. Famous Artisans include Marie Antoinette, Winston Churchill, Marilyn Monroe, Madonna, Michael Jackson, Angelina Jolie, Britney Spears, and Fred and George Weasley (from the Harry Potter series).
The two remaining types, Rationals and Idealists, exhibit iNtuition (N) over Sensing (S) and are less common than Guardians and Artisans. As intuitive thinkers, Rationals (ENTJs, ENTPs, INTJs, and INTPs) are characterized by their sharp intellect, keen insight into abstract phenomena, and strategic pragmatism. Career-wise, these types flock toward technology, engineering, the sciences, and — more generally — professions that require deep thinking and careful analysis. Charles Darwin, Marie Curie, Albert Einstein, Margaret Thatcher, Stephen Hawking, Hillary Clinton, Steve Jobs, Sherlock Holmes (from the fiction of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle), Mr. Darcy (Pride and Prejudice), and Sheldon Cooper (The Big Bang Theory) are all famous Rationals.
Last but not least are the Idealists (ENFJs, ENFPs, INFJs, and INFPs). Idealists are passionate and imaginative people who see the good in others, yearn for romance/the romantic, and strive to better themselves and the world. Friendly and cooperative, they are popular as protagonists in literature (and especially children’s lit!). Some of the world’s most inspiring leaders have been Idealists. William Shakespeare, Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr., Princess Diana, Barack Obama, and J.K. Rowling number among their ranks. Fictional Idealists include Jane Eyre, Jean Valjean, Atticus Finch, Anne Shirley, Sara Crewe, Frodo Baggins, Albus Dumbledore, Lucy Pevensie, Daenerys Targaryen, Peeta Mellark, Disney’s Ariel, and Disney’s Belle. Professionally, Idealists gravitate toward teaching, counseling, healthcare, writing, art, the humanities, and the church — in other words, anywhere they feel they are making a meaningful impact in the lives of others.
Does the notion of four broad categories of personality sound familiar? Keirsey was hardly the first to posit the existence of four fundamental temperaments. Around 190 A.D., Roman physician Galen proposed the idea of four bodily fluids — called “humors” — whose levels determine a person’s behavioral predispositions. Galen’s humors correspond to Keirsey’s four temperaments (melancholic/black bile = Guardians; sanguine/blood = Artisans; phlegmatic/phlegm = Rationals; choleric/yellow bile = Idealists). Furthermore, as noted by Keirsey, Plato and Hippocrates speculated about four distinct temperaments years before Galen. Fast-forwarding a couple millennia, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry instituted a house system that could be read as a contemporary manifestation of this same, ancient tradition: Guardians are loyal Hufflepuffs, Artisans are crafty Slytherins, Rationals are bookish Ravenclaws, and Idealists are lionhearted Gryffindors. In addition — as also observed by Keirsey — wasn’t Baum’s land of Oz populated by allegorical characters representing home, heart, courage, and brain? Yet more examples abound, my point being that a quaternary grouping system of personality is so culturally and historically pervasive, it somehow feels organic.
Typing Others
Armed with a basic understanding of the MBTI’s dichotomies and the four temperaments, you’re on your way to becoming an MBTI expert (…or, at the very least, an amateur psychologist who can use it to casually type the people in your life). If you want to pin down someone’s personality, start by deciding on their temperament. Your politically conservative uncle who runs his household tight as a navy ship and prides himself in being a stable provider is likely a Guardian. That inspiring English teacher you remember from high school who had a contagious passion for literature is probably an Idealist. Once you’ve discovered their temperament, it’s usually not too hard to determine whether they’re introverted or extraverted. And after you’ve narrowed the options down that far, there will only be two possible personality types left. At that point, read a description of both types to determine which is the better fit.
If it’s not obvious which of the four temperaments the person in question embodies, consider which letter preferences they seem to exhibit. T vs. F is often one of the most salient: Do they appear more concerned with people’s feelings or with group efficiency? Do they come across as sensitive or thick-skinned? J vs. P is another promising avenue to explore: Do they seem perpetually late, or are they an early bird? Are they a careful planner, or do they prefer to play things by ear? Questions like these can be useful when uncovering clues about personality type.
Why Use the MBTI?
So. You may be wondering why it’s worth learning about the MBTI — in other words, how this knowledge can be utilized to benefit you in any practical way. For starters, knowing more about someone else’s subjective experience of reality may help elucidate their attitudes and behaviors for those of us who think differently. The Artisan’s impulsivity might make more sense to the Guardian who understands and appreciates the Artisan’s drive to act boldly and live in the present moment. Likewise, the sensitive Idealist who is familiar with the Rational’s cool, dispassionate method of processing information may be less inclined to personalize the Rational’s perceived aloofness.
A key way in which the MBTI can be used to interpret the thoughts and behaviors of others is through the assignment of a dominant function that can act as a sort of typing “short cut.” The concept of the dominant function stems from Jungian theory and was further developed by Myers. Each of Jung’s four functions of consciousness — sensation, intuition, thinking, and feeling — can be directed outward (extraverted) or inward (introverted) in a way that characterizes each of the 16 personality types. To illustrate, the ESFP’s dominant function is, according to Myers, extraverted sensing (denoted as “Se”). Many of the features that define the ESFP (an Artisan) are directly attributable to the Se function; the ESFP’s primary mode of engagement with the world lies in an intense, concrete sensory experience of external reality. This accounts for such things as the ESFP’s poor grasp of abstract theoretical concepts but knack for learning “on the job,” through lived experience. ESFPs are also known for their ability to memorize useful facts, love of material items, appreciation of physical beauty, and zest for the pleasures of life — all stemming from Se. (Further information about the dominant function as well as the concepts of the auxiliary, tertiary, and inferior functions can be found in Gifts Differing: Understanding Personality Type by Isabel Briggs Myers and Peter B. Myers (1980).)
Knowledge of other people’s temperaments, dominant functions, and specific four-letter types can teach you not only how to better understand them, but also how to more powerfully communicate with them. Before engaging in an important dialogue with someone, arrive prepared to speak their “language” — that is, couch your ideas in ways that are more likely to elicit a positive response based on their unique set of preferences/functions. If you need to pitch a new and brilliant idea of yours to your thinking (T) boss, be sure to embed the bulk of your argument in facts and logic rather than emotion. The MBTI can additionally help you to assemble more effective and efficient teams in the workplace. If you want to assign a group of people to a dynamic project requiring a wide scope of abilities, you might consider mixing people of different temperaments. Conversely, if you know that your judging (J) and perceiving (P) employees tend to frustrate one another due to their wildly dissimilar approaches to deadlines, they may operate better in separate groups.
Once you are familiar with common typing patterns, the MBTI can also be employed to help you choose the kinds of people you want to fulfill various roles in your life. For instance, I have a personal preference for feeling (F) doctors over thinking (T) doctors… they are better adept at handling my inner hypochondriac with their genuine desire to put my mind at ease! In business and finance, I gravitate toward judging (J) types over perceiving (P) types due to their efficiency and respect for deadlines (…having your tax guy or gal make changes to your return on April 15th is not fun!). I struggled to feel comfortable around sensing (S) and thinking (T) men during my time on the online dating market last year and knew that a rare Idealist man would be a more promising catch (…and I eventually found him! Click here for more information about the online dating experience). Just knowing that Shawn was an INFP from his Match profile facilitated greater trust between us early in the relationship.
Final Thoughts
Over the years, I’ve witnessed many friends and acquaintances marvel at how eerily accurate their MBTI descriptions are. While I’ve seen the MBTI being administered in professional institutions and psychotherapeutic settings alike, I’ve also seen others dismiss the whole enterprise as unscientific hogwash with no place in proper academic discourse. Experts of psychology live in both camps. It must be said that it seems to work better for some than for others; every so often, test takers just don’t appear to fit neatly within the parameters of their assigned type. As I’ve said before, humans are complicated. Very complicated. I, for one, find some of the MBTI literature surrounding romantic compatibility to be unsound. And as critics point out, the personality inventory itself isn’t always reliable, occasionally mistyping candidates. Moreover, its failure to address neuroticism as a major component of personality is arguably a shortcoming. The Big Five personality traits/five factor model (FFM) — which does take neuroticism into account — has a superior track record in terms of scientific validity (although I should mention that I recently came across a newer iteration of the MBTI that does measure neuroticism in the form of a fifth scale indicating whether the test taker is “assertive” or “turbulent”).
Is the MBTI a hard science? No. Maybe it’s in the (unreasonably disparaged) “pop science” category or is, in some ways, better classified as a form of sociology, the red-headed stepchild of psychology to the science snob (which is, in turn, the red-headed stepchild of the hard sciences). At any rate, it’s certainly better than a zodiac sign at providing an accurate description of temperament. It’s grounded in scholarly theory and research developed by some of the leading practitioners of psychology in the twentieth century. And its insane popularity in the business sector must surely mean something. In my own personal, academic, and professional lives, I have found that typing others comes second nature and has yielded tremendous insight into both my own cognitive processes and into what makes others tick.
Perhaps the most important takeaway from all this — whether you’re a Myers-Briggs Guardian, Artisan, Rational, or Idealist — is a more nuanced appreciation for the ways in which others experience the same, subjective reality as you. Each type does, after all, have something special to contribute to the rich tapestry of human experience. So maybe the Dr. Lauras of the world could learn something from the Britney Spearses, the Sheldons from the Marie Antoinettes, the Hillary Clintons from the Belles and Ariels… and perhaps the other way round, too.
What’s your type? Feel free to comment below! Also, for those of you who are Harry Potter fans, check out TIME’s Sorting Hat quiz, based on the Big Five test and data collected by social scientists at the University of Cambridge.
