Lessons from Using The Myers-Briggs in High Schools by John LeBlanc

Lessons from Using The Myers-Briggs in High Schools
by John LeBlanc

I had already been thinking about launching a project to bring the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator into high schools when, during a college visit with my daughter, our tour guide, a biomedical engineering major, said that taking the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator helped her make her choice when it revealed she had interests in both the medical and engineering fields.

Most of us make career and educational decisions early in our lives before we really have an opportunity to know ourselves or what motivates and interests us. Most assessments targeted at young adults are focused on values, interests, and abilities but may not be good predictors of career satisfaction or future success. Many people put more thought and planning into their vacation plans or next car purchase than their own career development. Since most young adults lack knowledge of their own preferences, they are more apt to be encouraged by external influencers towards their future career directions.

According to type theory, one of the most important motivators of career choice is a desire for work that is intrinsically interesting and satisfying and that will permit use of preferred functions. I wanted to focus on creating awareness of students' unique preferences to allow them to make informed career choices that would lead to more satisfying and self-fulfilling careers.

I administered the test to over 100 high school juniors and seniors in Sutton, Massachusetts. My hypothesis was that by knowing their Personality Type, students would be in a better position to make informed career choices. Since preferences remain constant throughout one's life, the MBTI could be an excellent predictor of career satisfaction. The MBTI would also be extremely useful in understanding learning styles and a resource to both students and teachers:

Extraverts work best if they can:

interact in small groups
talk about their ideas to think them through

Introverts work best if they can:

read lessons before or write them out before discussion
have an opportunity to reflect and think before responding

Sensors work best if they can:

use practical applications
view films, videos, audio visuals; have hands-on exercises

Intuitives work best if they can:

see global patterns, possibilities, big picture
use their imaginations and create new ideas

Thinkers work best when they can:

analyze problems logically
make fair and objective criteria

Feelers work best if they can:

find work that is personally meaningful
work in a friendly work environment

Judgers work best if they can:

work in a predicable environment
bring things to closure; make decisions

Perceivers work best if they can:

work in flexible and changing environments
allow for spontaneity

Summary
The MBTI is the most widely used personality instrument in the world today. It has been well researched throughout its long history and is rich in theory. As I think about using the MBTI with high school students more extensively, I see several important uses for the indicator:

To understand type differences in the motivation of learning and to help teachers reach more students.
To help students find direction for their lives by gaining insight to their strengths and preferences.
In career guidance as a tool to help guide individuals in their choice of schools, majors, professions, occupations, and work settings.
In communications to create a climate where differences are seen as interesting and valuable, rather than as problematic.
In situations requiring cooperation and teamwork to help group members recognize, appreciate, and make use of the strengths of each type in the group

While the long-term impact of using the test is not known, the students, guidance counselors and teachers, and parents overwhelmingly appreciated the process. The feedback from the principal and head of guidance counseling was: "Students felt that this experience had a significant and important impact to them both personally and academically... In addition, the teachers, administration, and guidance gained insight into the ability to tailor lessons and modify activities to suit a student's personality type, as being just one significant and immediate benefit for us to consider as instructional leaders."

My message to the students was NOT to try and remember their four-letter type but, rather, to use it as a tool that is readily available, when needed, to "remind you of who you are" – especially when things get confusing which, at times, they certainly will. A powerful tool for young people, the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator can be an internal compass for people of any age or stage of development to sort out what's most important to them.

Knowing others is intelligence; Knowing yourself is wisdom.
Mastering others is strength; Mastering yourself is power
-Lao Tsu, Sixth Century B.C.

Reading:

Baron, Renee (1998). What Type Am I? Discover Who You Really Are. New York: Penguin Books.

Levesque, Lynne (2001). Breakthrough Creativity: Achieving Top Performance Using Eight Creative Talents. Palo Alto, CA: Davies-Black Publishing.

Myers, Isabel Briggs & McCaulley, Mary H. (1990). Manual: A Guide to the Development and Use of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press.

Tieger, Paul & Barron-Tieger, Barbara (2001). Do What You Are: Discover The Perfect Career for You Through the Secrets of Personality Type. New York: Little, Brown and Company.

Baron, Renee (1998). What Type Am I? Discover Who You Really Are. New York: Penguin Books.

In our next edition, Part II will focus on David Keirsey's Temperament model.

John LeBlanc, Principal of The Inside Edge, works with leaders, teams, and individuals helping them reach their maximum potential in the areas of personal/professional leadership and team development. John has over twenty years of experience in organizational consulting in a variety of business environments and has been a certified instructor of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) since 1992. He has to date administered the MBTI to 102 high school juniors and seniors and has additional schools confirmed for the March 2004 timeframe.