MBTI Overview

 

Learning is rather loosely defined operationally as the acquisition and retention of skills or knowledge.   With rare exception, people are more successful under less rather than more stress.

 

This presentation offers basic concepts of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) (link 1) ,as it relates to the effectiveness of alternative teaching & learning styles in science education.  The MBTI is based upon the personality theory of  C.G. Jung (link 3) . Isabel Myers, working with her mother, Katharine C. Briggs, took Jung’s typology and constructed a way to measure what the theory predicted.  Since its inception, there have been additional modifications, mostly generated by more robust statistical methods.  Today it is arguably the most widely used personality measure for non-psychiatric populations. According to the Center for the Applications of Psychological Type (CAPT), approximately 2,000,000 people take the MBTI annually.

 

Caveats

 

This paper rests upon some presuppositions. 

1. We assume a reasonably firm knowledge of the MBTI.  Those wanting an expanded treatment are invited to click on the appropriate links to other pages in this presentation. 
2. We have two cautions, one about the verbiage in the paper and one about using the Internet as a resource for MBTI. (link 4)
3. We assume the reader is a professional in some field of science or science education, and thus can be trusted to gather substantiating research as needed.  We did not publish an exhaustive “Review of the Literature,” but merely cited the core professional MBTI sites in Related Organizations. (link 5)

 

MBTI and learning

 

One key to enhance comprehension, improve retention and increase student motivation is to appreciate the distinct ways people process experiences.  The goal of applying the MBTI in science education is to create an optimal learning experience for the student and the teacher. 

 

We offer the following suggestions:

·         Ignore the “Golden Rule.”   (link 6)  Teachers tend to teach according to the Golden Rule: “Teach unto others as you would like to be taught.”  Unfortunately, that leaves about 15 of the 16 MBTI types out in varying degrees of “cold.”

·         “Teaching the way I like to be taught” is type insensitive.  Take into account the cognitive styles (learning preferences) of the student to offer type-friendly instruction. (link 9) 

·         An initial sensitivity to the pairs formed by E/I and S/N indices is one way to step toward MBTI-friendly teaching methods.  (link 10)

·         Using the MBTI preferences as a checklist to adjust your lesson planning is helpful.  (link 11) 

 

Utilization of the MBTI in a diverse population is surprisingly simple to implement in current curricula.  Most schools permit reasonable autonomy in the methods of presenting content.  Using the MBTI does not mandate the purchase of new texts, equipment, materials, or even personnel.  The truly essential ingredients are an understanding of type in oneself and in the students, as well as a willingness to operate “out of type.”   There are numerous resources available, and a cursory search of just a few professional MBTI sites yields thousands of books, periodicals, and training opportunities.

 

Enjoy.