MBTI Preferences - Essay Example

MBTI Results and Preferences The hypothesized MBTI personality profile was d as “ESFP” – an individual who is Extroverted, gains information through Sensing, is oriented more towards Feeling than thinking in his relationships, and is a flexible Perceiver rather than someone who passes judgment. The test results matched these assumptions on all but one criterion; and were coded as ISFP – the only difference from the hypothesized profile being that the test declared that interaction orientation was more Introverted than extroverted.

The first variable measures along the dichotomy of Extraversion and introversion. While it was believed that the results would reflect the friendly and interactive nature, they pointed at a preference towards looking within and sharing significant events with a few close people rather than many acquaintances. The score on this variable is not very strong, and it could be situational factors that affected this factor. There are examples from the workplace as well as from personal experiences that underline the friendly nature and comfort of interacting with even unknown persons.

The comfort in being in a position at work that involves interacting with people and keeping negotiations in good humor is itself an indicator of an extroverted nature. Thus, it is difficult to accept the test’s result that claims Introversion over personal understanding and experiences that verify Extraversion. The second variable of Sensing – Intuition defines the primary means of conducting an analysis of the information available. Both the test results and the hypothesized score fall in the same direction – i.e. – Sensing.

Individuals high on Sensing will typically rely more on information that is gathered through senses than on inductive reasoning. They also process information deductively. There is a distinct inclination to base decisions and opinions on the basis of verifiable facts and not on assumptions. Also, it is difficult to practice leaps of faith either in work or social situations. Although some people may see this as a weakness; it is more of a desire to stick to known means and thus be able to produce a particular quality of functioning.

The third factor of Thinking and feeling identifies the processes used in decision-making. Here again, the test results and the personal hypothesis were in congruence; and the preferred aspect of the dichotomy was Feeling. A preference towards the Feeling aspect leads to putting an added emphasis on emotions – those of the self and of others – when making decisions that will affect people. Sometimes, emotions even override logic if someone’s faith or values are involved. It is difficult to make a decision where someone has to do something that is not part of their value system, and so such situations are dealt with by giving preference to values and ideals.

If it becomes necessary to override the feeling aspect when making a work decision, there is a lot of anxiety and discomfort; so wherever possible, it is felt that the best decisions are based on values and ideals. The fourth dichotomy is that of Judging – Perceiving; which explains whether the person is an observer or will pass a judgment on the situation. The hypothesized aspect was Perceiving. The test results also verified the same. People higher on Perceiving are mostly good observers and stay flexible so that they may change their opinions in the face of new information.

This is seen in the desire to keep one’s opinions to oneself and not voice them out to others. Another example is the tendency to make spontaneous decisions without many qualms.