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The flaws with personality testing
by David L. Mount
One should be careful when interpreting the results of a personality test. Just because someone tests one way does not necessarily mean that they are that way. People are made up by a combination of several personality traits. There also is the chance of incorrectly labelling a person. Employers should be aware ... that there is no hard evidence that personality tests, like the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator® test, are accurate measures of one's personality. Inaccurate test results could prevent someone from getting a job. Using personality tests to match a person with an occupation also is a flawed practice. The validity and consequences of personality tests should be taken into account when they are given to someone.
I recently took the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator test on the internet. I tested out as an INTJ. This means that I am introverted, intuitive, thinking, and judging. Our textbook describes INTJ's as visionaries with great minds and a strong drive for their own ideas. They are said to be skeptical, critical, independent, determined, and stubborn. Our textbook also says that NT's are intuitive thinkers that make up only 5% of the population. In a recent study thirteen prosperous businesspeople who created successful companies were NT's. This includes companies like Federal Express, Honda Motors, Microsoft, and Sony. I must admit that I have a hard time disagreeing with the bulk of these characterizations. However, the textbook said that the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator test is not necessarily a valid measure of personality. There is the possibility that I am not an INTJ. I could be an ESTJ. These people are characterized as being organizers. I do have a strong need and desire for organization. I also could be an ENTP. These people are characterized as being conceptualizers. I am resourceful and good at many things. It is wrong to label a person as just one thing and nothing more.
Most people are a combination of several personality traits. Even though I tested out to be introverted, intuitive, thinking, and judging, I know I can be extroverted, sensing, feeling, and perceiving in certain situations. A person most likely will fall somewhere in between the bipolar personality traits. Just because a person may favor one trait does not mean that they do not possess some characteristics of another trait. An outgoing person can be reserved in some situations. A serious person can be happy-go-lucky at times. A relaxed person can be tense under certain circumstances. Labelling a person as possessing only one trait is a faulty practice.
Incorrectly labelling a person also can lead to adverse circumstances. Again, the textbook said that certain personality tests, like the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator test, are not necessarily a valid measure of personality. If a person is incorrectly labelled as having low intelligence then they may never reach their full potential. If a person is incorrectly labelled as group dependent they may always depend on other people instead of themselves. There is the potential for mislabelling people as having a personality trait that they do not actually possess.
The use of personality tests in the hiring of employees is a practice that has no merit. Our textbook did say that there is no evidence that certain personality tests are valid measures of personality. However, this still does not stop over 2 million companies in the U.S. from using these tests, like the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, in the hiring of new employees. What surprises me is the number of well-known companies that use these tests. This includes companies like GE, AT&T, and Citicorp. One of my friends, who recently took a personality test, is a prime example of what can go wrong when companies rely on these tests. My friend took the test in his quest to get a job at Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Kentucky. When his test results came back the company concluded that he should not be hired because he was not trustworthy or loyal. I have known this person for some time and do not agree with the results of the test. My friend basically said that the company was afraid that he would embezzle money. I personally have never have found him to be untrustworthy, unloyal, or even capable of embezzling money. He now has a different job at another healthcare organization and to my knowledge has yet to embezzle any money from that company. This example shows that personality tests do not always yield accurate results. Even worse, inaccurate results can harm a person's chances of getting a job. Employers should not use these tests in the hiring of new employees.
Personality tests also should not be used in an attempt to match a person with a specific job. Under Holland's Typology of Personality and Sampling, I would describe myself as being an enterprising person. This means that I am self-confident, ambitious, energetic, and domineering. I would be best paired with a job such as a lawyer, real estate agent, or public relations specialist. However, this label is in direct conflict with the label generated by the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator test. Not only that, but I know I possess other characteristics that are considered to be parts of the other types of personality. I am shy, independent, practical, and imaginative. This means that I am realistic, investigative, conventional, and artistic. According to Holland I could be a farmer, news reporter, bank teller, or interior decorator. A person should not be constricted by the pairing of a test with an occupation. Each person is different and may be a combination of several personality types. It is possible that a person could be happy at a job that is not listed under their personality type's occupation list. It is wrong to tell someone that they can only do certain jobs because of one test. Like the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, Holland's Typology of Personality and Sample Occupations also may not be a valid measure of someone's personality.
Personality tests can be flawed and lead to inaccurate findings. Most people can not be characterized by just one trait. Most people fall somewhere in the middle of the bipolar trait spectrum. By using tests that may not be able to accurately determine someone's personality, employers may not be hiring the best person for the job. Also, by using personality tests to match people with an appropriate occupation, those people may be led into the wrong profession. In short, the results of these personality tests should not be taken so seriously.
Source: http://cbpa.louisville.edu/bruce/rflct600/mount1.htm
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C13 I agree, the test is superficial and that people have a hard time being self aware, or lack any degree of objectivity about themselves. I as an "INTJ" lol, would love to see a test that is more based somehow on cognition, rather than self assessment. I also wonder is this test consistent with Jung? I have read over the types as Jung rendered them several times in recent months. The ideas he has seem much more subtle that these gross generalizations on Meyers Briggs. Jung is complex, but this much I am certain, by Jung's thinking it is not possible to be INTJ and then ESTJ , nor ISTJ. Reason being that Intuition as a dominant preference of the Ego, habitually , accompanies a repressed Sensation function. In other words to actively Intuit, is to actively repress Sensation, at least relatively. Jung found this process consistent in people, favoring one repressing another , making the opposite an " inferior function", rarely used and so undeveloped. I'm not saying Jung needs to be correct about everything, but I find his ideas complex and worth a great deal of study, and Meyers Briggs to be sort of superficial. That said , there is much in this post that shows the mind of "INTJ". mr bubbles -- Anonymous |
C14 Generally, the people who administer these tests (especially Internet websites, and undoubtedly employers and universities) don't do a very good job explaining them, which I think is required in order to get meaningful results. The language of personality typing is specific and probably explains why the tests are only about 75% reliable—25% of the people who test a second time get different results from the first test. (Supposedly.) The introvert/extrovert function is about how one gains and expends energy—it’s not about whether or not you are shy or outgoing. Unless this difference is explained, most people probably assume the latter and in turn use that assumption to determine whether or not they prefer sitting in the center of the room or enjoy going to parties (or vice versa, hah). If you observe that you tend to sit in the center of a room and conclude that you are an extrovert, I would agree that that is quite useless information. I would think that the reason that these tests are often unreliable is because (a) when people take these tests they are introduced to ideas about personal preferences that they might not have ever thought about before—they might be mistaken about what they are being asked or simply do not know their preference. If these ideas stick with them over time, they make some conscious effort to observe their behavior and the behavior of others. They might reassess which function fits them better after realizing that they are actually more inclined to one behavioral preference over the other and thus test differently the second time. Also, (b) the questions on these personality tests are often poorly written and misleading. If you test as having an intuitive preference, which is thought of as more cerebral than the sensory preference, and you are trying to determine if you are feeling or thinking, a question like “Do you feel involved watching TV soaps” might be offensive to some people. If you choose “no,” you have selected the thinking preference, even if what they are actually asking is whether or not you identify with the feelings of others and tend to empathize with people. And NT is a very different person from NF. A question on Kersey’s site that used to get me was which genre of movie I preferred: fantasy (intuitive) or action-adventure (sensory). As someone who was taking the test for the first time without understanding what they were actually asking, I found it difficult to answer since I don’t care much for either genre and felt pretty lost about which one to choose. Ene mene mine mo was my best methodology for those questions. I think something can also be said about those poor souls who feel unconfident or ashamed of their results and mistype themselves to match their self-perception. If I had aspired my whole life to do work in research and had a strong desire to feel competent (e.g. INTJ), but learned that my type was best suited to do administrative work (e.g. ISFJ), that might be hurtful. While I might purposely select answers on the test to get the results I want, the true test is in the real behavior I exhibit when I’m not thinking about my actions. Unless, of course, you’re in a pickle and falling back on your inferior and shadow functions—in which case people become really interesting.:) I think there is some validity to the ideas behind this stuff—they just haven't figured out a reliable way to test it. Hmm…will this actually post… -- Socionics4ever |
C15 I have read this article this is really very good for the real estate. www.jtpl.in -- real estate in mohali |
C16 Myer Briggs was first devised by the American military to quickly sort out drafted soldiers. It is based on the dubious psychiatrical premises of Carl Jung. You can always tell the purity of a stream by locating its source. The philosophy is polluted from the beginning and should be shunned by all. Every individual is unique and our diversity should be accepted, not pigeonholed. Crap pop psychology is as scientific as the Zodiac. -- Anonymous |
C17 I believe this article is truthful. -- Anonymous |
C18 Let's be honest expecting to fit exactly in your personality slot is a bit much. Your result is more of a broad generalization on how you act. It's like looking at the night sky. You see that section of the universe but miss the innumerable amount of details inside it. These personality tests are the same. It can't see the full complexity of the way you think just the general terms. Myers Briggs test is the same. It can find the general area in the personality sky your in but the exact details are missed. Personally I find Myers Briggs test to be the most accurate. In short I think you had some unrealistic expectations for the test. On the other hand some tests like color personality tests are a joke in comparison. Everyone is a red. -- Anonymous |
C19 This is honestly so intelligent and I find that some of the testd are not freated by professionals or a system but rather by an observer who has "stufked" by a fee internet searches and decides to voice their opinions. This is particularly relevant to enneagram tritypes as I could decide to create a focus group as well and say that after your main and dominant type you just go with what ever feels the most natural. I thinknthat these tests are supposed to aid us in self reflection and the psychology of how we think but ultimately they missued as everyone goes ahead sterotyping you or using limiting words that may very well not reflect the circumstances. -- Anonymous |
C20 This is honestly so intelligent and I find that some of the testd are not freated by professionals or a system but rather by an observer who has "stufked" by a fee internet searches and decides to voice their opinions. This is particularly relevant to enneagram tritypes as I could decide to create a focus group as well and say that after your main and dominant type you just go with what ever feels the most natural. I thinknthat these tests are supposed to aid us in self reflection and the psychology of how we think but ultimately they missued as everyone goes ahead sterotyping you or using limiting words that may very well not reflect the circumstances. -- Anonymous |
C21 I totally agree that personality tests for jobs are completely biased and unfair. Why? I may be 50 years old and an introvert, this does NOT mean I am going to BS my way into a corporate position or any job by lying my way in. I don't steal (nothing but a pen now and then), I don't like competitiveness, I don't BS...I just wish companies would look again at experience, not how much you like people, etc. IT IS ALL BIASED. -- Anonymous |
C22 This is honestly so intelligent and I find that some of the testd are not freated by professionals or a system but rather by an observer who has "stufked" by a fee internet searches and decides to voice their opinions. This is particularly relevant to enneagram tritypes as I could decide to create a focus group as well and say that after your main and dominant type you just go with what ever feels the most natural. I thinknthat these tests are supposed to aid us in self reflection and the psychology of how we think but ultimately they missued as everyone goes ahead sterotyping you or using limiting words that may very well not reflect the circumstances. -- Anonymous |
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