The TypeFinder® Personality Test

Personality typing is a way of categorizing people according to their tendencies to think and act in particular ways. The most popular system of personality typing was developed by Isabel Briggs Myers and her mother, Katharine Briggs, in the 1960's. Myers and Briggs proposed using four key dichotomies to differentiate people: Introversion vs. Extraversion, Sensing vs. Intuition, Thinking vs. Feeling, and Judging vs. Perceiving.

Myers and Briggs built on the theories of psychiatrist Dr. Carl Jung, developing one of the world's most popular personality assessments, the Myers Briggs Type Indicator® (MBTI®). Although the MBTI® assessment is often considered the "official" personality type test, newer assessments have built and expanded on the theory, including the highly accurate and validated TypeFinder® assessment published by Truity.

Used widely for decades in academic and corporate settings, the 16 personalities system helps people discover their own strengths and gain a better understanding of how people are different. Myers and Briggs' theory of personality types tells us that seemingly random variations in people’s behavior are actually quite predictable, as they are due to basic differences in the ways individuals approach key functions of thought, behavior and interaction.

MBTI® stands for Myers Briggs Type Indicator®, a personality assessment developed by mother-daughter team Katharine Briggs and Isabel Myers, and based on the work of psychiatrist Dr. Carl Jung. The MBTI assessment measures four personality dimensions and describes people in terms of a four-letter code, or personality type, such as INFJ or ESTP. The MBTI assessment is published by the Myers-Briggs Company, in both paper and online formats.

The MBTI® assessment is often considered the most well-known and popular personality test in the world, and is used in corporations and organizations, as well as schools and clinical settings. It can be helpful in a wide range of applications. In the workplace, it is used to highlight individual differences so that employees can be better aware of their strengths and weaknesses and more conscious of different communication and conflict styles. For individuals, it can be used to identify areas of natural talent in order to pick an appropriate career, or simply for general self-exploration and growth. Whatever the setting, Myers and Briggs intended their creation to help people understand themselves better so that they could make choices that suited their personalities, and so that they could appreciate the unique gifts of others.

The MBTI® assessment has been criticized for its validity, specifically compared to the more robust Big Five model, and it is rarely used in academic research. Much criticism is based on the MBTI model's use of a type-based system, which requires boxing people into rigid categories, rather than describing their individual traits on a more fluid spectrum. While a type-based model does tend to be less precise, it has the advantage of being easier to learn and apply in everyday life. The MBTI system has likely endured—in spite of these criticisms—thanks to this approachability and ease of use.

The MBTI® assessment is often deemed the "official" personality type test, as it is the instrument created by Myers and Briggs themselves. However, since Myers and Briggs developed their theory in the 1960's, many other tests and quizzes have been created based on their ideas. Some of these have been created by hobbyists with little training and should be considered "just for fun." Other assessments have been developed to professional standards and can be considered comparably reliable and valid, such as the TypeFinder® published by Truity.

Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, Myers-Briggs, and MBTI are registered trademarks of The Myers & Briggs Foundation in the United States and other countries. Truity has no affiliation with the organizations publishing or holding rights to the MBTI® assessment.

Myers and Briggs' theory of personality type is based on classifying individual differences into four personality dichotomies. These dichotomies describe how our energy level is affected by our environment, how we take in information, how we make decisions, and how we organize our world. Your personality type is made up of your preferences in each of these four areas, with sixteen possible types. Each type is represented by four letters, one letter for each preference:

Introversion vs. Extraversion

The Introversion/Extraversion dimension describes how a person manages their energy.

• Introverts are energized by spending quiet time alone or with a small group. They tend to be more reserved and thoughtful.
• Extraverts are energized by spending time with people and in busy, active surroundings. They tend to be more expressive and outspoken.

Sensing vs. Intuition

The Sensing/Intuition dimension describes how an individual processes information.

• Sensors focus on their five senses and are interested in information they can directly see, hear, feel, and so on. They tend to be hands-on learners and are often described as "practical."
• Intuitives focus on a more abstract level of thinking; they are more interested in theories, patterns, and explanations. They are often more concerned with the future than the present and are often described as "creative."

Thinking vs. Feeling

The Thinking/Feeling dimension describes how people make decisions.

• Thinkers tend to make decisions with their heads; they are interested in finding the most logical, reasonable choice.
• Feelers tend to make decisions with their hearts; they are interested in how a decision will affect people, and whether it fits in with their values.

Judging vs. Perceiving

The Judging/Perceiving dimension describes how people approach structure in their lives.

• Judgers appreciate structure and order; they like things planned, and dislike last-minute changes.
• Perceivers appreciate flexibility and spontaneity; they like to leave things open so they can change their minds.

Once you have decided which style you prefer on each of the four dichotomies, you use these four preferences to create a four letter code which sums up your personality type. For example, someone with a preference for Introversion, Intuition, Feeling and Judging would have the code “INFJ" (an Intuition preference is signified with an N to avoid confusion with Introversion). There are 16 possible combinations, or personality types.

The Truity TypeFinder® test measures your preferences on Myers and Briggs' four dimensions of personality type, as well as 23 more detailed facets of type to personalize your results.

Within Myers and Briggs' personality theory, your personality type code provides a shorthand for understanding the most important parts of your personality, and what makes you the way you are. It gives you a cohesive system for seeing how you differ from others in fundamental ways, and how to understand what makes you, you.

Myers and Briggs created in-depth profiles of each of the 16 personality types, exploring how the four personality preferences manifested in real life as well as how the preferences combined to create unique patterns of thought and behavior. In her book Gifts Differing, Isabel Briggs Myers stressed that each personality type was more than the sum of its parts, and her descriptions of each type were intended to explain how all four of the personality preferences came together to interact, synergize, and form a cohesive type.

This approach gives Myers and Briggs' personality type descriptions the advantage of showing us how to conceptualize various combinations of personality traits, rather than simply understanding each trait in isolation. For instance, Myers' work helps us to grasp the holistic differences between someone who is extraverted, kind and compassionate, and a similarly extraverted person who is more logical and emotionally detached.

Personality type has been shown to correlate with many major aspects of life, from parenting styles to career choice to income level. Certain types are more likely to start businesses, have high incomes, or even have large families. While your personality type is not your destiny, understanding your type can provide a fascinating insight into your path at work and at home—and help you to make the choices that are right for you.