Evaluating the validity of Myers-Briggs Type Indicator theory: A teaching tool and window into intuitive psychology

By Randy Stein, Alexander B. Swan. Social & Personality Psychology Compass, 2019

86 citations recorded by the source corpus.

Soc Personal Psychol Compass. 2019;e12434. https://doi.org/10.1111/spc3.12434 w Abstract Despite its immense popularity and impressive longevity, the Myers‐Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) has existed in a parallel universe to social and personality psychology. Here, we seek to increase academic awareness of this incredibly popular idea and provide a novel teaching reference for its conceptual flaws. We focus on examining the validity of the Jungian‐based theory behind MBTI that specifies that people have a “true type” delineated across four dichotomies. We find that the MBTI theory falters on rigorous theoretical criteria in that it lacks agreement with known facts and data, lacks testability, and possesses internal contradictions. We further discuss what MBTI's continued popularity says about how the general public might evaluate scientific theories.

Subfields: Applied Psychology, Experimental and Cognitive Psychology, General Decision Sciences

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/47861841d9d6ae35f2859e7c5ec15209bdc031bd