Foreword

The questions in the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator® (MBTITM) are not important in themselves, but they do indicate basic preferences that have far-reaching effects. There is no right or wrong to these preferences. They simply produce different kinds of people who are interested in different things, are drawn to different fieldš, and often find it hard to understand each other.
    The MBTI is primarily concerned with the valuable differences in people that result from where they like to focus their attention, the way they like to take in information, the way they like to decide, and the kind of lifestyle they adopt.
    People with preferences opposite to yours tend to be opposite to you in many ways. They are likely to be weak where you are strong, and strong where you are weak. Each type has its own set of inherent strengths.

Introduction and Definitions

The Idea of Opposite Preferences

The MBTI, based on Jung's theory of psychological types, reports your preferences on four scales. Each scale represents two opposite preferences. To understand what is meant by preference, it is sométimes helpful to use the analogy of right- or lefthandedness.
    You can demonstrate this to yourself right now by simply writing your name twice on a piece of paper. First write with your dominant, or favorite hand, and then use your non-dominant hand. Most people who try this immediately experience a number of difterences. When using their preferred hand, most people dorí t even think about how to write their name. They just do it. It comes naturally However, when writing with your non-preferred hand you may have experienced some of the following: it took longer; you had to consciously think about it; it was frustrating; you had to "work" at it. In spite of all this, there is another point about this exercise that should not be overlooked: most people can write with both hands, although perhaps not equally well. All of us use both hands all of the time, but we tend to prefer one over the other.
    It's the same with your preferences: for each of the four scales, all of us use both prefererices at different times, but not both at once and not, in most cases, with equal confidence. So, when asked to choose, most people can and do indicate a preference.

Definitions Of Preferences

Where do you prefer to focus your attention? The EI scale

This scale describes two opposite preferences for where you like to focus your attention: on the outer or inner world.
 
E Extraversion
I Introversion
People who prefer extraversion tend to focus on the outer world of people and the external environment. When you are extraverting, you are energized by what goes on in the outer world, and this is where you tend to direct your own eriergy Extraverts usually prefer to communicate more by talking than by writing. They need to experience the world in order to understand it and thus tend to like action. People who prefer introversion focus more on their own inner world. When you are introverting, you are energized by what goes on in your inner world, and this is where you tend to direct your own energy. Introverts tend to be more interested and comfortable when their work requires a good deal of their activity to take place quietly inside their heads. They like to understand the world before experiencing it, and so often think about what they are doing before acting.

How do you acquire information? The SN scale

This scale descrihes opposite ways that you perceive or acquire information-how you go about finding out about things.
 
S Sensing
N Intuition
One way to "find out" is to use your sensing function. Your eyes, ears, and other senses tell you what is actually there and actually happening, both inside and outside of yourself. Sensing is especially useful for appreciating the realities of a situation. Sensing types tend to accept and work with what is "given" in the here-and-now, and thus become realistic and practical. They are good at remembering and working with a great number of facts. The other way to find out is through intuition, which shows you the meanings, relationships, and possibilities that go beyond the information from your senses. Intuition looks at the big picture and tries to grasp the essential patterns. If you like intuition, you grow expert at seeing new possibilities and new ways of doing things. Intuitive types value imagination and inspirations.

How do you make decisions? The TF scale

Once you have acquired information through one of the perceiving functions, you must do something with that information. Information is used to reach conclusions, make decisions, or form opinions. This scale describes opposite ways of making decisions or judgments about something.
 
T Thinking
F Feeling
One way to decide is through your thinking. Thinking predicts the logical consequences of any particular choice or action. When you use thinking you decide objectively, on the basis of cause and effect, and make decisions by analyzing and weighing the evidence, even including the unpleasant facts. People with a preference for thinking seek an objective standard of truth. They are frequently good at analyzing what is wrong with something. The other way to decide is through your feeling. Feeling considers what is important to you or to other people (without requiring that it be logical), and decides on the basis of person-centered values. When making a decision for yourself, you ask how much you care, or how much personal investment you have, for each of the alternatives. Those with a preference for feeling like dealing with people and tend to become sympathetic, appreciative, and tactful. (It is important to understand that the word "feeling;' when used here, means making decisions based on values; it does not refer to your feelings or emotions.)

How do you orient toward the outer world? The JP scale

The final scale describes the lifestyle you adopt in dealing with the outer world or how you orient yourself in relation to it. The opposites here refer back to the previous two scales. In other words, you either take primarily a judging attitude (thinking or feeling) or a perceptive attitude (sensing or intuirion) toward the world.
 
J Judgment
P Perception
Those who take a judging attitude (either thinking or feeling) tend to live in a planned, orderly way, wanting to regulate life and control it. When you use your judging function, you like to make decisions, come to closure, and then carry on. People with a preference for judging prefer to be structured and organized and want things settled. (It is important to understand that "judging" as used here does not mean judgmental; any of the types can be judgmental). Those who prefer a perceptive process when dealing with the outer world (either sensing or intuition) like to live in a flexible, spontaneous way. When using your perception, vou are gathering information and keeping your options open. People with a preference for perceiving seek to understand life rather than control it. They prefer to stay open to experience, enjoying and trusting their ability to adapt to the moment.

What Is Type?

Now you know the eight possible preferences-two opposites for each of the four scales-measured by the MBTI. Your "type" is the combination and interaction of the four preferences that you chose when you completed the MBTI. If we let each preference be represented by its letter, then your type can be shown in shorthand by a four-letter code. For example, ISTJ means an introvert (I) who likes to process information with sensing (S), who prefers to use thinking (T) to make decisions, and who mainly takes a judging (J) attitude toward the outer world. A person with opposite preferences on all four scales would be an ENFP This means an extravert (E) who prefers intuition (N) for perceiving, feeling (F) for making decisions, and who takes a perceptive attitude (P) toward the outer world. '

What Do the Scores Mean?

There is a score associated with each letter of your type. These scores show how consistently you chose one preference over its opposite-how much you voted for one side versus the other. High scores generally mean a clear preference. There is nothing wrong with having a low score, however. In fact low scores are quite common, especially in younger people. It probably just means that for some reason your preference is not clear. It is important to understand that the scores do not show how developed that preference is, or how well you use that preference.

Is This Really Me?

Only you know your true preferences and, therefore, only you can say what type you are: By answering the questions on the MBTI, you had the opportunity to indicate your preferences. But the Indicator is not perfect; no psychological instrument is. So it is up to you to decide whether your type, as reported by the MBTI, is accurate.
    Most people agree with how the Indicator has reported their preferences. If the description of your reported type makes you feel comfortably understood; your four letters are probably right. If it does not fit you, one or more of the letters may be wrong. There are a number of reasons why this may be so: sometimes people are not sure what théy prefer; or they disown their real preference for fear that they ought to prefer the opposite; or they simply do not have a clear preference; or their answers were affected by chance factors. If your reported type does
not seem right to you, please take this opportunity to find a description that fits you better.
    The following pages provide a number of ways for you to explore your preferences further and find the type that you are most comfortable with. One way to do this is to look for more information about the individual preferences, or about the combinations of two preferences. You can do this by checking the explanations of the separate preferences listed above, or examining page _____________27, which shows the effects of the combinations of perception and judgment. You could also read page ____________29, where the effects of each preference in work situations are presented. Once you have found a set of preferences that seems to fit you, read the full description for that type. These are found on pages _____________10 to 25.
    You could also begin by reading the full page descriptions. If you do, you may want to start with the descriptions for the types that differ from your reported type by only a letter or two.
    Even after further exploration, you may still find #hat no one description seems to fit you best. That's fine; you may not have a clear preference at this time, so just narrow it down as much as possible. Keep in mind that there are many differences among people that are not explained by type, and that there are also individual differences within each type.

What Are My Favorite Preferences? Dominant and Auxiliary

Look at the two middle letters of your type. Of these two functions or processes (sensing, intuition, thinking, or feeling) which you indicated you prefer, one will be your "favorite" process. In type language this is called your "dominant" function. The other letter in the middle is called your "auxiliary" function. You need both of these to deal effectively with the world. One takes the lead, the other helps out. If your dominant is oné of the judging functions (thinking or feeling), then your auxiliary supplies perception: On the other hand, if your favorite is a perceptive process (sensing or intuition), then your auxiliary will be one of the judging functions. So you can see that your dominant and auxiliary functions balance and complement each other-one is used to supply you with information, and the other to make decisions based on that information. Because some of your greatest strengths come from your two favorite functions, it is important that you trust and develop them.
    The dominant and auxiliary functions are used differently by extraverts and introverts. With extraverts, the favorite (or dominant) process is used in the outer world, while the auxiliary function is used in their inner world. The opposite is true for introverts-they use their dominant function in their inner world and their auxiliary process to deal with the outer world. Because they prefer to use their dominant function in their inner wórld, we do not always recognize or appreciate the introvert's gifts until we get to know them better. You can see the dominant and auxiliary functions for each type by looking at the headings of the type descriptions that follow. For example, the first description is headed "ESTJ-Extraverted Thinking with Sensing." This is shorthand for saying that the ESTJ's favorite process is thinking, which they use in the outer, or extraverted world, and their second favorite, or auxiliary process, is sensing. For an INFP, the heading is "Introverted Feeling with Intuition." This indicates that IIslFPs have feeling as their dominant function, and it is used mainly in their inner, or introverted world. This is why in the INFP's description, you tind the sentence "They keep their warm side inside, like a fur-lined coat." Their auxiliary function is intuition, which they use in the extraverted, or outer world.
    Although everyone has a favorite (or dominant) function, it is important to keep in mind that all the other functions or processes are also available. For some purposes, in fact, your less-liked kinds of perception and judgment will serve you better-if you remember (and take the trouble) to use them. Your third favorite process is called tlie "tertiary" func= tion and the last in line is called the "least-preferred" function. The table below shows the dominant, auxiliary, tertiary, and least-preferred functions for each of the sixteen types.
    One way to learn more about the dominant and auxiliary functions is to pay close attention to the order of type descriptions in the following section. Descriptions of people with the same dominant functions but with different auxiliary functions have been placed on facing pages. You will see that these descriptions are very similar, as they should be, since people of these types share three of the four preferences in common. But you will also see that the auxiliary does make a difference.
© 1962 Isabel Briggs Myers
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