05/26/2
The Personality Game
Last week I heard a little girl complaining to her mother. “I want to be by myself. Mommy, why can’t I be by myself?” Was the child longing for solitude or independence? It brought to mind an online article I read recently. The story was about INTP, one of the 16 Myers-Briggs personality types, based on the theories of Carl Jung. INTP stands for Introverted, Intuitive, Thinking, and Perceiving. “Only 3% Of People Have This Rare, Intellectual Personality Type.” According to the online article, they are “quiet, intellectual types that like to spend time alone.”
I texted the INTP story to several friends, and Two responded. A woman who lives in the San Fernando Valley wrote, “It’s not me. But definitely a girlfriend of mine. I sent it to her’.” A man who lives in Wrightwood replied, “Interesting…I fit the profile.” It’s tempting to believe that a test that sounds so authoritative is accurate. As I understand Myers-Briggs, it is for self-analysis. However, it is tempting to tell someone, “I’ve got your number!”
Although an estimated 2-million people take the Myers-Briggs test every year, and the company has made millions of dollars, it is not without its critics. According to Vox, “But the test was developed in the 1940s based on the totally untested theories of Carl Jung and is now thoroughly disregarded by the psychology community. Even Jung warned that his personality ‘types’ were just rough tendencies he’d observed rather than strict classifications. Several analyses have shown the test is totally ineffective at predicting people’s success in various jobs. That about half of the people who take it twice get different results each time.”
“I’m not a psychologist,” two friends told me recently. I do have friends who have spent years in therapy trying to figure themselves out. On the other hand, one online site, 16personalities.com, offers a FREE test. After only ten minutes, you’ll know your personality type. Voila! A bit of a parlor game? That’s another story.
Have you ever played the personality game? Please email jcromshow@yahoo.com.2
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