It’s Time to Rethink Personality Tests
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Photo Credit: Michael George Haddad
Whether you love the traditional personality tests like Meyers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) or have felt boxed in by them, you might be interested – as we were – in a recent take from Adam Grant, organizational psychologist & #1 NYT bestselling author, that it is time to reevaluate their efficacy. To learn why – and which tests are winning favor – read on!
In his piece MBTI, If You Want Me Back, You Need to Change Too, Grant challenges the status quo and suggests that tests like the Meyers-Briggs served an important purpose over the years, but that as psychology has evolved, the test has not kept up and has become outdated, even going so far as saying it is not scientifically-based and limiting.
We’re Listening
In the science of personality, apparently experts have known for years that the well-known tests out there are often inaccurate and inconsistent but they are so popular, especially with employers, that everyone just keeps using them.
Many of us walk around thinking our whole identity is assigned to an acronym, number, or color based on a quick quiz we took. We judge ourselves and each other based on this information and it’s often helpful but possibly also problematic.
Grant has often written about the Big Five, a system that organizes personality around five broad clusters of traits: extroversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism and openness to experience. He then took it to the next level by helping to create a new test called PrinciplesYou in 2021. PrinciplesYou combines insights from the Big Five personality framework and other theories, with the goal of helping you understand yourself and others better on 17 traits.
So Where Do We Go From Here?
At KMG we’ve always prided ourselves in being thinkers and feelers with open minds. We bring our full selves to the job, are always expanding our horizons, pushing boundaries and striving for continuous improvement. We embrace innovation and are excited for the insight that the latest science of personality leads us in learning more about ourselves and the culture that drives digital marketing!
Curious as to our favorite “personality test”?
Here at Team KMG we’re big fans of the Predictive Index, a personality assessment that we have found to be very illuminating and helpful as we navigate working with others and getting to know ourselves better. Stregthfinders is also a wonderful, accessible tool to better understand ourselves and our peers and how we can work better together and where we might encounter areas of friction.
What tools does your organization use? Are you rethinking MBTI?
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