Pseudoscience in business education - the MBTI

1. PSEUDOSCIENCE
The Art of Mumbo-Jumbo

2. RATIONAL THOUGHT
◆ Western thought processes are Aristotelian
 We can not hold contradictory points of view
 Basic logic must be adhered to
 Propositions are supported by verifiable facts
◆ Techniques
 Demonstration
 Refutation
 Possibility
 Facts
 Examples
 Parallel
 Degree

3. SCIENCE
Features of Scientific Theory
◆ Empirical Observation
 Explains observed phenomena
◆ Controlled Testing
 Validates theory
◆ Dynamic
 New facts are integrated
Scientific theory is impersonal

4. PSEUDOSCIENCE
Features of Pseudoscientific Theory
◆ Non Empirical
 Phenomena are not observable
◆ Testing is impossible
 Theory can not be validated or refuted
◆ Static
 Does not integrate new facts, relies on anecdotes
Pseudoscientific theory is highly personal

5. PSEUDOSCIENCE
Some Popular Examples
◆ Acupuncture
◆ Astrology
◆ Biorhythms
◆ Extra Sensory Perception
◆ Graphology
◆ Homeopathy
◆ Hypnosis
◆ Myers Briggs Type Indicator®
◆ Neuro-Linguistic Programming
◆ Scientology

6. MBTI ®
The world’s most widely used personality test
◆ An instrument for measuring preferences
 Extroversion - Introversion
 Sensing - Intuitive
 Thinking - Feeling
 Judging - Perceiving
◆ Combinations result in 16 Types
 Denoted by 4 letters : INTJ, ESFP …
CPP, the company that sells the MBTI ® claims
« it helps you improve your work and personal
relationships, increase productivity, identify leadership
and interpersonal communication preferences »

7. CARL JUNG
The MBTI ® is based on Jung’s notion of psychological types
◆ Extroverts
 Influenced by the outer world of people, things
and activities
◆ Introverts
 Influenced by the inner world of thoughts, feelings,
fantasies & dreams
◆ 4 ways of dealing with the world
 Sensing, Intuiting, Thinking, Feeling

8. CARL JUNG
◆ Evidence for the theory of types
 Anecdotal clinical observations
 No statistics
 No controlled studies
◆ Jung’s attitude to science
Anyone who wants to know the human psyche will learn next to
nothing from experimental psychology. He would be better
advised to abandon exact science and wander with human heart
throught the world. There in the horrors of prisons, lunatic
asylums and hospitals … through the experience of passion in
every form in his own body, he would reap richer stores of
knowledge than text-books could give him, and he will know how
to doctor the sick with a real knowledge of the human soul.

9. CARL JUNG
Carl Jung made the exploration of Freud’s "inner space" his life's work.
He was knowledgeable in the symbolism of mystical traditions such as
Gnosticism, Alchemy and the Kabala.
He had a capacity for lucid dreaming and visions. In 1914, he had a vision
of a "monstrous flood" engulfing Europe. He saw people drowning and
civilization crumbling. Then, the waters turned into blood. On August 1 of
that year, World War I began. Jung felt that there had been a connection
between himself and humanity that could not be explained.
He recorded his dreams, fantasies, and visions. He found that his
experiences formed themselves into persons, beginning with a wise old
man and a little girl. The old man evolved into a sort of spiritual guru.
The girl became "anima," the feminine soul, who served as his medium of
communication with his unconscious.
A dwarf guarded the entrance to the unconscious. He was "the shadow,"
a companion for Jung's ego. Jung dreamt that he and the dwarf killed a
blond youth, called Siegfried. For Jung, this represented a warning about
the dangers of the worship of glory and heroism which would soon cause
so much sorrow all over Europe, and about the dangers of some of his
own tendencies towards hero-worship, of Sigmund Freud.

10. THE BRIGGS-MYERS
Katharine Briggs and Isabel Briggs Myers
◆ Isabel’s husband, Clarence Myers, was very
different from the rest of her family
◆ Katharine became interested in types and used
Jung’s theory to understand her son-in-law
◆ Katharine and Isabel became type-watchers and
believed Jung’s theory could be used to
 Help people understand each other
 Match personality types to vocations
 Build a peaceful world

11. ORIGIN OF THE MBTI ®
◆ Isabel learned test construction by studying
personnel forms in her local bank
◆ She built her inventories with family & friends
◆ The tests were tried out on schoolchildren
◆ Her first study was on medical students
 She was convinced she knew what traits healthcare
workers should have (perception and judgement).
 She believed she could help students choose job
specialities most suited to their gifts.

12. MBTI ® PROFILE
◆ Characteristics associated with INTJ type
 insightful, conceptual, creative
 rational, detached, critical
 likely to have a clear vision of future possibilities
 apt to enjoy complex challenges
 can organize and carry out a task
 likely to value knowledge and competence
 apt to apply high standards to themselves & others
 independent, trust own judgements more than others’
 determined, sometimes stubborn
 seen by others as reserved and hard to get to know

13. MBTI ® PROFILE
◆ If the profile doesn’t fit …
 maybe you didn’t answer the test correctly
 see the test administrator, ask for help
 change a letter to find a profile that fits you better
 sometimes your behavior departs from your type
 it doesn’t matter, we’re talking about preferences
 do you really understand what the profile says ?
 the test is not 100% accurate

14. SELLING THE MBTI ®
Getting you to buy your profile depends on
◆ Forer effect
◆ Confirmation bias
◆ Communal reinforcement
◆ Selective thinking

15. MBTI ® PROBLEMS
The world’s most widely used personality test
◆ CONSISTENCY
 Over 50% of people who retake the test get a
different result
◆ CONTINGENCY
 Result depends on your state of mind when you
take the test
◆ EITHER/OR QUESTIONS
 Personality is not binary, it’s a continuum
◆ MISUNDERSTANDING OF JUNG
 « Sticking labels on people is a childish game »

16. PSEUDOSCIENCE FACTS
1. There are 2,500 Personality Tests
2. It’s a $500m a year business
3. 2.5 million Americans take the MBTI® annually
4. 89 Fortune 500 firms use it to hire & promote