Understanding Individual
Differences
Myers-Briggs Debrief
Understanding Individual Differences
Exercise Summary
1. How groups were formed for this exercise
 Using 2 dimensions of cognitive style
 Surveys you took were mini-version of real test
 Groups were not really cognitively homogenous
2. Questions:
 How did it feel to be part of a homogenous group?
 Could you sense that there was cognitive similarity?
Understanding Individual Differences
Exercise Summary
3. Outcomes:
 Cognitive diversity can lead to process loss
and inefficiency or can lead to efficiency and
teamwork.
4. Goal of this exercise:
 To minimize process loss by grouping people
with common personality types.
Understanding Individual Differences
Exercise Summary
5. How to use this at work:
 If two dimensions have predictive value, we can
make predictions about how others will behave.
 If we understand where individuals fit on these two
dimensions, it may lead to clearer communications
and better outcomes.
 We can create norms of interaction that respect
differences
Understanding Individual Differences
The Two Dimensions Used in the Exercise
 ST: Problem focus: set up leadership and formal
structure; work fast; define solutions not processes;
concentrate on routines and procedures; Task
oriented, look for cost/benefit.
 SF: People focus, hierarchical but open to
unstructured situations, concerned about human
qualities of people doing work as individuals,
interest in maintaining good interpersonal and social
relations a primary focus, focus on facts; how to
handle problems with empathy.
Understanding Individual Differences
The Two Dimensions Used in the Exercise
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NT: Theoretical orientation, comfortable with
complex situations, concentrate of defining
problems, goals, analytical in the abstract; often
create complicated procedures, using a messy
process with little consensus.
NF: Creative process, guided by insights and
imagination emphasizing decentralized, humanistic
organizations; Moral concerns with a “people
orientation”, less concerned with structure.
Comfortable with ambiguity.
Understanding Individual Differences
How we gather information:
 Sensing (S) – getting the facts, good at details,
comfortable with standard solutions to problem
solving, working with tested ideas
 Intuition (N) – developing data through insight and
imagination, get bored with routine, see the
possibilities, less concerned with facts, seek
innovation, see the big picture
Understanding Individual Differences
How we make decisions:
 Thinking (T) – analytical, look for
cost/benefit/ focus on analysis/prefer clarity,
task oriented
 Feeling (F) – personal convictions or beliefs,
can become committed to personal views,
nostalgic, traditional, principles oriented
Understanding Individual Differences
How we choose priorities:
 Perceiving (P) – oriented towards generating
data, can procrastinate, open minded and
curious, comfortable with ambiguity
 Judging (J) – oriented towards decision
making, clarity, order, dislike ambiguity,
decisions are important not information
gathering
Understanding Individual Differences
How we establish relationships:
 Extravert (E) – requires variety and stimulation,
become bored easily, sociable, look for new
situations, often viewed as influential, not easily
organized, like meetings
 Introvert (I) – Think things through before
communicating, harder to get to know,
communication is more of a strain, few tasks at one
time, few interruptions, others around the introvert
often feel left in the dark
Understanding Individual Differences
Interpretation of Individual Scores
 Consider how cognitive differences affect organizational
situations
 Four or more points viewed as a significant preference, less
than four points means no clear preference on that dimension
 Does your score feel right?
 You can probably think of a situation where your behavior
was inconsistent with your Myers-Briggs score
 No right or wrong answers, your results represent a lifetime
of experience
 According to the theory, we all have the ability and potential
to develop both sides the personality dimension
Understanding Individual Differences
Closing Thoughts
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There are differences based on country, culture, and experience
Age and education influence personality
Risk of organizational homogeneity
Seek balance in your own personality, balance is the key to effectiveness
and this ability resides within all of us
To derive the best solution seek cognitive diversity, groups grasped only a
part of the problem, best solution was a combination of ideas
Psychological testing can deepen self-knowledge, and improve teamwork
but can be misused in promotion and hiring decisions