A Psychometric Instrument Better than Myers Briggs.

The test doesn't claim to be a "scientific device". It doesn't claim it will tell you something you don't already know about yourself.

Why is everyone demanding so much from a questionnaire that is nothing more than a self-help tool?

Some people will learn something about themselves from taking the MBTI, some might not. What's the big deal? If this questionnaire wasn't useful to some people, it wouldn't still be around after 68 years. If people want to spend their money on this sort of thing, that's their choice. I can't see where they are being misled in any way.

Sorry for the ad hominem, but you must be young, idealistic, and naive to say such a thing. In the mid-1800s, when science finally exposed medical bleeding as the quackery it mostly was, doctors had been considering it a cure-all for over 2000 years---and it wasn't.

I am hardly young, idealistic, or naive.

The MBTI isn't promoted as a cure, a scientific instrument, a measure of ability, or as a predictor of behavior. It claims merely to indicate personal preferences along several Type dimensions. And the MBTI does do that, it does indicate personal preferences. It may not do this with complete accuracy, or unfailing consistency, but it does indicate personal preferences. The questionnaire is not bogus.

The fact that the MBTI was developed, and continues to be used, as a self help tool, should affect one's expectations about this instrument. It is merely a tool to provide an individual with some additional information about themselves, so they might have some idea of the situations in which they might feel the most comfortable. For some people this might be useful info when considering career options.

I fail to see any harm in people taking the MBTI, or paying to take it. I would imagine that those who want to take it might be floundering about their career options and are seeking some self knowledge to help them weigh various choices. At the very least, the MBTI might help them try to focus on their preferences. At worst, the info gained from the MBTI might not be useful. The same might be true of most self help books.

I'm pretty sure it's promoted as something more than cold reading. By contrast, I'm not sure at all it can live up to any standard higher than that.

Basically, it is promoted as a self help tool. The assumption is that increased self knowledge, and some knowledge of personality types, will help one understand oneself and others better. It gives people a conceptual framework (based on Jungian personality theory) to help them understand their preferences on various dimensions.

http://www.myersbriggs.org/

It is not guaranteeing increased self knowledge, or, in fact, guaranteeing anything. They are basically asserting that information gained through the use of the MBTI can be useful. That's really a very modest claim.

That's why I don't understand what all the fuss is about in this thread. The MBTI really is in a class with a self help book. It is not a psychometric test in a league with instruments like the Wechsler scales of intelligence, or even the MMPI (Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory), it is merely a self help tool. Viewed in that light, it is not objectionable, bogus, or essentially deceptive or misleading.

Er... Why would that be the case?

Take the MBTI and give honest answers = know your MBTI personality type.
Flip a coin four time = random output that may match your actual MBTI personality type, or may not.

If I generated four random numbers between 20 and 40, it might look like my tire pressure, and might actually match my tire pressure, but I'm not going to use it as a substitute for actually measuring my tire pressure.

Peoples personalitys are very complex and emergent, ever changing (although they could possibly stay simular for a lifetime). To measure this and put it into a distinct catagory, I dont know if this is scientificaly possible. People should know this, it should be common knoweldge that these personality tests should not be taken seriously. I cant believe people are charging masses of money for these things etc.
However this does by no means mean there is no worth in them. I mean if you read all the cognitive functions, and then complete about 10 tests (simutanously of course, otherwise people will start to understand the questions and will be able to get any result they want out of it, and will go for the one they like the most (personality type they like the most (not nessisary there own), although this probably happens on a question by question bases anyway : which is fine )). If they read detailed discribtions of all of the types. One of a few things happen. The person might feel like a mix of loads of the personality types, which is fine and im shure you can be hybrids of them . They dont feel like any of them/ or feel like all of them and think "this is bullshit". Ok thats cool, forget about it. Then there is people like me, who read all the types, and then find one and go "holy ****" because they have never seen the exact way they think layed out in writing, problems they have and how to deal with them, from that types point of view, all the stuff they were always confused about etc.

I dont know how to say this, I dont like putting myself or other people in boxes, but thats not what mbti is soposed to be, its soposed to be a group of personality functions, and your predominace for certain aspects of them, charted out. Its not set in stone (of course people get different results depending on different life stages, it would obviously be increadbly inaccurate if this did not happen).I am more happy, understand people more, and am more confident, and people find less flaws in me after this.

The ******* trouble is when people think of it as gospel and lump people into ******* boxes and make choices based on that.When there like oh im a ******* XXXX so I cant do that ****, am not built that way in the brain MBTI like totaly told me, I did like this big test online and all!!!!11111 most of the tests are so **** too. Dont go for anything thats not long and dosent have a scale of agree dont agree on it so if you feel torn by the answers you can express that.Dont use it too pick a job and dont ******* test potential partners to see if they match yout type, WTF.seriously.

Anyway, theres not much I can do about it, and other people can do/ beleive what they want.But dont be so natzi with the whole scientific argument, I mean the end point of rationality is to realize that rationality has its limits, and is irrationaly assumed to be the silver bullet (although it often is) in every situation.

Anyway thats just my two cents, musings etc, I dont know whats right and wrong for other people.