Monthly Archives: April 2008

Myers-Briggs Personality Type and Decision-Making

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Within the framework of Carl Jung’s personality type paradigm the thinking (T) / feeling (F) preference dichotomy has the most significant influence on the decision making process.   A preference for the thinking(T) function constitutes an objective impersonal approach to decision making  while a preference for the feeling (F) function constitutes a subjective values driven approach.            The sensing (S)  / intuition (N)  preference  dichotomy is the second factor that comes into play in the decision making process . Individuals with a preference for sensing (S) focus on  past experience and  tangible / concrete criteria when confronted with decision making and problem solving while those with a preference for  intuition (N) focus on future possibilities and broad , general issues .Personalities types with preference for both sensing (S) and  thinking (T) …STs focus on past experience, and objective,  tangible/ concrete data . The personality  types included in this group include ISTJ , ESTJ , ISTP and ESTP . Personality types with a preference for both  sensing (S) and feeling (F)….SFs focus on past experience and subjective tangible/ concrete data . The personality types included in this group include ISFJ, ESFJ , ISFP and ESFP. Personality types with a preference for intuition (N)  and thinking (T) ….NTs utilize objective criteria while focusing on  future directed broad  concepts and possibilities  .  These personalities types include INTJ , ENTJ , INTP , and ENTP. Personality types with a preference intuition (N) and feeling (F) …..NFs  utilize  subjective criteria and focus on future directed broad concepts and possiblilities .These types include INFJ , ENFJ, INFP and ENFP.  

The third preference set that is used in the decision making process is the perceiving (P) / judging(J)  dichotomy.  Individuals with a preference for the perceiving  (P)  attitude want to continue to take in information and defer decision making in an effort to acquire additional information . While those with a preference for judging (J) want to take in data and come to closure as quickly as possible .  Individuals with a preference for judging (J) are more at ease once a decision has been made.

 Personality Types who use objective ,concrete/  tangible criteria , strive for closure and come to decisions quickly include ISTJ and ESTJ.  Personality types who use objective , concrete/ tangible criteria and defer decision-making  include ISTP and ESTP. Personality types who use subjective , tangible/ concrete data and are comfortable with closure include ISFJ and ESFJ .  Types who use subjective  tangible / concrete data and are not comfortable with closure include ISFP and ESFP.  

Personality types who utilize objective criteria while focusing on future directed broad concepts and possibilities , and come to decisions quickly include INTJ and ENTJ .        

 Types who utilize  subjective criteria while focusing  on future directed broad concepts and possiblilities , use subjective and defer decision-making to continue to take-in additional information  include INFP and ENFP.

There appears to be no direct correlation between the extraversion (E)  /  introversion (I)  preference  dichotomy with regard to problem solving and decision making process.

 

  

Effects of Conflict in the Workplace

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Conflict is an inevitable normal part of life that occurs when the things individuals care about appear incompatible. Photo of two employees having a discussion. Nonetheless, the effect of poorly managed conflict can take an enormous economic and emotional toll upon an organization and it’s members.

Undesirable effects include:

  • Unproductive use of valuable time. Studies indicate that managers spend between twenty-five and forty percent of their time dealing with employee conflict.
  • High levels of employee turnover. Research conducted in the late 1990s confirms that a significant number of employees leave jobs as a result of unresolved conflict.
  • Increased absenteeism and inflated healthcare cost. Stress is recognized as an unhealthy by product of unmanaged conflict. The Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine reports approximately 50% higher incidents of absenteeism in work environments which are perceived as highly stressful due to conflict—stress as the cause of absenteeism has increased by 316% between 1995 and 1999.
  • Increased legal fees. A 2005 Fulbright & Jaworski survey on litigation trends in the U.S. concluded that nearly 9 out of 10 American companies are involved in some type of litigation.

Transforming the method in which conflict is handled in an organizational setting to incorporate Carl Jung’s theory of psychological type theory contributes to an organizational cultural conducive to a collaborative process and reduces the negative effectives of poorly managed conflict.

There are two principal assumptions underlying the use of Jung’s theory of personality type with regard to conflict management and resolution:

  • The first assumption is knowledge of individual differences will help identify the unique abilities that individuals contribute toward the goal of task accomplishment. Type theory expresses the view that each of the sixteen personality types has a unique set of strengths or resources that are derived from the specific way in which the particular type processes information and makes decisions.
  • The second assumption is knowledge of individual differences when attributed to differences in personality type can help reduce conflict by redirecting potential sources of misunderstanding.

Through knowledge and understanding of psychological type and type preferences when conflict does occur it can be diagnosed and attributed to naturally occurring type differences. Within the context of type theory blaming and other negative elements of conflict can be managed.

Paladin Associates offers the Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument®. The TKI® is a self-report questionnaire designed to measure your tendencies in dealing with interpersonal conflict. It describes five different conflict-handling modes and helps you identify which of those modes you use most often by helping you become more aware of the choices you and others are making in conflict situations.

→ Visit PaladinExec.com to take the TKI®.