Boosting Self-Awareness: Using the MBTI Assessment With the Psychometrics 360 3 minute read Written by Psychometrics Canada Given the importance of self-awareness on individual performance, combined with the need for real and tangible feedback to necessitate this awareness, a key to any successful development initiative is to utilize tools that encourage both. By employing the self-report MBTI® assessment and the objective Psychometrics 360 instrument, a practitioner maximizes the opportunity to encourage – or elicit – more accurate self-reflection and a better understanding of an individual’s impact on the organization and others. The MBTI assessment is a powerful starting point to invite initial reflection and evaluation of an individual’s natural approach and what could be an outcome of their style. The MBTI can be thought of as a gateway to self-knowledge, and often times, an individual’s first opportunity to consider their impact on others from an internal and self-reported perspective. However, it is important to note that the preferences themselves make no actual conclusion about skill, ability or overall performance. There are no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ types, and depending on development and a host of other factors, the specific skills or actual behaviours may not necessarily be directly correlated with an individual’s preferences. This leaves an opportunity to use a tool such as the Psychometrics 360. Unlike the MBTI instrument, the 360 does not measure motivations or intents – it focuses solely on behaviour observations from people that a client interacts with in the workplace. In other words, the 360 provides the individual with an opportunity to explore the ‘what is’ of their style and its impact on the people around them. Then, behaviour based feedback from a variety of people identifies areas where a client needs to develop specific skills and capabilities. This multi-rater feedback becomes especially useful as it moderates the potential bias in personal reflection, resulting in more accurate self-awareness. MBTI Assessment Psychometrics 360 Self-report instrument Describes four innate preferences Examines preferences and their possible impact on work outcomes Avenue for exploring an individual’s general style as it relates to work 360 degree instrument (various external raters) Describes observed behaviours and competencies Avenue for exploring individual’s specific actions as they relate to expectations By using both the MBTI instrument and the Psychometrics 360 together, a coach or practitioner can explore connections between a client’s natural style and the actual behaviours they utilize in the workplace. The result is a much more comprehensive picture of the individual, and a profound increase in accurate – rather than supposed – understanding of the self. benefits of using the MBTI assessments with the Psychometrics 360: More concise and targetable action plans based around real observations. Deeper level of understanding how one’s individual style and observed competencies contribute to personal effectiveness or highlight developmental needs. Better buy-in from the client; more likely to be more receptive to some of the specific 360 feedback after exploring their inherent style in positive terms. If you would like to further explore how to specifically use the MBTI and Psychometrics 360 in your development work, click here to view our in-depth white paper, or contact one of our experts at 1-800-661-5158, or at info@psychometrics.com.
