Say Goodbye to the MBTI, the Bad Fad that Won't Die.

Say Goodbye to the MBTI, the Fad that Won’t Die:

Alliteration aside, this post made me supremely happy. I’ve long been voicing my opinion that the Myers-Briggs is a worthless assessment that seduces executives without an I/O Psychology background into thinking it has some value. I did however find this amusing. For the record, I’m a prototypical ENTJ which would be cool if I thought it could be used for anything.  The MBTI is based on the work of Carl Jung the disciple of Freud who came up with the collective unconscious (basically the idea featured in the movie Avatar that there is a greater collective knowledge generated over the history of the world and stored somewhere in the universe everyone has access to). He also believed himself to be an alchemist.

Anyways, the Myers-Briggs has poor reliability and validity (10 bonus points to any of my former students who  remember what these terms mean). Reliability is the concept that if you use the same test to measure the same thing over and over again, you’re going to get approximately the same result every time. If I measure the length of your arm three times in a row, I’m probably going to get the same length three times. That is a reliable test. I’ve taken the Myers-Briggs a few times and I’ve also been identified as an INTJ and an ESTJ in addition to the ENJT I get most often. Taking the same test multiple times and getting different results indicates poor reliability. The research on the Myers-Briggs supports my anecdotal evidence. 

Validity is the extent to which the test predicts meaningful outcomes. The Myers-Biggs, unlike most personality tests, largely is NOT related to job performance, which is the criterion we are most concerned with in I/O Psychology. 

I could continue with my rant and keep berating this old and worthless test, but Adam Grant is a much smarter man and better I/O Psychologist than I, so I encourage you to read his entire article linked to at the beginning of this post. Have you taken the Myers-Briggs? If so, what category did you fall into and what are your thoughts? Leave them in the comments section below. 

What You Should Do On Your Lunch Break:

16 Things You Should Do On Your Lunch Break Today: Some I/O Psych Research:

Forbes has 16 recommendations for what you should be doing on your lunch break. Some of them are quite good. I like the suggestions of exercising, decompressing, making a plan, eating, socializing, and networking. The reason I like them is because they are supported by some research from I/O Psychology on the effects of different types of “breaks” when at work.

A 2008 study investigated the hypothesis that while breaks at work are designed to help employees recover so they can be productive and avoid burnout throughout the day, some breaks further deplete a worker's cognitive resources depending on what the employee does during their break. Essentially the premise is that you want to do low effort (restful) activities like socializing or relaxing, and avoid high effort activities (chores) like working thorough the break or running errands. The research showed that employees who relaxed during their breaks were happier, less irritable, and smiled more after the break than people who did chores. Beyond that, people who did chores during their break demonstrated an increase in negative emotions. The takeaway here is that if you actually rest during your break, you’ll have more positive emotions and be better suited to take on challenges the rest of the day, whereas doing chores during your break engenders negative emotions and further diminishes your ability to be effective for the rest of the day. Think about that as you plan your afternoon lunch and breaks, but be sure not to think too hard. 

Citation: Trougakos, J. P., Beal, D. J., Green, S. G., & Weiss, H. M. (2008). Making the break count: An episodic examination of recovery activities, emotional experiences, and positive affective displays. Academy of Management Journal, 51(1), 131-146.

How to survive a shooting at your office: Run. Hide. Fight.

How to survive an office shooting: Run. Hide. Fight.: With all the tragic acts of violence that have happened in the last 12 months, I can’t understate the importance of knowing how to respond when a violent situation erupts at the place where you spend much of your day; work. If you hear gunfire in your building or sense something dangerous your first act should be to run. Call 911 when you’re safe. If that isn’t an option, hide. If the worst happens and you’re confronted with the assailant, fight using whatever means or weapons you have available. Watch the six minute video for a quick overview of how to respond. Knowing your building’s exit routes and having a plan could save your life in the event of a terrible event like what happened today at the Navy Yard, last December at Sandy Hook Elementary,  last July in Aurora Colorado, or February 2012 at Chardon High School.