The popular MBTI was a “fake”! The true nature of the “personality assessment boom with no scientific basis” that is polluting human relationships.
The four words “INFP (Intermediary Type)” and “ENTJ (Enthusiast Type)” appear in the profile sections of social networking sites. The “MBTI diagnosis” is currently enjoying an explosive boom, especially among young people, but the fact that this diagnosis, which can be easily enjoyed on the Internet, is actually a “fake” is not well known.
The free diagnoses that are being spread on the Internet are different from the original MBTI,” warns Dr. Atsushi Oshio, a psychologist and professor at Waseda University’s School of Letters, Arts and Sciences.
Like the “blood type personality diagnoses” of the past, the diagnostic boom has gone beyond mere entertainment and has begun to “contaminate” job hunting and human relationships. This article looks at the “truth” behind this trend from a psychological standpoint and the risks that are not funny.
Free MBTI diagnosis has no scientific basis!
The “MBTI (?) diagnosis” (*?), which is based on answering several questions, classifies people into 16 types of patterns consisting of four letters of the alphabet, such as “INFP (intermediary type),” “ENTJ (commander type),” and so on. Diagnosis” (*? (*? is an editorial note).
The “MBTI (*?) Diagnosis” (* is an edited note) has become a topic of conversation as it can provide a deep understanding of an individual’s personality, with each type having its own characteristics, such as “administrator type” and “architect type,” etc. People disclose their personalities by writing these four letters in their profiles on social networking services, and by asking their friends and lovers what type they are. In the age of social networking, this trend is spreading.
Recently, 32 types and even 64 types of diagnoses have appeared, and it is likely to continue to grow in popularity. However, ……,
The original MBTI was developed in the 1940s, The original MBTI was developed in the U.S. in the 1940s. The original MBTI was developed in the U.S. in the 1940s and established in the ’50s and ’60s. It is a kind of tool for understanding personality, and is one of the most commonly used tools for self-understanding, especially in corporate training programs.
It is completely different from the MBTI-based diagnoses that are currently popular in Japan. Therefore, it is better to think that what is easily available on the Internet is not the MBTI, but something else entirely,” said Professor Koshio.
The original MBTI is a registered trademark, and the Japan MBTI Association holds the trademark rights in Japan. According to the association’s website and other sources, the MBTI is based on an examination, with feedback from experts, and then training to promote self-understanding and understanding of others.
On the other hand, those in vogue only disclose their own diagnostic results. Although not strictly speaking an MBTI, many aspects of the MBTI, such as alphabetical typing, are clearly modeled after the MBTI, and it is natural that people without expertise in the field would be misled by them.
The MBTI is a very popular method of training people to be able to use the MBTI,” said Mr. Kato, “and I think that the person who has suffered the most from this boom in Japan is the Japan MBTI Association. I think the biggest victim of this boom in Japan is the Japan MBTI Association, because it had been working steadily for about a quarter of a century since around 1900.
However, except for the copyright issue, if you say, “It’s entertainment, so it’s fine,” or “It’s an individual’s freedom,” that’s all there is to it. It is up to the individual to enjoy this diagnosis, and I do not deny that, but I still believe that there is a point that we should be concerned about. However, I still believe that there is a point to be concerned about, and that is that this diagnosis often leads to assumptions and labeling of individuals, and even to individuals being hurt by the results.
The results of the diagnostic results lead to “discrimination and division” that is not funny.
Looking back, the “blood type personality test” is exactly like this: “Type A people are nervous,” “Type B people are selfish,” etc., and until recently, people have tried to judge a person’s character and personality by blood type.
Blood type personality diagnosis appeared in the 1970s and has been said less and less in recent years. It took about 50 years before it went downhill. This trend suggests that blood types have just been replaced by MBTI(?). I am of the view that the blood group has simply been replaced by the MBTI (?).
Professor Koshio is concerned that people may judge that INTPs and ENFJs are incompatible, or that they may assume the personality of ESFJs because they are such people, and that some people may be hurt by this.
In fact, there are many posts on the Internet that say “E is a positive person and I is a negative person” and the way people perceive such impressions. The author warns that preconceptions based on these types may lead to discrimination, such as rejection or exclusion of others.
Some people with type B say, ‘I’ve never been told very well about myself because of my type B (due to the blood type personality test).’
There is no need to go through life suffering from something that has no basis in reality, but these diagnoses and predictions tend to create scapegoats, such as “superior” or “inferior. They also contribute to the prevalence of expressions of superiority and inferiority.
As a psychologist, I feel it is important to mention that this in turn becomes a premise for discrimination, exclusion, and war.
Risks that cannot be dismissed as “entertainment.
The influence of preconceptions that people have is so great that it takes a great deal of time to get close to the true image of a person, which differs from their first impression.
The image of a person, which is originally obtained through conversation and other forms of communication, can be separated by 16 patterns such as INFPs and ENTJs, thereby hindering the original communication.
In the recruitment of students for clubs, as well as in job hunting and corporate information sessions, students are told, “Our MBTI ratio is about this much. This is fine for entertainment purposes, but we do not recommend that you put too much trust in this information when it comes to job hunting, love, marriage, friendships, and other important aspects of life.
We are also concerned about the fact that this diagnosis is commercial, that it is an information product, and that people are unaware of how the data collected will be used.
The MBTI-like diagnosis has already replaced the blood type personality test as the leading personality test in Japan. Of course, many people enjoy it as entertainment without being conscious of discrimination or exclusion.
However, if it becomes even more common than it is now and is used in various aspects of life, such as employment and marriage, it could lead to discrimination and exclusion, as Professor Koshio fears. I would like to be cautious about its use so that the labeling that many people have suffered from blood type personality tests will not be repeated, but I wonder if that is an unfounded fear by an INFP (intermediary type) reporter.
Atsushi Oshio was born in 1972. Graduated from Nagoya University, Faculty of Education, and completed the first and second terms of the doctoral program in educational research at the same university. D. in Educational Psychology. After working as a lecturer, assistant professor, and associate professor at the Faculty of Humanities, Chubu University, he became an associate professor at the Faculty of Letters, Arts and Sciences, Waseda University in April 2012, and a professor in April 2002. He specializes in developmental psychology and personality psychology.
Interview and text by： Diceke Takahashi