Melanie Rumsey, a representative of the West Chester University Women’s Center, summed up individuals’ personality traits using the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) on Thursday April 28, 2006, in Lawrence Hall at 4:30 p.m.Rumsey used four predetermined personality indicators to type cast individuals in attendance. By analyzing and choosing which type participate, they can then reference a description of their personality and also research common career paths of their personality type. Rumsey had a short lecture period where she introduced each type and let participants write down which type they associated most with, after all four were revealed, participants got to look in the manual and see how close their description was to their personality. Also for any participants interested a second manual with common career choices of the personality type were passed around.
The first type choice was extraversion vs. introversion; directly related to how a person feels they direct their energy. When a person gravitates toward extraversion they are oriented to the outer world, focused on people and things, very active and they scan the environment for forms of stimulation. Where an introversion type would be oriented to the inner world, focused on their ideas and inner impressions and consider deeply before acting.
The second is sensing perception vs. intuitive perception; which is related to the way a person takes in information. For example, someone who has a sensing perception would use all five senses to perceive objects. Someone with an intuitive perception would perceive things by memory and with associations. The third type-cast is thinking judgment vs. feeling judgment. Where a thinker would use logical analysis a feeler would apply personal priorities. And the last type-cast is judging vs. perceiving; related to how a person is oriented to the outside world, a judging person would decide on an action and plan it out and a perceiving person would rely on intuition and be open-minded.
Using these type casts, individuals found their four initial personality type. A person who felt they were a member of extraversion, sensing perception, thinking judgment and judging would be an ESTJ, which is a person who is “a fact-minded, practical, organizer; an assertive, analytical, systematic person who pushes to get things done, and work smoothly and efficiently,” according to Gordon D. Lawrence, author of “Description of the Sixteen Types.”
“When most people finish the test and look up their personality profile they feel very comfortable with the description,” said Rumsey.
Participants then looked in another reference book provided by Rumsey to see how their four initial personality type related to common career choices. According to Rumsey, many college campus career centers use this personality test or a very similar one to get an idea of references for their students.