Category Archives: higher education

MBTI in Student Affairs #SAmbti

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A new hashtag, #SAmbti, was created in the Student Affairs Twitter community this week promoting the discussion of psychological type preferences. Understanding differences of psychological type and how type pertains to personal style and interactions is useful in a variety of work and social situations, but particularly in student affairs, a field that has a strategic service function. The assessment of psychological type is based on the theory that human behavior is not random and that patterns of mental functions exist in the population (Jung, 1971). Put simply, individuals have different motivations and processes for getting through the day, but will follow certain configurations.

The 93-item Form M Myers-Briggs Type Indicator® (MBTI®)  is the most common instrument for determining psychological type preferences utilized in business, personal coaching and higher education. It asks a series of self-report forced-choice questions to define opposing preferences for personal energy, acquiring information, making decisions, and organizing one’s world (read more on the preferences here). Based upon responses to these questions, an individual is assigned a type preference for each pair of opposites which when combined become one of 16  four-letter type codes.

For the stats geeks among us, this type table shows the national sample distribution of type preferences and also male and female percentages of the population. As an ENTJ female, it was reassuring to find that I really do think differently than the rest of the world.

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Jung, C. G. (1971). Psychological Types. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.

Myers, I. B., McCaulley, M. H. Quenk, N. L., & Hammer, A. L. (1998). MBTI manual: A guide to the development and use of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press.

Ph.Done.

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For several weeks now, since completing and defending my dissertation, I have wanted to write about the process and share some words of wisdom for my  friends and colleagues who are still in process. The mere quest to do so has been exhausting. I can barely put pen to paper, let alone fingers to keyboard.

Several tasks have kept my brain occupied for the last month, an on-campus conference, the departure of a colleague, a professional conference, and some much deserved spring break R&R with my family. I completed text revisions for my committee. I condensed my dissertation to an article for a research competition. I forgot, then remembered, to order my commencement regalia. I reacquainted myself with the elliptical. I watched this thing called television.

And yet I still feel in a state of flux. As if the pattern buffer shifting my subatomic particles for transport back to the real world is having trouble locking on my position.

While I check in with fleet engineering, enjoy these posts that were helpful during my writing process.

From the Lab to the Laptop: Writing your Thesis

How Blogging Helped Me Write My Dissertation

10 tips for being a happy thesis writer

Why writing from day one is nuts

Type and Learning

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My dissertation examines aspects of Myers-Briggs® preferences and academic success in the first college semester. I became fascinated by the topic when I noticed trends in student academic performance and Myers-Briggs preference in my programs and decided to give it a closer look.

For more information, check out this great resource from Vanderbilt’s Center for Teaching:  Learning Styles & Preferences.

What are your MBTI preferences?

One Word: DO

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My 2013 one word is DO. And to be precise, it is not Do. It is DO.

As I reflect on projects nearly completed and opportunities ahead, it makes sense.

Wisdom of YodaDaddyPlus.com

Just Say No to Saying No

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When I read yet another article minimizing the value of a college education I am challenged by thoughts of privilege.  Yes, Steve Jobs, an individual I greatly admire, was a college dropout, but at least he had the opportunity to give it a try. Mark Zuckerberg’s intelligence and initiative is without question, but how many students can realistically include Harvard on their college wish list? And then walk away from the opportunity?

I do not discount hard work, enterprise, and determination. But for those of us who are simply above-average, or first-generation, or of a marginalized population, college is the pathway to get a step ahead, a leg up, a move toward potential success. Yes, student loan debt and college costs demand answers, but denying the value of learning, but for an elite few, is not the answer. Just say Go. Go to college.