Myers-Briggs for Writers by Mohan Ashtakala

 

 The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) has long been a favorite among authors. In fact, the first novelist to use the Indicator was Katherine Cook Briggs, its founder, as a better way to understand her characters.

The MBTI, by way of personality tests, categorizes individuals into sixteen different archetypes, based on Carl Jung’s idea of cognitive functions. The personality test measures the extent of the test-taker’s adherence to the following characteristics: Introvert (I) or Extrovert (E); Sensor (S) or Intuitive (I); Feeler (F) or Thinker (T); and Judger (J) or Perceiver (P.) Each of these sixteen archetypes is assigned a four letter label, and personality traits are ascribed to each such archetype.

But the MBTI is much more than a description of different personality archetypes. Its examination of cognitive functions—Sensing, Intuition, Feeling and Thinking; allows for deeper exploration and “fleshing Out” of characters, especially when combined with “external” characteristics such as Introvert, Extrovert, Judger or Perceiver.

Sometimes, authors run into the problem of multiple characters who, despite outward appearance, all think and act the same way. The MBTI is useful because it allows writers to go beyond characters with whom they are familiar, based on personal experience. By using the MBTI, writers can create primary or secondary characters who would be true to their “character,” in terms of how they think and act. Genuinely diverse characters are important in creating believable tension, an important function in novel-writing.

As one may expect, the MBTI has shown usefulness in many areas, especially in Human Resource departments in the corporate world.

There are critics of the MBTI. Specifically, some find the number of categories to be limited, and perhaps, not fully useful in describing the enormous number of personalities that exist in real life. Of course, pigeon-holing a character into one archetype or another can be misleading. But, since MBTI is one of the earliest personality type indexes, a lot of literature and studies exist regarding the various personality types. This rich repository of information, if well-understood, can help authors create characters who, while showing distinct personalities, are believable and consistent in their words and deeds.

 

Mohan Ashtakala (www.mohanauthor.com) is the author of The Yoga Zapper, a fantasy, and Karma Nation, a literary romance. he is published by Books We Love (www.bookswelove.com.)