Before we label the psychodynamic approach too impractical to use in studying leadership today, I submit that there is one concept of the psychodynamic approach that I have personally found very practical and helpful for leaders, followers, and those studying leadership: the concept of personality types and specifically the application via the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator.
There are multiple components to the psychodynamic approach to studying leadership, most having to do with, as the name suggests, some form of psychoanalysis. Developed largely based on the work of Sigmund Freud, Carl Jung and other pioneers in the field of psychoanalysis, the psychodynamic approach attempts to inform leadership by means of studying family relationships and development within that framework, the collective unconscious, ego states, regression and the shadow self (PSU WC PSYCH485, 2013, L.3.). The trouble with this is, is that it’s frankly quite messy. How can one accurately assess the impact of past events in any consistent manner, especially when the subject has hidden the truth in their subconscious? How can we expect to accurately and consistently assess someone’s ego state? Is there a standard process for creating an accurate portrait of a subject’s shadow self? For most of these questions, the answer varies and therein lies the problem. It takes trained clinicians to perform the study and each one brings their own subjectivity, style, and preferences to table (PSU WC PSYCH485, 2013, L.3.). For the study and application of personality types however, there are easy-to-apply guidelines, training courses available, and while interpretation is still largely subjective, it’s usefulness is hard to dismiss (Myers and Briggs Foundation, 2003).
Based on the work of Carl Jung, the mother daughter team of Katharine Cook Briggs and Isabel Myers developed the pencil and paper test to help people identify their Jungian-based personality types. According to the Myers and Briggs foundation website (2003), studying and understanding personality or psychological types helps one to appreciate their strengths, gifts and needs while raising the awareness of how the types describe others as well. The MBTI has helped me and my employees do is just that; gain a better understanding of our personality types and how the related preferences might play out in our jobs and interactions, both professionally and privately. While not the Holy Grail or ultimate tool to solves all leadership mysteries, there is significant insight to be gained from understanding each other’s personality types and what that might mean in terms of preferred working and communication styles, working environment, responsibilities, etc.
The image above breaks down the MBTI results (the 4 letter combination in the 2nd to outside row) into sections using the 4 combinations: Extraversion/Introversion, Sensing/Intuition, Thinking/Feeling, Judging/Perceiving, while drawing additional conclusions in the blue lifestyle groupings (Zabaw, 2012). I won’t take the space to go into all the details on how to interpret this model, but I will give a practical example of how understanding our personality types through the MBTI test can help us make better decisions as leaders.
Some people choose career paths or jobs because of external influences such as a parent’s prodding, family history, expectation of a certain financial status or lifestyle, following friends, etc. Years later, into their job, they’re unhappy and stressed and even though they may consider their job a good job, they don’t look forward to work each day. Could it be that they’re in the wrong field altogether? A lot of people may reach a point where they ask themselves this question and understanding their personality types can help.
Lets assume Mary’s personality type is an ESFJ (extrovert, sensing, feeling, judging), but in she’s a java developer in the IT industry. As a developer, her work is comprised of primarily interacting with her computer screen, churning out lines of code which are tied directly to syntax and rules, meeting deadlines, etc. Mary has some creative license in how she solves specific problems, but she’s basically working against customer requirements and therefore, executing orders. Would Mary be satisfied in such a position?
As an ESFJ, her personality types suggest that she prefers to work together with people (E) and is keenly interested and empathic (S) (F). She’s also conscientious and ethical (J), so she prefers working in cooperative fashion with people. Listed as a “Provider” above, perhaps Mary would be more suited as an HR Benefits director in a corporate setting, doctor or nursing in the medical field, teaching or volunteer work? Let’s say that even with knowledge of her personality type and the apparent lack of fit to her day to day working environment she decides she can’t swing changing careers and is going to stick it out as a developer. As her manager, you could try to make sure she has more interaction with co-workers or you could shift some responsibilities so that she can help to develop the requirements, which allows her to work directly with the customer and translate their needs to a solution. Another option might be allowing her to train or mentor other developers, which might fill her natural desire to “provide”.
The MBTI test is quick and understanding the results is even quicker. With insight about your own personality types and those of your employees, your personal effectiveness as a leader increases because you can enable yourself and your team to find optimal arrangements that align with natural preferences. While most of the psychodynamic approach to studying leadership is hard to apply in real life situations, the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator is easy to use, understand, and apply for success.
Cheers, Matt
Reference:
Duncan, S. (2012). Square Peg. Retrieved 01 22, 2013, from Autism from a Father’s Point of View: http://www.stuartduncan.name/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/square_peg_in_round_hole_2.jpg
Myers and Briggs Foundation. (2003). Isabel Briggs Myers and Her Mother, Katharine Cook Briggs. Retrieved 01 22, 2013, from The Myers & Briggs Foundation: http://www.myersbriggs.org/my-mbti-personality-type/mbti-basics/isabel-briggs-myers.asp
Zabaw, P. (2012, 06 17). Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. Retrieved 01 22, 2013, from Pyschonthis: http://psychonthis.com/psychology/myers-briggs-type-indicator/
GHAITH YACOUB says
Matt,
I really enjoyed reading this blog and I defiantly agree with you that we cannot completely dismiss the psychodynamic approach. Although it is hard to measure, the psychodynamic approach defiantly has usefulness in the work place. Thank you for showing the 16 different personality types of the Myers-Briggs type indicator (MBTI). This tool is a great way of indicating what type of a person you are and what type of environment each person will fit in.
It is very important for people to be aware of their personality type in order to know what type of career the person should be in. having the people with the right personality types is helpful to create a harmonious team that is successful.
However, are tests like the MBTI enough for us to determine what type of leader will be successful in a certain environment?
Matt Johnson says
I’m glad you found the graphic as helpful as I did. By the way, I think it really comes from the training material that M&B give out, Zabaw did a good job describing the dichotomies as well.
1 question: Did you find the description and details around ISTJ matched well with your natural preferences?
RAMUEL GRANADOS HOLGADO says
I really like the graphic you provided that illustrates a rough summary of the 16 different personality types of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI). For my blog, I actually took the Psychodynamic Approach Survey at the end of the assigned reading, which is basically an oversimplified version of the MBTI. The results interpreted that I was an ISTJ. Naturally, I researched my personality type and learned about the tendencies, good career choices, and famous people associated with it. During my research, I became more and more interested in the 15 other personality types. However, do to the extensive amount of information involved with each type, I realized it would be a lengthy task to explore them all. This brings me back to the graphic you included in your blog. I understand that Northouse (2013) provided a table that summarized each type, but I really enjoyed the way Zabaw (2012) summarized everything in a captivating graphic. I found it relatively easy to read and extremely helpful. Furthermore, I like your example and analysis of relating jobs to certain personality types. Overall, I thought it was an insightful and laudable blog entry.
Northouse, P. G. (2013). Leadership: Theory and Practice (6th edition). Thousand Oaks, California: Sage Publications.
Zabaw, P. (2012, 06 17). Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. Retrieved Jan. 23, 2013, from Pyschonthis: http://psychonthis.com/psychology/myers-briggs-type-indicator/