P E R S O N A L I T Y   I V

IV. KEIRSEY TEMPERAMENT THEORY

Recently there has been a small explosion in the number of books written about the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (henceforth referred to as the MBTI) and its interpretations. One of these books, written in the 1970s by psychologist David Keirsey with Marilyn Bates, described research Keirsey had done which led him to a reworking of the model underlying the MBTI.

Keirsey did not throw away the preferences, or the sixteen types. Instead, he observed (in much the same way that Jung gathered his initial data) that certain groupings of the sixteen types showed characteristics of behavior in common.

Specifically, he found that a primary preference was the one which describes how we perceive the world, either by iNtuition or by Sensing. Extending this, Keirsey saw that the next most important preference for those who relied on intuition was their decision-making preference of either Thinking or Feeling. But for those who tended to trust knowledge gained through the senses, the next most important preference was that which expressed their desire for fulfilling duties (Judging) or for maintaining their independence (Perceiving).

Thus, Keirsey's new, revised model of personality noted the existence of four unique styles, which he called "temperaments". His nomenclature was derived by taking the relevant parts of the four common types among the sixteen. Thus, the four iNtuitive-Feeling types express the NF temperament, the four iNtuitive-Thinking types are called "NTs," the four Sensing-Judging types are called "SJs," and the four Sensing-Perceiving types are called "SPs."

IV. Keirsey Temperament Theory

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