What is personality profiling?

 

 

The way that a person performs in a job does not solely depend upon their ability - personality also plays a very important part. Personality profiling, or psychometric testing, is a means of measuring an individual's personality in a work situation. It is not a measure of intelligence or ability, but of behaviour.

 

Profiling gives an employer a snapshot view of the preferred behaviour that comes subconsciously to most people. This is the behaviour with which they are 'comfortable' and can sustain for long periods of time. This behaviour is social and intellectual, not physical and governs the nature, the work environment and, for the individual him/herself, their job satisfaction.

 

There are as many definitions of 'personality' as there are famous psychologists, however, one very notable pioneer in this field was Swiss psychologist Carl Jung. His theories are now widely used in the corporate testing arena and underpin the PeopleMaps personality profiler. The profiling system developed by PeopleMaps is cheaper, quicker and more convenient than non-Internet or "terrestial"systems, and empowers Line Managers to conduct good interviews without any specialist training. Crucially, the costs to an employer of profiling are reduced by up to 90%. PeopleMaps provides a professional online personality profiling service that customers feel confident using.

 

Carl Jung's theory

 

 

The theory underpinning Peoplemaps comes from the work of Carl Jung, the Swiss psychologist who believed every individual was unique. His theory focuses on the cognitive aspects of personality i.e. how people think; take on board information to make their decisions and sense of the world.

 

He created categories of psychological type through a combination of attitudes and preferences measured by bi-polar scales. Extraversion and Introversion he called attitudes, and Thinking and Feeling he described as rational preferences, with Sensing and Intuition being irrational preferences.

 

 

 

Jung's Categories

 

 

Extraverted attitudes plus Introverted attitudes combine with either Thinking or Feeling, and either Sensing or Intuition.

 

There is great variety of behaviour within these categories depending on which position on each of the bi-polar scales the person's behaviour is plotted. There are no right or wrong psychological types - the scales flag up our differences. Wouldn't the world be a dull old place if we were all the same?

 

 

 

The extraversion - introversion scale

We all use both in different intensity at different times, however we will have a preferred way of dealing with the outside world that we use "most of the time". Extraversion is how we think and act; Introversion is how we think and reflect. These terms are in common usage today and are possibly the easiest of the scales to see in practice. The majority of people will not be extreme, demonstrating a close balance of extraversion and introversion - as such they can be more difficult to read. Those more obvious preferences are easier to read. Most of us can point to an example of someone who acts and thinks out loud most of the time and identify them as an extravert and similarly those who are quieter, because they are reflecting on their thoughts, can be identified as introverts.

 

 

 

The Environment

Introversion

The environment has an impact on our behaviour. If for example one's preference was for reflection and every member of the group shared this preference, someone would be forced to become more active and extraverted. The person acting the role would be seen as an extravert to the rest of the group, however if their natural preference was for introversion they would be uncomfortable maintaining this for any great length of time - and when the environment changed would revert to their preferred attitude

 

Extraversion

The opposite would apply to Extraversion - if everyone was thinking and acting out loud, some of the group would actually be and appear more introverted. People have different tolerance levels: to someone with a preference for extraversion, other more extremely extraverted people could appear too loud and they may naturally seek solace in more reflective behaviour. This would not make them a natural Introvert as they could not maintain this attitude for any great length of time and would be soon found seeking external stimulus.

 

 

 

PeopleMaps Profile as a Compass

Jung referred to his system as a compass and this is how the profile should be used. We can make these observations about people when they respond to circumstances at different times but we do not know really know the person's natural attitude or preferences - this is where profiling comes in. PeopleMaps captures the individual's response made to an on-line questionnaire and electronically measures them on the bi-polar scales. This enables the assessment of the person's natural or most comfortable type. People have a preferred natural type, however they are often versatile and can respond differently to a variety of stimulus, such as the examples given above for extraverted or introverted behaviour.

 

 

 

The Rational Preferences

Thinking

People whose preference is for thinking make objective decisions and are able to put their personal feelings aside to reach a (to their mind) logical, detached analytical conclusion. They obviously do have feelings and will often examine how they feel about the decision at a later stage but their feelings rarely get in the way of making the decision in the first place.

 

Feeling

People whose preference is for feeling make subjective decisions integrating feelings and facts. They trust their feelings and usually include values in their decision making. They will be reluctant to take decisions if the decision does not feel right. They ask themselves how they and others will feel if they make this decision. All of these considerations have to be undertaken before they are comfortable with the decison.

 

There is no right or wrong way to make decisions. Both of these methods will have produced good and bad decisions. It could be argued that thinking decisions will be quicker. This will be true but speed won't appear to be a value if the decision was wrong. Similarly with a feeling decision people may be happier but not for long if it was the wrong decision made for the wrong reasons.

 

 

 

Irrational Preferences

Sensing

People whose preference is for sensing will want more factual information. They will want to know if they can touch or see something to ascertain that it is real. They want proof - real tangible evidence. They will see themselves as realists. Others may see them as pragmatic.

 

Intuition

People whose preference is for intuition will depend upon imagination and possibilities. They will be bored with too many facts - they're all about possibilities and potential. They can see the big picture and want something to get excited about, not for them the pragmatic view of the world.

 

Just as with Thinking and Feeling, there is no right and wrong with the irrational preferences. Intuition is about possibilities and potential, however if this is carried too far, the challenge is that the potential does not become any closer.

 

Sensing could be pragmatic but if the demand for evidence inhibits all possible potential then this could also be counter productive. Just as with all the scales they balance each other.

 

Within every person there is the ability to use either side of the bi-polar scales, although we will all have preferences for one side more than the other - most of the time. When two people are working together who have different preferences, they can compliment each other.

 

The person with great intuition could benefit from working with the person who is totally practical and pragmatic, as together they could work out a way to harness the creativity and imagination of the intuitive. Using the strength of the pragmatist's realism, they could bring about many successful conclusions.

 

Profiling in practice

 

 

People are complex. The environment and other people working with them could influence behaviour change on a regular basis. Behaviour has reasons, not causes and if we understand the reasons why, in most areas we will be more committed.

 

 

Psychological type gives a snap shot of the preferred behaviour that comes almost unconsciously to most people. This is the behaviour that they are comfortable with and can sustain for long periods of time. It is positive news that people can be versatile and can change, as the behaviour they are comfortable with will almost certainly not be suitable for every eventuality. People are often asked to "think and act outside the box" - in these situations they need to be confident that they can do this.

 

 

We all have the ability to access the range of Jung's bi-polar scales. If our preferred attitude is for introversion we need to be aware that if extraversion is called for we can use this too. We will be less comfortable using it, as we have had less practice and because of this we will possibly be slower as we need to think about what we do rather than do it on automatic pilot. This may be a hidden blessing.

 

 

If we normally write with our right hand and injured this hand in an accident, we would be required to learn how to write with the left hand. This would be uncomfortable and slow until we did it often enough for it to become as automatic as using our preferred hand. It is exactly the same with the bi-polar scales - we have the ability to use the range but our preference for one/our way will make us lazy about learning another until forced into it.

 

 

If we brought this thought with us to team working we would discover that we were a whole lot more adaptable than we originally thought. Not only adaptable but we could put ourselves in the other persons shoes more easily and try them on for size. It would not be quick but it could be done and with some great results ensuing.

 

 

Human behaviour is probabilistic not deterministic. Using the profles may tell us how people will probably respond to their environment. It will also help with the individual's development, choice of job role and their best fit within the environment. It provides a starting point or compass to get the best out of a most expensive and valuable resource.

 

 

The questionnaire is not a test as there can be no right or wrong answer to psychological type. It is an evaluation of the individual's habitual or typical way of dealing with the world. The greatest benefit in using profiling is surely that of development and team working. It provides a useful aid for recruitment when used as part of an overall process. Twenty five percent of the recruitment process should be underpinned by a psychological profile - the other seventy five percent should be made up of interview, past experience/CV and qualifications.

 

 

Jung believed that individuals were unique. He was against boxing people and used the analogy of a compass as a method of finding his way around people's differences, helping him to understand and aid the development of their potential. The psychological profile designed by Peoplemaps was primarily for the purpose of development. The original target market were individuals trying to gain better self understanding, identify what career would give them greatest satisfaction, help them to promote their strengths and work on their weaknesses.

 

 

Organisations are looking for exactly the same information about the people they employ. Vast sums of money are spent on development but very little of it is targeted uniquely to an individual's greatest needs. By providing a profile that acts as a compass identifying how best to understand each individual, employers will be able to target more cost effectively and provide solutions that will help satisfy and retain their employees.

 

 

Jung spent his whole life on his development - especially on what he called individuation, which he described as the person's attempt to get in touch with their full potential as a human being. His was a psychology for the second half of life, learning was a life long project and people were capable of changing and developing right up to their last breath.

 

 

He placed no value on people remaining consistent - his encouragement was for them to try other shoes. If someone has spent their whole life with a preference for Introversion, which was his preference, he thought they would not be fully developed until they worked on their Extraversion. For him this was the main advantage of the bi-polar scales; to let people take stock of where they were and then work at developing their less used gifts.

 

Electronic profiling

 

 

Good item analysis provides a psychometric tool with its accuracy. The length of questionnaires does not generally have an effect on the accuracy of any profile. There is an exception to this and that is there could be a negative effect due to respondents losing interest, becoming fatigued or generally lacking concentration towards the latter part of an overlong questionnaire, which could have a detrimental effect on accuracy.

 

 

In the case of PeopleMaps, its items have been extensively analysed and then measured against Jungian preference scales. The Interview questions within the profile get rave reviews from respondents both in their accuracy and utility, as they provide an excellent preparation for prospective interviews.

 

Thousands of people have judged their profiles' accuracyas "extremely accurate".

 

 

The PeopleMaps personality profile is the first of its kind geared entirely for online delivery. It is designed to stand-alone, i.e. is not dependant on a face-to-face feedback, hence the reason for the inclusion of consultant's comments since feedback is still necessary to make the process effective.

 

Validity and reliability of profiling

 

 

Validity is concerned with the extent to which an assessment instrument actually measures what it is designed to measure. It implies comparison between the assessments and some external criteria.

 

Reliability is concerned with the consistency of assessments.

 

 

PeopleMaps is a Jungian profile designed to measure personality. The measures used are Jung's Rational and Irrational preference scales, integrated with his Extraverted and Introverted attitude scales.

 

 

That the profile has measured personality accurately is confirmed by the respondents face validity. Hundreds of thousands of people have contributed to these findings, which also confirms reliability.

 

 

Profiling that is not Jungian based will normally be norm referenced, i.e. discriminating between individuals.

 

 

The PeopleMaps questionnaire provides an Ipsative assessment, which means that responders must choose a response from a selection of four. Most and Least and the other questions must also be given a weighting. (This differs from other Ipsative assessments, which only measure Most and Least and thereby lose accuracy.)