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can your myers- briggs
type
affect how you parent? by sandi schwartz i am a true believer in finding out what our
personality
type
s are so that we can go through life being more self-aware and appreciate why we approach the world in the way we do. after college, i took the myers-briggs
type
indicator (mbti)
personality
test. years later, i still refer to the description of my
personality
type
on occasion. it has helped me to better understand my feelings, relationships, and perspective about what is happening around me. i am an infj, which is the least common
personality
type
around. this has made it challenging at times for me to relate to others. but by knowing what my strengths and weaknesses are, it helps me to be a more effective and loving parent to my
children
, who certainly do not have the same
personality
type
as me. finding out your
personality
type
if you aren?t familiar with myers-briggs, it was developed in the 1950s by isabel briggs myers to help men and women find jobs after world war ii. since that time, a large body of research has shown that
personality
type
is a key predictor for which careers people choose and succeed at. truity, a company that specializes in
personality
assessments, decided to take the myers-briggs data to a new level by applying it to how
personality
type
s affect our roles as parents. the main parameters of personalities according to the mbti include: ? extroversion (e) vs. introversion (i): how we manage and replenish personal energy. extraverts are energized by being around people, while introverts usually need time alone to recharge after socializing. ? sensing (s) vs. intuition (n): how we gather and process information. people who are sensing like to work with facts and their physical reality. people who are more intuitive work more with meanings and impressions. ? thinking (t) vs. feeling (f): how we prioritize personal values. thinkers value fairness, while feelers value compassion. ? judging (j) vs. perceiving (p): how we organize and structure daily life and work. people who are judging like things set in stone and scheduled, while people who are more perceptive prefer adaptable schedules. your
personality
type
is a four- letter code based on each of the four characteristics. there are 16 possible
personality
type
s. if you do not know yours, visit 16personalities.com to take the free quiz.
personality
type
s in relation to parenting the truity study involved men and women who took a survey to capture their attitudes toward having kids, being stay-at-home parents, and parenthood in general. the research found that each
personality
type
has unique parenting strengths and weaknesses. it is fascinating to see how our personalities shape the way we interact with and raise our
children
. here are some of the key findings from the study: ? extroverts rated their own parenting skills highly, while introverts were more critical of themselves. ? feelers prefer having kids more than thinkers do. entp, infj, and enfp
personality
type
s want
children
the most, but esfjs had the most number of
children
. ? infps are most likely to be stay-at- home moms and dads. entjs are the least likely. ? esfjs are more likely to believe their
children
consider them to be a good parent and are the happiest with the relationships they have with their
children
. intjs, who typically have rational, independent personalities, have lower-than-average levels of satisfaction being a parent, but said that being a parent allowed them to grow in ways they never imagined. ? infps are sensitive, thoughtful parents who are extremely devoted to their
children
. several expressed anxiety over raising
children
in a esfj? intp? estp? infj? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? 3 8 b r p a r e n t s . c o m | o c t o b e r 2 0 1 8
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