A Comparison Between The Birkman Method® & MBTI

their psychological type through the implementation of Jung’s theories. This work
became her mission for the rest of her life. She created the Type Indicators and spent
most of the 50's and 60's validating them, but it wasn't until 1975 that they became an
established tool in occupational psychology.
The Birkman Method
III. Theoretical Basis & Structure
During his research, Birkman found that individual perceptions of others were more
critical to the true measure of personality than any series of self-reported statements
alone. The hypothesis implicit in this theoretical position is that a close relationship exists
between individual motives, attitudes and behaviors and how that same individual judges
the motives, attitudes, and behaviors of others.
Birkman made two important observations central to his research:
1. Behavior is not determined so much by objective facts as by the particular
meanings the individual attaches to these facts.
2. The perceptions of some individuals about “most people” and/or “self” may
actually be illusory, irrational, or unreal. Nevertheless, these perceptions are real
and reasonable to individuals, and so, influential on their behaviors.
In order to apply his findings, Birkman suggested a new approach to the assessment of
personality and social perceptions. He believed that personality and social perception
differences were likely to emerge more clearly in a questionnaire measuring both
perceptions of self and perceptions of others.
There were two reasons for this new approach. First, Birkman was interested in
application rather than academic study. While other researchers studied why respondents
behaved the way they did, Birkman identified which behaviors resulted from the
respondent’s self and other responses making certain that all the core human dynamics
were included. Second, Birkman knew he was working on fundamental human factors
because much of his work was based on that of leading psychologists of his time (e.g.,
Cattell), factor analysis, and current studies relating to clinical conditions (schizophrenia,
bipolar disorder, depression, etc.). Unique to Birkman was his self-other perceptual
orientation focused on normal functioning adults. The result of Birkman's work evolved
into The Birkman Method.
The Birkman Method includes a self-report questionnaire eliciting responses about
perception of self, perception of social context, and perception of occupational
opportunities. Scales were developed empirically by comparing self-report item results
with descriptions of likes, dislikes, and behaviors provided by third parties (e.g.,
supervisors, direct reports). Scale development resulted in ten scales describing
occupational preferences (Interests), eleven scales describing more effective behaviors
4