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Executive Exchange: DISC vs. MBTI
April 07, 2009
A Training Top 125 reader is considering adding a personality profile instrument to the mix of tools and assessments currently employed for workforce development at her company.
By Sarah Boehle
"I'd like to know which of the many options others might point me toward. The Meyers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) and DISC assessment seem to be our two frontrunners. What are the relative merits of each for use in corporate settings for workforce development purposes? Which would others suggest I use, if given a choice between the two?"
www.trainingmagevents.com/learninggroup/search/index_taxonomy.jsp
We ran responses to this challenge in previous issues. Here are more:
MBTI Measures More
According to Gayle Waldron (gwaldron@mgtedge.com), MBTI is more widely used than any other profile; has over 70 years of research backing it up; has been translated into over 30 languages; and is widely used in corporations, government (including the U.S. War College), and counseling. "The databases include millions of administrations, and the reliability and validity are higher than with any other personality/psychological instrument. There is also a great deal more depth to MBTI than to DISC; it simply measures more."
However, DISC is easy to understand, easy to self-validate, takes less time to teach, and is easy to use, Waldron says. "These aspects give it some distinct advantages. On the other hand, it covers a limited perspective of personalities and life choices, has little published research affiliated with it, and few, if any, books written about it." She notes that DISC's publisher, Inscape, is particularly innovative, however, and that the assessment has a good network of support to assist users.
Waldron is the president of The Management Edge in Largo, Fla.
DiSC at Work 2
As a facilitator of both DISC and MBTI, Sheila Krejci (sheila@sheilaktraining.com) finds that each instrument provides insights relevant to individuals, leaders and teams in the workplace. "The instruments have very different purposes and provide quite varied information for participants seeking to truly understand themselves and to better relate to those they are attempting to influence," she says.
'For instance, the MBTI provides insight into a participant’s internal core personality—that is, her preferences for taking in and processing information to make decisions, her orientation to the external world, and the environment in which she prefers to reenergize as needed." Krejci says that when coaching individuals and leaders who are committed to understanding themselves, she frequently uses the MBTI.
"The DISC profiles reflect a participant’s external behavioral preferences or how he acts or interacts with others," Krejci notes. "Using a much simpler, universal language that has been successfully employed internationally, I believe its success is due largely to the fact that it is uncomplicated and easy to interpret, remember and apply to individuals and teams." Krejci says she uses the DISC model more often in the workplace when consulting with leaders and teams "because participants are quick to understand the behavioral dimensions, their personal patterns of behavior, and the importance of flexing their style to meet the needs of those they are attempting to influence, such as customers, patients, co-workers and bosses.'
Krejci is president of Shiela K. Training in Minneapolis.
HAVE OTHER INPUT ON THIS TOPIC? If so, send it our way in an e-mail to sarah.boehle@nielsen.com with the subject line "DISC VS. MBTI," and we'll try to publish your advice in an upcoming issue!
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