[DJArendee]

So how do you think MBTI could be harmful?

[UncertainSomething]

Its already harmful in my eyes and I think it needs to be spread to the wider world to make it less so.

[zephryi]

MBTI is harmful in the way that anything creating groups can be harmful. While MBTI is meant to show and celebrate differences, there's a lot of instinctive prejudice that seems to pop up because people can now go, "The kind of people I dislike seem to be type XXXX, so I'll just avoid anyone that displays those qualities." While you may want avoid people with qualities that you don't like and cause you to not get along with them, MBTI can allow for people to do that preemptively, without trying to work around the differences that MBTI points out.

[DJArendee]

MBTI is harmful in the way that anything creating groups can be harmful. While MBTI is meant to show and celebrate differences, there's a lot of instinctive prejudice that seems to pop up because people can now go, "The kind of people I dislike seem to be type XXXX, so I'll just avoid anyone that displays those qualities." While you may want avoid people with qualities that you don't like and cause you to not get along with them, MBTI can allow for people to do that preemptively, without trying to work around the differences that MBTI points out.

that must be why my INTJ brother's second career is trying to tell me to stop reading MBTI. He must think I'm as quick to judge as he is (he is very quick to judge, btw, not because he's INTJ... or could it be? oh god!)

[DJArendee]

Its already harmful in my eyes and I think it needs to be spread to the wider world to make it less so.

So if it was a common practice you think it would be more acceptable?

[OmarFW]

Is telling a 7 year old that all black people are criminals harmful?

[Nitou]

Anyone testing as xxxP would be at a disadvantage in the job market unless the job calls for skills specific to their type or temperament. If MBTI testing became widely practiced by employers, anyone having interests not typical to their type can just forget it. I.e., P's can't be managers, J's can't be technicians, F's can't be objective, T's can't empathize, etc.

[DJArendee]

Good point. Many managers do employ myers briggs, but may or may not discriminate upon it. I know my ESTJ dad immediately started quoting personality page when explaining to me his reason for doing certain things, which totally didn't fit with me at all.

In fact I wonder if I've done that before... actually I think I don't interact with people often enough for it to show.