A study from The Myers-Briggs Company suggests that personality differences may contribute to gender inequality in leadership.

The company that’s well known for its Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) personality testing recently carried out a study to explore the state of diversity and inclusion in the workplace, and whether “personality preferences” can impact someone’s promotion possibilities. The study concluded that women’s decision-making style may potentially stop them landing promotions.

It’s no secret that women and minorities are underrepresented at senior levels in the workplace. Approximately 25% of directors are women and just over 10% are non-white (compared with around 50% and around 40% respectively in the population, according to the US Census Bureau).  What is less well-known, however, is how attitudes about differences in personality type may contribute to this. So, John Hackston, Head of Thought Leadership at The Myers-Briggs Company, used data from 1.7 million people to understand how undervaluing certain aspects of personality may lead to underrepresentation of women and minorities, particularly in leadership levels.

PERSONALITY PREFERENCES

Research using the MBTI framework suggests that organisations tend to value and reward people with some personality preferences more than others. For example, people with a preference for introversion tend to be less well-regarded and are less likely to be promoted than those with a preference for extraversion. 

In neglecting personality as an aspect of inclusion, organisations are missing out on the many gifts that introversion can bring, because introverts can actually make leaders, noted the study. A non-inclusive approach to personality preferences is a roadblock to diversity and inclusion in other areas too. For example, the research found that personality differences may contribute to the underrepresentation of women in leadership.

DECISION-MAKING & PERSONALITY LINK

The research revealed a link between personality and the ways in which men and women are perceived. It found that managers are more likely to have a Thinking preference than non-managers. And given that men are more likely to have a Thinking preference than women, more men are likely to become managers. Additionally, MBTI’s Thinking-Feeling dimension delved deeper into the way we prefer to make decisions.

People with a Thinking preference prefer to make decisions based on objective logic; while those with a Feeling preference prefer to make decisions based on their values, and how the decision will affect other people. The research concluded that for a woman, it may be more difficult to be promoted if she has a “feeling-oriented approach to decision-making”, while for men personality preference matters much less. 

Hackston believes that undervaluing certain aspects of personality like this may lead to a lack of diversity. “Ignoring the personality dimension can prevent organisations from being inclusive in other areas too”, he noted. To be truly inclusive, organisations need to consider personality traits, along with other diversity factors.

Tools like the MBTI assessment can therefore be a key asset in promoting diversity and fostering inclusion, concluded Hackston. See the video below for a deeper dive into this topic.