Peter Geyer - Thesis

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QUANTIFYING JUNG:
THE ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT
OF THE
MYERS-BRIGGS TYPE INDICATOR

A Thesis written to complete the requirements
for a Masters Degree in Science (Science and Society)
within the Department of History and Philosophy of Science,
University of Melbourne

1995

Peter Geyer

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would like to thank the many people contributed to the pool of thoughts from which this thesis has been constructed. Brief discussions with Katharine D. Myers, Mary H. McCaulley, Linda Berens, Margaret Hartzler and Otto Kroeger gave me some useful leads. James Newman gave me an interesting discussion, useful book references and a broader context. Valuable feedback was gained through my presenting different approaches to this topic at an Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) Occasional Seminar, the Australian Association for Psychological Type (AAPT) Second National Conference and the TASA Conference 1994 as well as all my presentations on the History and Construction of the MBTI in ACER MBTI Accreditation Programmes throughout 1993 and1994 . Michele Burns helped me type and order the manuscript and Richard Gillespie as my supervisor asked challenging questions. Most importantly, I learned from the previous experience of Penny Sharples and appreciate her tolerance and forbearance during my lengthy wrestling with this topic.

ABSTRACT

The origin and development of a psychological instrument, the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, intended to implement C.G.Jung’s theory of psychological types, is examined in its American social and historical context, emphasising the development of psychology as a science in that culture and its emphasis on quantification. Actor-network theory, as proposed by Latour, Law, Callon and others, is used as a means of interpreting these developments, including the current popularity of this instrument and its paradoxical lack of acceptance in mainstream American psychology.

CONTENTS

PAGE

1. INTRODUCTION: THE ROAD TO A COURSE OF ACTION. 1

2. A QUANTIFYING AND EFFICIENT SOCIETY. 5

3. C.G. JUNG, AMERICAN PSYCHOLOGY, 12
PSYCHOLOGICAL TYPES.

4. UNDERSTANDING SCIENCE, AND THE ACTOR NETWORK. 19

5. DEVELOPING THE MBTI ACTOR-NETWORK. 24

6. EVALUATING THE MBTI NETWORK. 31

BIBLIOGRAPHY 39

Peter Geyer Type Coaching and Training

Peter Geyer
Type Coaching and Training