This article will explore the impacts of the creation of the MBTI test on East Asian countries, mainly its influence on Korea, and China. Including its usage for regretting certain personality types in a job, its connection to east asian culture, etc.

Figure 2: Simplified MBTI Compatibility Chart (DreamsAroundTheWorld), 

It is important to know that even the creator of this chart stated that, “Every relationship is unique. A good match on this chart doesn’t necessarily mean a good match in real life, nor does a bad match mean an otherwise healthy relationship is doomed.”

Issues

Many believe that the MBTI test is meaningless.

One of the main issues with the test is that its perceived accuracy namely relies on flattery and confirmation bias. As the test results are left somewhat vague and are widely applicable in many cases. Additionally, many traits are portrayed to be at least somewhat desirable, thus making the respondent feel flattered by their test result.

The second main issue is that the test puts people into strict categories, which isn’t realistic and people’s personalities always include some form of variation. As an example, a person with 49% extroversion would be the same as a person with 1% extroversion, as they would both be grouped into the introvert category, even though a person with 49% extroversion is much closer to a 51% extroversion person than a person with 1% . 

Additionally, these strict categories and roles that show differences,  may instead make us indifferent towards other personalities, as it is more likely we would prefer our own perspectives on life rather than a more foreign one. This thus limits many individuals' sense of self-awareness and limits understanding towards others.

Influence on South Korea and China 

Now that we’ve covered what exactly the MBTI test is, we’ll start looking at the influences that this seemingly trivial test brings to South Korea, Japan and China.

New hiring trends have emerged in South Korea, as many companies now require MBTI test results from applicants as part of the hiring process.

For example, Ourhome and Suhyup Bank have both implemented the MBTI test results as part of the hiring process. They request that applicants submit their MBTI test and their strengths and weaknesses.

Additionally, Saramin, one of the biggest recruitment platforms in Korea, included 67 job notices mandating submission of MBTI test results for applicants. (Evoice, 2023) 

Kim Jae-Hyoung, a senior researcher at the Korea MBTI Institute, raises his concerns on this issue: Firstly, the majority of people in their teens to thirties use an unauthorised version of the test available online; this indicates that results received from applicants may not be reliable nor accurate. 

There are dangers of companies favoring certain MBTI types over others, as there is a firm that has already rejected applications with ENTJ, ESFj, INFP and INTP personality types. (Evoice, 2023) 

"Isabel Myers Briggs, the creator of MBTI personality indicators, worried if the indexes would someday serve as a stigma to people some 80 years ago,” Kim said. “We can all see that her concern has become a reality in present-day Korea.” 

MBTI has become an obsession for many within China. Many young people have adopted MBTI as a core part of their identities. On weibo, the hashtag #MBTI性格测试 (#MBTIPersonalityTest) has millions of views. Additionally, topics related to MBTI have earned more than 1 billion views in Sina Weibo (Chinese equivalent to Twitter). 

Zou, a Masters graduate, has been spending the past year finding a job. But during that process of job hunting, she labeled the MBTI tests’ inclusion as “unfair”.(Global Times, 2022) 

She noted that she was screened out because her personality did not match the job description. According to mbti, her type, ENFP, would be more suitable for sales or creativity.

Additionally, she states that, "I've received several job offers as a salesperson in a store, but these are not what I want out of my career so I turned them down."

She also tried to apply for an internet company and a marketing company but got turned down once reaching the personality test phase. 

"It might be a perfect way and also the most economical way for companies to find a suitable person quickly, but personally, I don't think it is a good idea, as it limits one's career to a specific direction just through a single test," Zou told the Global Times. (Global Times, 2022) 

Again, this links back to Isabel Myers Briggs’s worry about the indexes someday serving as a stigma to people. It is very clear that some companies hold a bias towards certain personality traits, allowing no flexibility and assuming that one personality type would have a fixed career already best suited to them without keeping in mind that each applicant is an individual capable of whatever interest they desire.

Connection to east asian culture 

A strong sense of community is one of the core features of east asian culture.

Being part of an in-group is a very important part of Asian culture, and thus the roles and personality types give a strong sense of connection to those within the same roles, as it gives a shared sense of understanding and unity even if in reality you’ve never even met the person. 

Additionally, East Asian culture also values sorting people into groups. As binary groups are much easier to recognize, though sometimes this could very well lead to discrimination against other groups.

Conclusion

Overall, whether you are affected by MBTI’s influence on East Asian countries or not, take the test with a grain of salt and try not to base anything you see online on your reality. The MBTI test should serve more as entertainment rather than actual input for your own life.