MBTI® Step III™ Development

When Isabel Myers conceptualized the different applications of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator® instrument, she had a vision that went way beyond the identification of basic individual type preferences. The body of work she envisioned has now been finalized with the recent publication of the MBTI® Step III™ Item Booklet and Interpretive Report, which completes the three "steps" of the MBTI assessment and reports.

In developing the initial work that led to the Step III assessment, Isabel Myers created scales and identified a number of response patterns related to the theory of type development. Myers, along with Dr. Mary H. McCaulley (founding President of the Center for Applications of Psychological Type), were able to engage in extensive research with Level 2 (now named Step III) using over 100,000 records scored through a computerized scoring program developed by CAPT.

The research of these two brilliant women served as the foundation for the development of the Step III project. The early work of Myers and McCaulley was validated through CAPT’s current Step III data base, which now holds over 300,000 records.

The development of the Step III project was a collaborative effort involving CPP, Inc., publisher of the MBTI assessments; CAPT, Inc., which houses the Form F data bank (that served as the foundation to the research), as well as the original work done by Isabel Myers and Mary McCaulley; the MBTI® Trust, owners of all MBTI copyrights and trademarks; a team of consultant experts (Allen Hammer, Ph.D., Wayne Mitchell, Ph.D., and Naomi Quenk, Ph.D.); and Judy Breiner, Ph.D., Director of Research Operations at CAPT, and Betsy Styron, President and CEO of CAPT. Other researchers and type users were invited to participate and share perspective and data as the project evolved.

More information about the validity, reliability, and development of the Step III instrument and report can be found in the MBTI® Step III™ Manual.