Advances in Physiology Education, Vol 262, Issue 6 1-S3, Copyright © 1992 by American Physiological Society
Relationship between personality type and achievement in an undergraduate physiology course
G. D. Tharp
School of Biological Sciences, University of Nebraska, Lincoln 68588.
The Myers-Briggs type indicator (MBTI) was given to 163 students in an
undergraduate Human Physiology course at a large state university. Selected
MBTI personality types were compared for achievement in the course using a
t test to compare total points earned. High grades were earned by students
stronger in the traits of introversion (I) and judgment (J), whereas the
extraverted (E) and perceptive (P) types had the lowest grades and dropped
out of the course in the largest numbers. When combinations of MBTI types
were compared, the highest grades were earned as follows: SJ greater than
ST greater than IN greater than IJ greater than IS (S, sensing; T,
thinking; N, intuitive). This ranking indicates that a sensing personality
also has a strong relationship to achievement in this Human Physiology
course when it is combined with judgment, thinking, or introversion.
Instructors and students need to be aware of the relationship between
personality and learning so they can modify their teaching style and
learning behavior to enhance academic achievement.
