Quiet Confidence: The Nexus of Introverted Personality Traits and Effective Military Leadership

Statistics indicate that American society is dominated by extroverts, and there is an ostensible bias against introverts in the United States military. Research studies, using personality trait models such as the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) and Five Factor Model (FFM), have shown extroversion to be a positive leadership trait, with little consideration of the effectiveness of introverted leaders. Notwithstanding ongoing fiscal constraints coupled with increasing global threats, the military must learn to leverage the maximum leadership potential from all personality types and remove biases that are barriers to success. Common threads drawn from the multitude of leadership definitions - influence, group, and success - combined with military attributes of effective leaders - loyalty, integrity, and ethos - indicate that introverted personality traits can be highly desirable in a military leader. Behavioral tendencies such as intense focus, inward reflection, and humility can make individuals with introverted personality traits extremely effective military leaders.