Bulletin of Psychological Type, 33(1)

1. A theory of interpersonal relationships that draws on ideas from Sigmund Freud, Erich
Fromm and Carl Rogers should offer the potential for important insights into behavior
and the Strength Deployment Inventory® (SDI®) delivers on that promise. The SDI is a
self-scoring motivational assessment designed to promote greater interpersonal
awareness. As an MBTI practitioner, it is important for me to have other high-impact
tools that allow clients to explore their behavior from a different standpoint than
cognitive functions and attitudes. It is the SDI’s focus on motivation, in general, and on
relationships, in particular, that makes it distinctly informative and effective.
The SDI was developed by Elias Porter (1914-1987) who worked closely with Carl
Rogers and contributed to Rogers’ development of client-centered therapy. Porter’s goal
was to create an instrument that would help people learn how to create satisfying and
mutually meaningful interpersonal relationships. The SDI is based on Porter’s
Relationship Awareness Theory® which asserts that all individuals want to have
relationships with other people and, therefore, our behavior is an expression of this desire
to be connected with others. The SDI, then, measures how we are motivated to go about
establishing and maintaining our relationships in a way that provides us with a positive
sense of ourselves and confirm our sense of the value we have to others.
The SDI identifies seven general themes or clusters of motives where certain behaviors
are consistently exhibited over time. These clusters are called Motivational Value
Systems and each one is an observable style of relating to others when things are going
well for an individual. It is one’s Motivational Value System that provides a filter for
evaluating our actions and those of others; engages us in behaviors that enhance our sense
of self-worth; and focuses our attention on certain things while minimizing the
importance of others.
Each Motivational Value System is identified by a color-coding scheme which makes it
so very memorable to clients. The seven styles are:
Motivational Value System Key Motivations
Altruistic-Nurturing (Blue) Nurturing, support, protection, growth and
welfare of others
Assertive-Directing (Red) Task accomplishment and the organization of
and influence over the resources to achieve
results
Analytic-Autonomizing (Green) Self-reliance, self-sufficiency, individualism and
the assurance that things have been properly
thought out
Flexible-Cohering (Hub) Teamwork, inclusion and consensus, and
meeting the needs of the group through
situationally appropriate means
Assertive-Nurturing (Red-Blue) Helping others by directing and guiding them
towards the achievement of their goals
Judicious-Competing (Red-Green) Intelligent and strategic assertiveness that
accomplishes tasks in an optimal manner
Cautious-Supporting (Blue-Green) Nurturing another person’s growth to self-
sufficiency by accurately analyzing their needs

2. As insightful as the concept of Motivational Value Systems is, it is in the area of
interpersonal conflict where the SDI really shines. Conflict, as understood by
Relationship Awareness Theory, occurs when one’s sense of self-worth is threatened.
When this happens, a person behaves in a way that attempts to defend their Motivational
Values System. The theory states that each of us moves through conflict in a series of
stages:
• Stage 1 – where the conflict has just begun and we are trying to maintain our
sense of self-worth
• Stage 2 – where we feel more seriously threatened and move to defend our self-
worth
• Stage 3 – when we feel distressed or wounded and act out of self-preservation
In each stage, we are trying to re-establish a higher order of relating with the goal of
being out of the conflict and able to once again operate from our Motivational Value
System.
The SDI identifies our Conflict Sequence or typical way in which our behavior changes
as we work through relational conflicts. For example, one person may initially respond to
a conflict in a way that accommodates the other party (Blue). If that does not succeed,
they may withdraw from the other party in an effort to logically understand what has
gone wrong (Green). If that doesn’t work, the individual may finally resort to self-
assertion and battle for their rights (Red).
Therefore, the SDI is really two instruments in one: the first assessment tells us how we
typically behave and what we are trying to achieve when things are going well for us in
our relationships; the second assessment tells us how we typically behave when we are
faced with opposition or conflict and how we proceed to defend our self-worth in those
situations.
My experience in using the SDI is that it is very self-evident and has an instant, “a-ha”
impact that allows people to rediscover themselves in a profound and powerful way.
Because the motivational styles are so apparent and the color scheme is so memorable, it
is very easy to have effective and applied training. And when clients tell me that they are
having issues or stresses related to interpersonal conflict; team culture; or motivation and
engagement, I have found that the SDI is my tool of choice.
However, an even better approach is to use both the MBTI and the SDI. As such, I can
help clients better understand:
• What they want (SDI) and how they go about getting it (MBTI);
• What is emotionally satisfying (SDI) and what they have mental energy for
(MBTI);
• How to retain staff by understanding what people want to do (MBTI) and why
they want to do it (SDI);
• Work style (MBTI) and the personal meaning of one’s work (SDI).

3. Combining the SDI with the MBTI allows richer discussions about what it means for
someone to be himself or herself by allowing them to see their selves through different
lenses.