Deborah G. Thompson
(Georgia Association for Psychological Type Newsletter, AUG 97)

APT's 12th international conference was a delightful gathering of type enthusiasts from around the world who converged on Boston in July for a week of learning, sharing and growing--type-wise of course. Although the conference officially ran from Thursday through Saturday, the week began with two days of pre-conference workshops and interest area symposia on Wednesday. Overall, a smorgasbord of type development opportunities.

In addition to over 70 concurrent sessions on a wide range of topics, APT XII offered plenty of learning and networking opportunities. Several large group meetings had plenary speakers, including Scott Blanchard (ESFP), son of Ken Blanchard (The One Minute Manager), who talked about his unique experiences as an SP.

The New England dinner on Friday night was a feast of regional favorites such as clam chowder, brown bread, Boston baked beans and Boston cream pie, along with music and dancing for the "young at heart."

Awards were presented at each large group gathering. The Mary McCaulley award, with a prize of $1,000, was given to Kathy Myers, first president of APT and daughter-in-law of MBTI creator Isabel Myers. When accepting the award Ms. Myers said, "I always seem to be demonstrating type, so I'm going to do an INFP thing and cry."

One of the most memorable moments of the conference was Dr. Mary McCaulley's moving tribute to Isabel Myers, in which she described Isabel as "one of the few authentic geniuses."

Myers and McCaulley established the Center for Applications of Psychological Type (CAPT) in 1975 to promote an accurate understanding of Jung's theory and Myers' work. Mary laughed softly as she recalled how Isabel had strongly rejected Type Applications Center (TAC) as the name for their new organization, saying, "No one is going to call my work tacky!"

She also talked about Isabel's battle with cancer and the final days of her life as she continued to analyze data on the "indicator" up until her death in 1980. This was followed by a toast given by Mary and shared by the 600+ conference attendees to the 100th anniversary of Myers' birth.

It was a great pleasure to meet and talk with type practitioners from Scotland , France , England , Sweden and Russia , to name a few. I didn't actually talk very much with the man from Russia (his interpreter was on a break), but we smiled and nodded a lot. The next international conference will be in Scottsdale , Arizona in 1999.

If you can't wait until then, the Southeast Regional APT Conference is being planned for August, 1998 in the Mardi Gras city -- New Orleans . Get ready, Chef Paul Prudhomme, here we come!

(c) 1997 Deborah G. Thompson