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Whole Brain Model

Whole Brain Model

The Herrmann Brain Dominance Instrument (HBDI) is a system claimed to measure and describe thinking preferences in people, developed by William "Ned" Herrmann while leading management education at General Electric's Crotonville facility. It is a type of cognitive style measurement and model similar to the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator
Brain Dominance Model
In his brain dominance model, Herrmann identifies four different modes of thinking:
A. Analytical thinking
Key words : Auditive,logical, factual, critical, technical and quantitative.
Preferred activities : collecting data, analysis, understanding how things work, judging ideas based on facts, criteria and logical reasoning.

B. Sequential thinking
Key words : safekeeping, structured, organized, complexity or detailed, planned.
Preferred activities : following directions, detail oriented work, step-by-step problem solving, organization and implementation.

C. Interpersonal thinking
Key words : Kinesthetic, emotional, spiritual, sensory, feeling.
Preferred activities : listening to and expressing ideas, looking for personal meaning, sensory input, and group interaction.

D. Imaginative thinking
Key words : Visual, holistic, intuitive, innovative, and conceptual.
Preferred activities : Looking at the big picture, taking initiative, challenging assumptions, visuals, metaphoric thinking, creative problem solving, long term thinking.

His theory was inspired by the research into left-right brain laterilization by Roger Wolcott Sperry, Robert Ornstein, Henry Mintzberg, and Michael Gazzaniga and further developed to reflect a metaphor for how individuals think and learn. Use of that metaphor brought later criticism by brain researchers such as Terence Hines for being overly simplistic.
Herrmann also coined the concept Whole Brain Thinking as a description of flexibility in using thinking styles that one may cultivate in individuals or in organizations allowing the situational use of all four styles of thinking.
The Herrmann Brain Dominance Instrument
The format of the instrument is a 120 question online test which claims to determine which of the model's four styles of thinking is a dominant preference. More than one style may be dominant at once in this model. For example, in Herrmann's presentation a person may be dominant in both analytical and sequential styles of thinking but be weaker in interpersonal or imaginative modes, though he asserts all people use all styles to varying degrees.
A 1985 dissertation by C. Bunderson, currently CEO of the non-profit EduMetrics Institute which has an ongoing business relationship with Herrmann International, is published on the Herrmann International website. It asserts that "four stable, discrete clusters of preference exist", "scores derived from the instrument are valid indicators of the four clusters", and "The scores permit valid inferences about a person's preferences and avoidances for each of these clusters of mental activity".