Our History: BAPT since 1989
More than 35 years of psychological type in the UK
BAPT was founded in 1989, but our story begins a decade earlier.
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In 1979, Ann O'Sullivan encountered the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator® while on sabbatical in Berkeley, California. From 1980, Ann and Sister Enid Davies began running workshops at Emmaus House, introducing people to psychological type and exploring its deeper applications.​
At the same time, a growing community of practitioners formed the Myers Briggs Users Group (MBUG). As professional training developed and the commercial environment around MBTI® changed, members began exploring the creation of a professional association.
1989 - BAPT begins
BAPT's original mission was to uphold the integrity and ethical use of psychological type, provide opportunities for continuing learning and professional development, and create a supportive community for practitioners.
Our first annual conference took place in Birmingham in 1989 with around 80 participants. The BAPT newsletter also began that year, eventually developing into TypeFace.
1990s–2000s
Building the community
Local chapters, conferences, workshops and member networks helped establish BAPT as a professional community. The organisation developed its administrative infrastructure, membership database, constitution and website, established a specialist library, and built relationships with type associations outside the UK.
Throughout this period, BAPT maintained an important principle inherited from its founders: psychological type should be more than a simple categorisation tool. Understanding its Jungian foundations and using type as part of genuine personal and professional development remained central.
2005–2013
Into the digital age
The growth of the internet transformed how people found information, learned and formed professional communities.
BAPT responded by developing its website and digital communications, introducing an e-newsletter and eventually moving TypeFace primarily into digital publication. International collaboration expanded too.
2013–2020
Extending access
Digital participation continued to grow alongside face-to-face conferences and events. BAPT's archive became increasingly accessible, online events began to appear, and in 2018 members were able to attend the AGM virtually for the first time.
2020–2024
A global, online community
When the 2020 BAPT conference could no longer take place in person, it was rapidly transformed into an online event.
Online conferences, webinars and Board meetings became part of everyday BAPT life and opened new possibilities for international collaboration. Relationships between psychological type communities around the world strengthened, ultimately contributing to initiatives such as Type Around the Clock.
BAPT also invested in new digital resources and a major redevelopment of its website, launched in 2024.
2024–2026
A changing type landscape
The wider world of psychological type continues to change.
BAPT is developing its role as an independent umbrella organisation connecting practitioners, researchers, type-provider organisations and people with a personal or academic interest in psychological type.
Our membership and digital development are becoming increasingly integrated, TypeFace is evolving as a digital-first publication, and our partnerships and international relationships continue to grow.
Today our work is guided by four values: Ethical, Accessible, Inclusive and Sustainable.
The thread running through our history
BAPT has changed enormously since 1989. Technology has transformed how we learn and connect. The commercial environment has changed. New instruments, models and approaches have developed, and our community has become increasingly international.
Yet the question at the heart of BAPT remains much the same:
How can we create a community in which psychological type is explored deeply, used ethically and intelligently, and continues to support genuine human development?
That purpose shaped the organisation our founders created.
It continues to shape the BAPT we are building today.