MBTI?

[SentinelSlain]

The only way it's good is in a super controlled environment, so If I went out with very hand picked friends, but usually that fails and some don't turn up and the others bring their retarded friends and it ends up being shit.

 

[Dak]

The introversion/extroversion thing seems pretty generally misunderstood. It's not dichotomous, and just because one is more introverted doesn't mean one can never be situationally gregarious.

A simple heuristic for extroversion vs introversion is: Do people recharge you, or do you need a break from people to recharge? The extent to which either of these descriptions describe you (needing lots of social contact/not quite as much, exhausted by even minimal contact/able to handle normal day to day interactions, etc) would be where you lie on something of a continuum.

 

[EternalMetal]

Are personalities even definable In a scientifically sound way? The way in which you interact with people? Of course you can change that. Do you interact with people the same way every day? I doubt it. If you take control of your own mind everything you do is a concious choice. Then just learn to adapt and think quickly on your feet and you can be whatever you want at any given moment.

I think you are looking at this abstract concept in too concrete a manner. It isnt about being owned by a label or anything, but a way of trying to identify your psychological inclinations. I agree that personality is not completely static and is prone to change, but it is highly unlikely that someones personality traits will radically change without there being some underlying disorder. In the case of MBTI, you are classified based on how you respond to questions on a continuum, and there are some people who score more or less strongly in the various categories. Like HBB mentioned, he is on the cusp of J and P, and therefore his classification in either category is more fluid and prone to shift than perhaps someone who scores high in Judgement. It is about which category you more strongly align with, rather than which category you strictly adhere. Even if you strongly align with one side, that does not mean you can never think or act in ways more typical of the other side's traits.

I myself am an INTJ (surprise) that scores quite strongly as introverted. This does not mean that I am socially inept and would be unable/unwilling to engage in activities or jobs that require lots of human interaction. I actually volunteer as an EMT and thus have to be adaptable in a wide range of social situations. However, I have always identified with being more of a thinker than a doer, and I thrive much more when I am allowed to assess and figure things out on my own. I am not inherently social; this inclination arises out of want rather than out of a lack of sociability. I do not think it is a contradiction for someone labelled as introverted to effectively teach a class in front of an audience. Presentations of an academic nature require lots of planning and study that actually caters more to the introvert than the extrovert. The extroverts probably have an advantage when it comes to charisma and the ability to socially engage the class, but that does not also mean that the introverted types are resigned to being some monotone lecturer who reads off a powerpoint and stares at his feet between slides. You are right in the assertion that you can make a conscious choice to be more outgoing; the point is that someone who is naturally extroverted does not need to try so hard because it is more of a natural part of their personality.

As far as MBTI being a trustworthy metric, I think that it actually is rather comprehensive. I am not in the field of psychology, but I do think that there is merit in the inferences about one's category and their innate abilities. Most of the time I am usually in line with Baroque's cynical perceptions about the social sciences (I generally classify most of it as BS pseudoscience), but I think the MBTI is one of those metrics that tends to encourage people to look at the classifications with a broad and open mind, and for that I am generally in approval of it.

 

[The Ozzman]

You can change personalities and be whatever the fuck you want if you try.

What if I just want to be myself?

 

[Dak]

https://www.psychologytoday.com/blo...hip/201402/the-truth-about-myers-briggs-types

Perhaps the best use for the MBTI is for self-reflection. If used as a starting point for discussing how people vary in their personalities, and emphasizing tolerance for individual differences and taking others’ perspectives, then it can be a useful tool. However, it is important that the test administrator caution against over-interpretation of the results, and discuss the limitations of the instrument.

For good, detailed criticisms of the MBTI, here are some references:

Pittenger, David J. (1993). The utility of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. Review of Educational Research, Vo.. 63, #4, 467-488.

Pittenger, David J. (2005). Cautionary comments regarding the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research, Vol 57 #3, 210-221.

 

[Funerary_Doom]

Someone posted this in another thread and I don't remember my results. I tend to go with the idea "there's some truth to your fiction and some fiction to your truth." Yes, asking a few questions and providing answers, is the most obvious and typical way of getting to know someone. However, that is also obviously a superficial way of getting to know someone or even yourself. How someone responds in situations speaks louder than simply answering a few questions for sure.

 

[EternalMetal]

I generally agree that the test seems to be more about self-reflection than actually being a useful tool for employers. When reading about the test to get an understanding of the various categories, the attributes of each category are quite neutral in quality; on the other hand, the "Big Five personality traits" categories seem much more qualitative with regards to the desirability rating of the categories. To me (based on that article Dak linked), the main shortcoming of the test is that it is used by people who want to extrapolate results that they cannot safely do so, which to me is more of a fault of the application rather than of the test itself. The critique of the test scoring people in the center has merit, but wouldnt it also be helpful to know that if you score on the center of the continuum you are actually balanced in those categories, and therefore do not have strong tendencies towards one side or another? Like I said about the online test I took, it actually gave a percentage of how far I leaned towards I or E, etc. Does the 'professional' version of this test also provide this information?

 

[SentinelSlain]

The thing is that there is a bit of a negative correlation between characteristics an employer would look for when looking for a salesperson and the qualities found in the MBTI types with the highest average IQs. So basically, yes, some of the MBTI types are basically bad according to a kind of simplistic approach, but they're also likely to be important people.

 

[Master_Yoda77]

The introversion/extroversion thing seems pretty generally misunderstood. It's not dichotomous, and just because one is more introverted doesn't mean one can never be situationally gregarious.

A simple heuristic for extroversion vs introversion is: Do people recharge you, or do you need a break from people to recharge? The extent to which either of these descriptions describe you (needing lots of social contact/not quite as much, exhausted by even minimal contact/able to handle normal day to day interactions, etc) would be where you lie on something of a continuum.

Yeah, it's not like these things are mutually exclusive or, you know, scientific. There are plenty of days when I just want to kick back and get drunk by myself and then there are days when I crave the company of others. Although, when I lived with 2 other bros I found myself looking for my own time, but damn do I miss those nights where we'd start drinking in the afternoon and would have to make several liquor runs over the course of the night.

 

[Funerary_Doom]

I just looked at the other thread for the results, since i didnt remember

"Introverted (I) 62% Extroverted (E) 38%
Intuitive (N) 73% Sensing (S) 27%
Feeling (F) 65% Thinking (T) 35%
Perceiving (P) 52% Judging (J) 48%

Your type is: INFP

INFP - "Questor". High capacity for caring. Emotional face to the world. High sense of honor derived from internal values. 4.4% of total population."
------

i dont know, i think this changes. I tend to over think everything too.

 

[Jimmy... Dead.]

Yes but over thinking could simply be perceiving what you're feeling as an intuitive introversion

 

[Dak]

I have a theory about the extraversion scale, which I'll probably never have a chance to test, which is that where one falls on the exhibited level of extroversion or introversion is dependent on the number of people like them, around them.

 

[HamburgerBoy]

I can believe that. If all of my peers had an interest in pillow humping I wouldn't hesitate to discuss it with them.

 

[SentinelSlain]

So if you put a load of intps in a town they would become entps. I'm not sure about that. First of all extroversion is like 40 percent genetic, secondly that means socializing with other dreamy theorists made them become a troll.

 

[Dak]

I didn't say get enough introverts together and they would start throwing weekend-long block parties or something. I should have said *somewhat dependent.

 

[SentinelSlain]

I'm just saying that there tends to be more than extroversion and introversion between the I and E versions of each MBTI type. I know that sounds dumb, but from what little I've read it seems that way.

 

[SentinelSlain]

I think that "deep" forum based debates are basically INTJ circle jerk and that my inability to really get anywhere with them is because my INTP just reads like baffling misdirection to INTJs, because INTPs put forward ideas before they're even developed.

 

[Baroque]

*cringe*

 

[Mort Divine]

I just looked at the other thread for the results, since i didnt remember

"Introverted (I) 62% Extroverted (E) 38%
Intuitive (N) 73% Sensing (S) 27%
Feeling (F) 65% Thinking (T) 35%
Perceiving (P) 52% Judging (J) 48%

Your type is: INFP

INFP - "Questor". High capacity for caring. Emotional face to the world. High sense of honor derived from internal values. 4.4% of total population."
------

i dont know, i think this changes. I tend to over think everything too.

Introverted (I) 79% Extroverted (E) 21%
Sensing (S) 64% Intuitive (N) 36%
Feeling (F) 62% Thinking (T) 38%
Perceiving (P) 69% Judging (J) 31%

Always got INFP, and I guess I do fit the stereotype for it (minus the tendency for being artistic) but I really don't think its worth putting much stock into

 

[CiG]

@Mort Divine you should join in the non-metal theme game, always enjoy your choices even if I don't always love them.