... And I always test as INTJ on Keirsey.com, I'm pretty sure that I am an INTP, it's the profile that fits me the most... | INTP Discussion Forum > People and Psychology > Are You Sure That You Are INTP? |
| Posted by: INTrPosr May 14 2004, 05:54 PM |
| I came across a website at the beginning of the year, which suggest that you should go beyond just accepting test results when determing your type. I had taken the authentic MBTI II, with an administer, but still needed validation because many of the INTP descriptions fail to fit me. For example, I enjoy math, but I am not someone who would delve into the subject relentlessly. I also consider my talents to be of a practical artistic nature, and less scientific. The http://www.infj.com/RUSure.htm was written for INFJs, but it would apply for anyone unsure of their type. |
| Posted by: Division56 May 14 2004, 06:00 PM |
| I'm terrible with math, but I'm still sure that I'm an intp. |
| Posted by: INTrPosr May 14 2004, 06:03 PM |
| I also hate the Otto Koeger theory that we can appear as absent minded professors. That is not me..... or at least I am in strong denial if it is. |
| Posted by: CosmicDust May 14 2004, 06:11 PM |
| You need not have an interest in a specific subject, or have that extreme an interest in any subject all the time to your awareness, to be an INTP, as far as I can tell. I think the most important thing is that the INTP description really fits you better on average than those of the other MBTI types. I'm not totally sure of my personality type...I think the only other realistic options for my MBTI are INTJ and ISTP, with the former being more likely. But I think I have the "informative" communication style Keirsey associates with NP's and SF's, as opposed to the "directive" style of NJ's and ST's. I don't think ENTP (the only other T informer) fits either; I'm not an extreme introvert, but I don't think I quite qualify as an extrovert. I'm pretty darn sure I'm not an F; I have feelings, but I interpret the world in mechanical terms more than ethical or animate terms. I'm quite different from my Feeler family members in my outlook. |
| Posted by: INTrPosr May 14 2004, 06:47 PM | ||
Not sure what you mean by animate and mechanical. As for ethical, I would never base my decisions from a moral standpoint, but I do have strong principles that some could mistaken for high morals. I recall someone saying that NTs look at things from the standpoint of right/wrong, whereas NFs from good/bad. |
| Posted by: CosmicDust May 14 2004, 07:09 PM |
| I mean that I prefer to imagine and analyze things in mechanical or objective terms, instead of subjective human elements. I was thinking that my mechanical view of the Universe is a result of being a (heavy) T, thinking in terms of systems instead of people. Lighter T's, though, tend to include the subjective more in their philosophies. Re: right and wrong vs. good and bad - my pop-neuropsych reading habit has led me to favor rationalizing good and bad in terms of whether something aids or hinders survival. I think of the laws of nature as supreme, and human value judgments a fairly logical product thereof. |
| Posted by: Naturelover May 15 2004, 01:08 AM |
| Even tough I payed $5 to make the test professionaly at University and I tested as ISTP ... And I always test as INTJ on Keirsey.com, I'm pretty sure that I am an INTP, it's the profile that fits me the most... |
| Posted by: Vagabond May 15 2004, 01:57 AM |
| People mistyping themselves is, apart from common, also reasonable, since there are no boxes to fit in perfectly, I think we have little of every type in us (unless you can be sure about being 100% in all of Introvert, iNtuitive, Thinking and Perceiving ). So OK, when I read the INTP profile I was like WTF!!! Did I write this...? The only thing that didn't fit was that I was supposed to be a photography lover, but when you have several pages of yourown personality's description before you, a silly hobby is like a drop of water in the ocean. Then I read the INTJ profile, just to check on the differences that would exist between my type and the person's that introduced me to all that typology stuff; out of curiosity basically. And I got confused, because it was me again, partly taken out the closure ability; and then I started doing more thinking and more searching, ending up into doubts (maybe it was my psychological disposition at that time that made me score like that...? Maybe I am tricking myself into desirable replies that are not true...? Maybe I am acting the profile that I got by chance..?) So - to hell with tests... experiment is the way out of the confusion  Let's assume I am indeed mislead and subconciously acting the INTP that I am not; one can act for limited time, conciously or not. So, I am being as I think I trully am, keeping in mind that I might be mislead (which I seriously doubt, but no crazy people admit their craziness anyway ), comparing *me* with the profile and other people that score the same (making sub-categories of which ones of them are similar to the profile or to the rest of them etc - no need to draw the diagram, I guess you know what I mean) and regularly check on myself to see how comfortable I feel in the INTP shoes. My guess is that if I am in the wrong shoes, I will eventually break down and start needing "some air".I also keep track of what kind differences I see between myself, the profile and the rest of you (oh yeah... start getting paranoid, I have my eye on you ), just to check how much I have of my secondary elements and if they are indeed secondary... I can't imagine myself turning out to be an extrovert, but one never knows...  Bottom line (rambling again... lol, poor people, I feel sorry for you today - I am not on drugs though, I swear ) is that I do have an idea on my type, I am pretty sure of it, still I keep my options open... "I only know that I know nothing", and that might include knowing myself, even though I think otherwise. [Enneagram is easier I think, because it describes your attitude more than your deep motives and inside mechanisms (OK... I am a half-ignorant on that stuff; I am talking about the descriptions, not the entire philosophy that lies behind), so I guess I have no doubts there... or at least I have less... *sigh* I guess the only thing I am totally sure about is my variant ]I think all we need is an open mind on the possibility of coming to a point where our own actions/reactions will prove us that we have mistyped ourselves; maybe that point will never come and we never mistyped ourselves, but if we don't keep that option open, even if we get proof of our mistyping we will choose to disregard and reject it. (/Rambling mode out. I don't know what train hit me today, I promise to handcuff myself if I get in that kind of strange blabbing mood again...  ) |
| Posted by: jayvan001 May 15 2004, 01:59 AM |
| To me the INTP description is a generalization or a stereotype of what your typical INTP "should be" not what you are. Everyone is different and if you haven't noticed we have quite a few personality conflicts in the same personality type on this forum, if you catch the way I'm drifting. So just because it says that most INTPs are mathematical wizards and you aren't, does that make you any less of an INTP? NO. Just because you can FEEL, does that make you less of and INTP? NO. Just because it says that INTPs are good at photography doesn't mean you should go out and buy a shitload of photography equipment and expect to take award winning photos that will make people instantly weep or women tear off their clothes and want sex with you. Why? 'Cause you may suck at photography. However, you may have very other strong INTPish skills that compensate for those that are lacking. What different does it make anyway? I understand that this is all a path to self-discovery and all, but you can't be all upset if you don't fit the whole description to the "T". You see when I took the MBTI I already knew I was an introvert and was a thinker; I knew that had a good intuition because I was good at reading people and situations. I've always hated schedules and authority. I've always been pretty indecisive at times, so that pretty much fell into perceiving, but at the time I really didn't put it into all those terms. So as you can see the MBTI told me nothing new. I already had a strong sense of who I was anyway, and to be honest I thought the test was Bullshit, but I found it interesting to see myself on paper. In my opinion you have to have a strong concept of self before you get into this stuff or your just going to get messed up cause your going to spend all your time trying to fit the type instead of being you. Then you're screwed. It seems to me that a lot of people are putting to much stock into fitting into the mold of what an INTP should be instead of being themselves. Quit trying to identify with the group or the type and just be yourself. Jay  |
| Posted by: Naturelover May 15 2004, 06:01 AM | ||
I totally agree with that... We are all different. The MBTI test results will give you general pattern common with all people of the same type... Even though they say specific things sometimes in their description(like being good in maths) we are different because we have all different experiences and come from different environnements so we can't possibly be all the same... So the description of personality types should be taken with a grain of salt and we have to keep a certain distance from it. If someone doesn't correspond exactly to the description , he should not try too hard acting like they say or doubt about himself because MBTI is really just an indicator... |
| Posted by: flan2dave May 15 2004, 06:33 AM |
| I've fussed about this before so I won't go into detail, but I can relate to much of what cosmicdust and jayvan have said so far. I had my eye on INTJ and ISTP too, INTP came later when P-ness was settled, but found myself too different from ISTP descriptions and other people I knew who did fit my idea of the descriptions to the "T." The long description at intp.org was the most helpful once I read the whole thing. |
| Posted by: shadowside May 16 2004, 01:05 PM | ||
First post, hope I'm doing it right. Great group and some very interesting topics, I have a few in mind for later. I'm afraid the absent minded professor stereotype fits me perfectly, but it may not be all that bad a thing to be. I think some INTPs have the potential to get so wrapped up in whatever it is that we are thinking about we can be virtually oblivious to the outside world. Then we do things like leave the groceries we just bought at the check out counter and not notice we don't have what we went to get until we arrive at home. Heck, we might even do that same thing more than once  . |
| Posted by: INTrPosr May 16 2004, 02:02 PM |
Welcome shadowside. I had to laugh when you described some of the things that may be considered "absentmindedness". I too, have that problem. I can't begin to count the number of pair of sunglasses I have lost over the past few years, nor the number of coffee cups that I have broken from leaving them on top of my car, only to see them fall off my roof when backing out of my driveway. However, I guess my connotation of the words conjures someone walking around with two different colored socks, or having a pouch for their pens, in other words just looking geekish....... |
| Posted by: grokkfried May 17 2004, 10:29 AM | ||
Vagabond, I lub u. |
| Posted by: int May 17 2004, 04:29 PM | ||
Please don't. |
| Posted by: BoA May 21 2004, 01:23 AM |
| The T part of me always questions the designation INTP... but I have consistently tested as INTP and the descriptions are on target for who I am... Am I specifically everything the descriptions say... no... but as a guideline to who I am and how I interface with the world... the descriptions have me... well, nailed! I see myself actually being the Introverted iNtuitive Thinker... I can "watch" myself do and think the exact things described for an INTP... (which, that observation alone puts me dead square in the INTP box...) So, just like I've had to learn to accept my "inner-nerd" I have accepted that this is who I am... it fits me like a glove and has helped me to understand the difficulties that other have in working with me... and mine in working with them. Bo... |