Caution: Using Typology to Type Others

[mods]Moved post into it's own original topic for discussion at the request of the poster[/mods]
 
I think it's also very important to remember the person you're interacting with on these forums could very well be an incredibly different person offline, and so judging them without actually knowing them offline, or having any idea from them personally as to what they are like in an offline setting could indeed be incredibly inaccurate.
 
Galileo said:
I think it's also very important to remember the person you're interacting with on these forums could very well be an incredibly different person offline, and so judging them without actually knowing them offline, or having any idea from them personally as to what they are like in an offline setting could indeed be incredibly inaccurate.
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This is like that drunk sorority girl at the Frat House. It goes both ways.

People may be more willing to be themselves over the internet than in tangible situations.
 
This is like that drunk sorority girl at the Frat House. It goes both ways.

People may be more willing to be themselves over the internet than in tangible situations.
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that's true, but the point is is that without their input you just don't know.
 
When I first joined the forum, I honestly didn't understand why a type-me sub-forum would exist, unless it was 'for entertainment purposes only.'

If the official MBTI test is 75% accurate...how can anyone presume to tell another what type they think they are? MBTI is about SELF-DISCOVERY, not categorizing and limiting people's expression.

I lived with my father for the first 18 years of my life on a daily basis. He's never been typed, although I suspect him to be istj. However, I think there's a possibility of his being intj. He appears to have strong functions in both areas. Sometimes he uses preferences of one type more than another, LIKE WE ALL DO.

The point is, I'm still not sure. So how can people accept the opinions of others in an online setting? The best thing they can offer is a vague direction in which to start going.

I say...listen to helpful suggestions, appreciate the assistance of others trying to help, but remember...MBTI is simply a map, not the road itself.
 
dream echo said:
When I first joined the forum, I honestly didn't understand why a type-me sub-forum would exist, unless it was 'for entertainment purposes only.'

If the official MBTI test is 75% accurate...how can anyone presume to tell another what type they think they are? MBTI is about SELF-DISCOVERY, not categorizing and limiting people's expression.

I lived with my father for the first 18 years of my life on a daily basis. He's never been typed, although I suspect him to be istj. However, I think there's a possibility of his being intj. He appears to have strong functions in both areas. Sometimes he uses preferences of one type more than another, LIKE WE ALL DO.

The point is, I'm still not sure. So how can people accept the opinions of others in an online setting? The best thing they can offer is a vague direction in which to start going.

I say...listen to helpful suggestions, appreciate the assistance of others trying to help, but remember...MBTI is simply a map, not the road itself.
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Correction. The MBTI manual states that it is 75% accurate. I don
 
[MENTION=387]IndigoSensor[/MENTION]

I updated my post, but my video tag isn’t working. HEP HEP, I need an adult!

Update: Nevermind. What a crappy way to post a video. WTF. Update to vbulletin 4.1 [MENTION=1]Deathjam[/MENTION] JESUS. It’s like working with rocks over here.
 
Limit said:
Ah it’s not so bad. I kinda like how it automatically makes it a video. I thought I had to make it a Url and crap first.

I wonder why it’s not like that 4.1
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Yeah I was doing that at first too but people on IE where telling me they couldn't see my videos with a "[ youtube] [ /youtube]" thingy.
 
Galileo said:
I think it's also very important to remember the person you're interacting with on these forums could very well be an incredibly different person offline, and so judging them without actually knowing them offline, or having any idea from them personally as to what they are like in an offline setting could indeed be incredibly inaccurate.
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Most people are very likely to use a persona in real life as well, to stick to their ideal, be loved/admired or fit in. I have a very good example of that with one my closest friend who has been typed by other acquaintances several times as ISTJ, ISTJ, ISFP, INTP, INTJ and finally INFJ.

She tends to play a role aroung people to fit in and be liked - it works more or less. It is very obvious when you learn to observe people and patterns in their behaviours but it does not really tell which type is their real type, some people are very complex and good at faking everything.

(I am personally more likely to be myself on the Internet than I am in real life because I have severe anxiety issues, lack of social skills and am a bit obsessive about things.)

Anyway, while it's fun to type people, I really think we should encourage them to type themselves if they want to rather than believing we can guess everything about them. It's a ridiculous belief that one can read perfectly into other's people souls or anything like that : we can guess through observation but some things will remain a mystery and we may be wrong.
 
MBTI typology may indeed be flawed or out of fashion in the scientific community, but its preference can be seen as both a hobby and a modifiable classification system. While many people (including myself) do not enjoy being boxed in, I find that it is interesting how people do characterize certain typological descriptions.

The interesting thing about typology is that we can revise our conception of a person by being forced, at times, to reclassify them. We can expand our preconceptions about someone by observing to what degree they seem to exhibit certain behaviors, and if we are so wrong about someone that we have to reclassify them or abandon any typology about them altogether, so be it. But we will still retain our observations and experiences of them. I think typology helps us appreciate the strengths of others and attempt to understand them and not force them to comply with what we think they appreciate.

1. One of my roommates is very consistent in certain of his behaviors. He maintains a neat home, well run, orderly, clean home. He prefers that others respect these needs and says so from time to time. I became offended by his seemingly dominating tone whenever he demands certain things, but I've realized that he only does this when there is something related to household neatness/cleanliness. Otherwise, he is a fairly undemanding person. When I classified him as ISTJ, I began to appreciate or respect this aspect of his personality and the fact that he may not be aware of his tone of voice. Subsequently I didn't create unnecessary conflict over issues of household orderliness, because I realized that it wasn't really a big deal to me. Of course, I also made it subtly clear that I wanted my personal space whenever I was using the living room.

2. I have typed someone as ISFJ because of his SJ characteristics of dialoguing with his professor in seemingly Socratic style as well as his seemingly family-orientedness and desire to be agreeable/approval-seeking from the professor. However, I decided (in typical NF fashion) to actually ask him his tested type. He was actually INTP, and then I realized why I seem to be drawn to him and enjoyed bantering with him.

In general, I began to appreciate SJs in general for upholding/conforming standards of society and social groups, while maintaining my NF desire for reform, self actualization, and individualization.
 
TheFoolishOwl said:
Anyway, while it's fun to type people, I really think we should encourage them to type themselves if they want to rather than believing we can guess everything about them. It's a ridiculous belief that one can read perfectly into other's people souls or anything like that : we can guess through observation but some things will remain a mystery and we may be wrong.
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Makes sense, although I think many INFJs etc enjoy typing others, because they like the predictions and the unknown about someone. I love conjectures about someone, possibly finding out the truth, and revising my conjectures accordingly. And even after knowing or "deciding" someone's type, I like to discover how they differ or deviate from my preconceptions about them.
 
invisible said:
aren't we all infj?
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Your question can be taken two ways:

1. We can all be INFJs in the sense that we are all introverted, intuitive, feeling, and judging to some degree. For example, I am usually tested at only 55% Intuitive.

2. As you know, there are other types who use this forum, which is nice, because we get other perspectives who use different dominant functions.
 
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