Do you ever feel like a mixture of types . . .

[Gaze]

Or a "melange" as they say, instead of one?

I've been wondering for a while how to maneuver the INFJ typology. Since typing can encourage stereotyping or lead to the enactment of the self-fulfilling prophecy, I'm wondering how accurate it is to keep to this idea that we are all just or need to identify as one type.

We change and evolve over a period of time, and there are qualities which we can all identify with in various types. Tbh, being stuck in the idea that I'm one type has only encouraged complacency, or lead to the belief that we are so special and so different, encouraging this belief in our specialness, and leading us to question why we aren't recognized as such. It also encourages isolationist tendencies.

This is one of the reasons why I'm not a fan of this idea that anyone should define themselves singularly as one thing or another, since we continuously fill different roles in our lives everyday.

(Although, one big annoyance I have is with the idea that F is inferior to T, and P is inferior to J.) Or that they are mutually exclusive for that matter. I strongly disagree with the belief that you need to be one or the other. Why can't you identify with both?

On average I feel myself a cross between an INFP and an INTJ, which makes sense when I compare both typologies.

So, do you feel as though you may be a mix of types rather than just one? Which ones?

 

[sassafras]

Or a "melange" as they say, instead of one?

All the time. I don't know what I am. I share the most qualities of INFJ's where values and emotional make up are concerned, and a handful of other INFJ-esque traits, but at the same time, I'm a lot more "grounded" and less "idealistic," than the profile implies. As much as I'm concerned with the welfare of others, I put more emphasis on practical measures of success and the pursuit of knowledge than I do on my relationships with others. Certainly, they're important to me, but the way I approach problems and create solutions is less in line with the INFJ profile as it is with more enterprising types.

We change and evolve over a period of time, and there are qualities which we can all identify with in various types. Tbh, being stuck in the idea that I'm one type has only encouraged complacency, or lead to feelings that we are so special and so different, and to question why we aren't recognized as such.

This is one of the reasons why I'm not a fan of this idea that anyone should define themselves singularly as one thing or another, since we continuously fill different roles in our lives everyday. It's rarely about being one thing another.

Well, that's the thing with any of these theories that try to slot something as diverse as human personality and identity into a neat, organized system. From the perspective of a psychological study, working with archetypes that cluster together behavioral/intellectual/emotional/etc tendencies can be useful in building and testing further psychological theories or mapping an approximation of behaviours. The other thing to keep in mind is that psychology itself is not a rigid study. It's basis is practical, but its outgrowth is fundamentally abstract.

So yeah, you've succintly captured the problem with people strictly building their identities around theoretical and imperfect system that's centered around their archetypes. Identity is a precious thing, and once people latch onto one, they rarely let go. If they're basing who they are based on what they've read in a textbook or from what they've researched on the internet, they're only stunting their own growth as an individual.

So, do you feel as though you may be a mix of types rather than just one? Which ones?

I don't know anymore, really.

(Although, one big annoyance I have is with the idea that F is inferior to T, and P is inferior to J.) Or that they are mutually exclusive for that matter. I strongly disagree with the belief that you need to be one or the other. Why can't you identify with both?

Theoretically, F and P are inferior to T and J only in terms of how well these functions lend themselves to an individual's capacity to function in a meritocratic society that rewards innovation, reason, and practical application and efficiency. It's a judgment based on theoretical functions within a set system, however, and not indicative of person's capacity to experience enjoy happiness or success in this world.

The other thing to keep in mind is that no one says that they ARE mutually exclusive, unless they're some sort of imbecile or really don't understand how MBTI works. Everyone of us using the functions that register as T, F, J, P, and I & E to different extents, but we have tendencies to certain functions over others; that does not mean that the other functions are obsolete or that they're completely shut down in a person. So yes, all of us are going to have T and F and J and P traits to differing degrees, and how they all add up reaches an approximation of type. That's at least the part of MBTI that I find accomodating. The system itself recognizes that it's not perfect.

It's the people who don't realize that MBTI isn't perfect, and put too much of their identity and fanatical emphasis on it, that are doing themselves a huge disservice.

Good post.

 

[Lucifer]

Well sure I do

Tends to fall on the lines of my weakest functions.

Sometimes I use my introverted intuition it is really fun.

 

[Satya]

I seem to be almost constantly in flux.

 

[Gaze]

The other thing to keep in mind is that psychology itself is not a rigid study. It's basis is practical, but its outgrowth is fundamentally abstract.

Yeah, true.

 

[Quinlan]

All the time.

 

[acd]

I usually feel like a mixture of animal parts carelessly stitched together and then with a bit of dried macoroni glued for decoration like a kindergartener's project. Part Bear, part alligator and koi and then snake and a bit of wolf thrown in. Really. Beyond the preppy office clothes and monotone voice answering the phone in script, I'm a bit of everything to the extent that I'm actually nothing at all.

As far as mbti goes. I am sure that within this theory, the above is all applicable.

 

[Norton]

I'm an extreme INTP and never feel like I'm a mixture of different types, unfortunately. Reading the descriptions of INTP's was an epiphany because they are exact descriptions of me. I'm extremely quiet and shy, and I never stop thinking--it's my great pleasure. OTOH, I am more balanced than my younger self (hardly perfect, though) now after many years of emotional tutelage by my sweet INFJ wife. I'm still trying and learning to be in touch with my "F," which is an INTP's inferior function. Everyone should strive for balance, which is developed asymptotically with age and experience. It's only the slope of the curve that varies between people. "Balance" adds to the richness of one's experience of life.

 

[IndigoSensor]

In a way yes. However, I know that at my core I am an INFJ. I have concluded that I have the abillity to appear and feel like the following, given the right scenario: INTJ, ISFJ, ISTJ, in that order.

 

[AUM]

I just think that by typing yourself what you're really doing is feeding your ego. The MBTI may be seen as your identity and once you know the traits and behaviors of such type, you keep on posing those characteristics even though you know they are negative. For example, one of the traits of being an INFJ is that they are selfless and warm individuals, but honestly there are times when I'm very selfish and cold with others and it throws me off to find that I didn't fit myself perfectly with the norm of being an INFJ. However, this past few days I guess I've learned to throw that aside(meaning your ego a.k.a your mbti type) because it's not doing me any good but just to get stuck on the same plane. Though I won't deny that finding about my type a year ago helped me understand my inner self more better but now I guess you can say that I'm learning to move on to my next step which is to accept who I am and by doing this I found out that I'm not really a type but a very complex individual that doesn't need some mere characteristics to pressure me to being something that I don't think will do me any good on the long-run.

Note: Some people will debate that I am now an INFP because I'm unwilling to type myself. Call me anything guys lol, but I'll always be Last Dawn to all of you

 

[Raccoon Love]

Yes, i do, I score mostly INFJ but depending on my mood and the actual questions in a test I would score: INFJ, INTJ, INTP, or INFP.

 

[IndigoSensor]

Note: Some people will debate that I am now an INFP because I'm unwilling to type myself. Call me anything guys lol, but I'll always be Last Dawn to all of you

Nope, I still think your an INFJ (going what I have observed in the past), regardless of this post.

Besides, for me I need everyone and everything to have a label. Everything MUST have a label. If there isn't one, I will put it there

 

[Ria]

I just took a workshop today and I tested INFP, odd because on a certain other MBTI test that I have taken at least 7 or 8 times just to be sure, I test each time... INFJ. So ya, the results showed that my Judging and Perceiving are VERY close, so that is why I find I am hard to type...

I tend to feel both types depending on my mood and the situation. Generally tho, I am quite the extreme introvert, so it's super hard to figure me out lol.

I am registered in a 'second step' type test where they go into the actual numbers of each letter, so hopefully I'll get it right after that. I really feel a strong urge to change careers and do something different and I don't want to waste my time doing the wrong career for myself.

 

[Indie.J]

My F and T functions are fairly balanced but each strong and my J and P functions are fairly balanced so I've tested and can appear INTJ, INTP and INFP though I know I really am INFJ at the core. Lots of reading MBTI portraits and reading what you guys have had to say has confirmed this for me.

 

[Puck]

Yeah. My head is crowded. Still working on releasing alternate personalities to the wild.

 

[Faye]

Sometimes, I doubt my intuitive capacity, but then I realized that I'm actually overly Ni- to the point where it is counter productive and my Ne suffers- almost as much as my Fi has. I'm not sure what my weakest trait currently is- Fi or Ne, but it is probably Ne.

My view is that types don't define us as a person. You could try to adopt a type, but I'm sure that would be unpleasant and take a ton of energy. The types all exist on a spectrum and everyone has the capacity to imitate any type, so it is conceivable that a person is split between two types to the point where they cannot distinguish between the two in themselves. Over time, it might become apparent, but initially, there is not much that can be done except for learn about the types to see if that really is the case, which it can be.

I don't know if I agree with what you said because we are defined regardless of whether or not we actively define ourselves.

Also, F is not necessarily inferior to T and P is not necessarily inferior to J (though society definitely has it's opinions, which I assume is the implication at which you were hinting- I'm not saying you necessarily believe that). Actually, being more "emotional" can strengthen your social networks and improve your life chances. Things aren't so cut and dry as they appear to be when analyzed through the lens of individualistic thought, which is dominant in our society. Actually, most people can't think outside of it.

 

[Gaze]

Sometimes, I doubt my intuitive capacity, but then I realized that I'm actually overly Ni- to the point where it is counter productive and my Ne suffers- almost as much as my Fi has. I'm not sure what my weakest trait currently is- Fi or Ne, but it is probably Ne.

My view is that types don't define us as a person. You could try to adopt a type, but I'm sure that would be unpleasant and take a ton of energy. The types all exist on a spectrum and everyone has the capacity to imitate any type, so it is conceivable that a person is split between two types to the point where they cannot distinguish between the two in themselves. Over time, it might become apparent, but initially, there is not much that can be done except for learn about the types to see if that really is the case, which it can be.

I don't know if I agree with what you said because we are defined regardless of whether or not we actively define ourselves.

Also, F is not necessarily inferior to T and P is not necessarily inferior to J (though society definitely has it's opinions, which I assume is the implication at which you were hinting- I'm not saying you necessarily believe that). Actually, being more "emotional" can strengthen your social networks and improve your life chances. Things aren't so cut and dry as they appear to be when analyzed through the lens of individualistic thought, which is dominant in our society. Actually, most people can't think outside of it.

Quite true.

 

[Baccal]

I feel like all and none at different times

XXXX but most probably INXX

I sometimes think typology is very important to build upon if you have no clue but then at the same time think you are who you make yourself and I believe that life most fully lived is as a mixture of well balanced functions not solely one type - complacency or a fixedness of what you will do, think or try based on the fallback of being a particular type is dangerous. It reminds me of saying or accepting to yourself that you are anxious or depressed - can be quite easy to use these as an excuse for not living a fall back for not actualising. I am speaking from my own personal experiences and not as generalisations to everyone.

 

[gloomy-optimist]

MBTI is a basis for what our developmental patterns are. The more developed we become, the more we deviate from the original pattern. The the core, though, our true type is our original type and pattern.

I'm at the point where my I and J are kind of blurred. I love using Se. I love using Ti. So, of course, I'm not exactly an INFJ poster-child. However, I know at my base, I've developed and started as an INFJ. Even if I don't share all those traits now, I know that is the type that I am.

 

[VH]

The reason for this is simple. All people have all functions.

Although we have a reflexive base order in which we use our functions - which is out inherent 'type' - the human mind is extremely adaptive and develops the ability to use different cognitive function orders to better reach solutions in different situations.

Most importantly, cognitive function types are based on the idea of a very clear distinction of hierarchy between functions. Dominant function is clearly stronger than secondary function which is clearly stronger than tertiary, etc. This is rarely the case in people. Often, because of our ability to adapt and learn, we develop very similar levels of capacity in our cognitive functions, making them difficult to distinguish.

I have typed as INFJ and ENFJ almost equally, and have occasionally typed as ENFP, INFP, and even INTJ and ENTJ on a few tests, depending on my mood and state of mind at the time.