MBTI Pet Peeves | INFJ Forum

MBTI Pet Peeves

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barbad0s

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What are some of your MBTI-related pet peeves?


I don't like it when people think I'm an ENFP because they think they like ENFPs best and they also like me, therefore I must be ENFP. Or when people think I'm the same type as them simply because they feel like they can relate to me a lot.

And of course, that whole thing about sensors. When people think intuitives are cooler than sensors. Or when people think they must be an intuitive because they're such a "deep thinker". Lol.


Post what bugs you about MBTI or how people use it (or about enneagram, socionics, etc too).
 
Hmmm when sensors get "bashed". It is odd. Some of the nicest people I know in real life are sensors. Neither intuitives nor sensors are superior to one another. It is just different way of absorbing/dealing with things.

When someone claims that such and such MUST be a certain type as if they know them personally. It's fine as a joke but when it isn't... eh

When people take types way too seriously :redface: or think that people of the same type have to behave/express themselves the same way.

On a bad day it is just the whole MBTI system altogether because it is a limiting system like any other. :tape:

peace out :m026:
 
Azazel said:
or think that people of the same type have to behave/express themselves the same way.

On a bad day it is just the whole MBTI system altogether because it is a limiting system like any other. :tape:

peace out :m026:
Click to expand...

Totally
 
When people think that being INFP means being dramatic, emotional, overly sensitive, or "nice." It's such a one dimensional view that if you don't fit these qualities then you're not INFP or you must then be some other type. These qualities are not limited to one type. Persons from different types can have these qualities. It's like saying all INTJs are snarky, sarcastic logical, people who are insensitive and arrogant. Or saying ESTJs are dominating and feel superior to other types. These ideas are myths which are imposed as universal truths. Of course, I have been guilty of this myself.

But yeah, I'm still not sure whether I'm INFP or INFJ.

On the other hand, if you are a type, own it. Sometimes, we sometimes fight so hard against our type because were don't like the cons or common perceptions about our type, so we distance ourself from it. I do this sometimes.

Also, what bugs me more than anything is when someone starts a thread targeted to INFJs only and say that a quality or problem or feeling they are having is only common or understandable or experienced by INFJs, when the trait or quality they are referring to is common to everyone. Yes, this is an INFJ forum but don't alienate the views or feelings of others who are not INFJ. Sometimes, a non-INFJ may have more insight about the INFJ simply from observation.

And finally, MBTI does not explain motivations very well. Most of the labels and stereotypes of types are based on observing responses, reactions, or behavior and rarely do people try to understand why someone may demonstrate a behavior, their reasoning is almost if not more important than the observed action. I've seen too many misunderstandings of people because people don't go beyond their impressions or perceptions or interpretations of what they see. Rather, they assume they know what a particular behavior means rather than make an effort to understand another person's type from their own pov vs. our misconceptions of what it means.

[end pet peeve vent/rant :)/]
 
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I don't get the stuff about sensors at all. I've had very deep philosophical conversations with ISxJs and ISTPs. It all depends on the person. I also know intuitives that very often talk about day to day surface level stuff (ENxJs and ENFPs).
 
I Was talking about this to someone the other day.

In general people misunderstanding MBTI. People seem to take it and look at it in depth to explain their entire personality when really MBTI is a commination tool. It's used to help people learn to communicate better with each other. That's how I was introduced to MBTI. When people start looking at it more deeply than that it does become limiting.
 
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What I was going to write is basically = to what [MENTION=1669]Genuine[/MENTION] said.

It also strikes me as kind of useless sometimes when someone makes a thread and asks for type specific advice, because in the end it seems that the thread ends up full of subjective advice that is only really applicable on an individual level and doesn't really have much to do with type. Not that there is anything wrong with getting that kind of advice, there certainly is not. Most, if not all, advice is going to be this way. But it gives me this impression that sometimes people think that discovering their type is going to be this perfect map for maneuvering through their or others problems. It can definitely help to gain an understanding of the differences in cognitive functions for the sake of communication, and help a person come to terms with their own internal workings but it seems that it gets idealized to the point that the real usefulness gets a bit lost to the labels themselves.

...I had a hard time explaining that. Haha. Hope that made sense. I think it's basically still what was said above anyway.
 
MBTI Clubs

I mean, sheesh, what is up with people who congregate around similar types? Nerds.

e:
But no, really, I'm slightly put off by the laundry list of "modern interpretations" of MBTI, each one posited by a self-proclaimed expert, each one explaining functions and their relationships in an entirely different manner from the others. At some point, it all just seems like fan fiction; you feel like you're reading the same thing every time.
Don't get me wrong, I like them. Some of them inspire serious thought and reflection, but I don't like it anymore when people reference one type description or another and claim that it is authoritative. It's far too subjective a system for any one description to be definitively truer than another.
 
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MBTI does have potential to improve relations between people but it doesn't seem to be used that way a lot of the time

For example one of the main divisions is between introverts and extroverts

Both have different strengths and weakenesses, for example as an introvert i can still recognise how great extroverts often are at greasing the social wheels and there are times when i really appreciate them and their strengths

Introverts often enjoy being sociable but they need to recharge afterwards whereas extroverts are energised by it. So one area in which MBTI can be useful is in helping these two groups to understand better the needs of the other group. The introvert might make an effort to be sociable and the extrovert might make an effort to give the introvert room when they need it

Anyone introvert who has sit listening to an extrovert talking solidly for an 11 hour nightshift will know that its fine for a while but after that it begins to feel like a cruel and unsusual form of punishment; that obviosuly works the other way around as well

So yeah my pet peeve is that its not really being used in society as a way to better understand different people and thereby be more accepting of diversity. I don't know about other countries but in the UK there doesn't seem to be much awareness about it in general
 
It annoys me when people use the MBTI to look down on sensors or when a someone who is a rare type believes themselves to be special.

I find that it's far too easy to box yourself in using the MBTI. When I first discovered the system, I was a little enamoured with it and tried to become the most INTJ INTJ. It meant rejecting parts of myself and if I hadn't realised I was forcing myself into a box, it could have caused serious self-image problems.

Because of that, I dislike when people take it too seriously. I've read blogs where people say that only INTJs can be strategists or only SPs take risks. The MBTI a flawed tool and to believe it can explain someone's entire personality is very foolish.

Genuine said:
When people think that being INFP means being dramatic, emotional, overly sensitive, or "nice." It's such a one dimensional view that if you don't fit these qualities then you're not INFP or you must then be some other type. These qualities are not limited to one type. Persons from different types can have these qualities. It's like saying all INTJs are snarky, sarcastic logical, people who are insensitive and arrogant. Or saying ESTJs are dominating and feel superior to other types. These ideas are myths which are imposed as universal truths. Of course, I have been guilty of this myself.

]
Click to expand...

I strongly agree with what you said but most INTJs tend to be snarky, sarcastic logical, people who are insensitive and appear arrogant to others. It doesn't mean that's all there is to us though.
 
My pet peeve is just the infj group. They get on my nerves.
 
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Jacobi said:
It annoys me when people use the MBTI to look down on sensors
Click to expand...

Some of the funniest people on the forum are sensors....where would we be without a little humour?

I think the problem is that we (humans in general) have a tendency to get defencive when we feel we're being persecuted

Intuitives might feel persecuted in society because of the extroverted sensor ideal that the media perpetuates and the negative stereotyping of introverts as weird or geeks or whatever and so they then get defensive and they then feel hostility towards sensors and so on

I don't think there is enough general awareness in society about this stuff (i stumbled on a personality test online). What often happens is that 'birds of a feather flock together' and then those groups all create their own norms and view the norms of other groups as strange or defective

We're an odd species and we're a long way away from being comfortable with ourselves

Technologically we're hitting our stride but in social/spiritual terms we seem to be in a bit of a dark age

We have powerful technology but we aren't mature enough yet to use it properly/responsibly....its a bad mix...like a bull in a china shop
 
In general, all the bias towards types.

If one behaves such as x then one must be this type.

It's not that black and white.
 
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Using MBTI to justify certain behaviours, rather than taking responsibility as an individual and doing something to change it.

Using MBTI as an excuse to be narrow-minded and create a social hierarchy depending on type.

Using MBTI to satisfy your ego.

And treating Sensors like they have leprosy or something.
 
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Lemonworld said:
Using MBTI to justify certain behaviours, rather than taking responsibility as an individual and doing something to change it.
Click to expand...

I used to be guilty of this at times. It's an easy habit to fall into. Mostly with being introverted, it can be used as an excuse to be socially lazy and then justify it by saying "I'm an introvert".
 
I actually admire sensors. Sometimes less is more. I'm working on being more of a sensor lately. Intuition can drive you crazy. Also intuitives sometimes have way too much faith and their intuition and end up being wrong about shit. They project themselves, they believe what they want to believe, etc.. So yeah, newbies that think sensors aren't smart are retarded. My brother is a sensor and he's super smart, he's labeled "the smart one" in the family.
 
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If most of our communication is through body language then we are communicating in a very narrow way online; missunderstandings can happen easily
 
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