Untypable Types?

ZenCat

ZenCat

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I've got a dear friend who is currently taking his 4th MBTI test of the hour (he's brand new to this). And he's gotten 3 different results for each test: INFP (Humanmetrics), ISTJ (the long okcupid MBTI), and ISTP (Similar Minds). He's currently taking PersonalityTest.net's.

We're cracking up, but also trying to figure out what the deal is. I've never tested other than strongly INFJ over 20 years. Is my friend's result common? Is there one test generally considered more reliable than others?
 
Tests are actually really unreliable measures for people. They base type off of external behaviorial manifestations of functions which, while there are some patterns to this, it is far too inconsistent and complex to use it to actually type someone. If someones test results end up not reflecting their type it is usually do to one of two things. The first is they either do not know themselves, or they simply do not show many manifestations consistently.

What you need to know to get someone to understand their type is they need to ask what motivates them, and how do they think. The functions are internal thought processes more or less and getting as close to that source as possible is the best way to do it. It is also not an overnight process and can take a very very long time to determine ones true type. Test's can be used as a spring board if they are somewhat consistent, but it's not the fullproof measure by any stretch of the word.
 
It could be that this person does not know himself very well, that he is very well balanced, that he does not understand the questions very well, or that the tests just generally suck.

Properly typing oneself relies not on a test but on self awareness and especially an understanding of how the 8 cognitive processes function and interact.
 
magister343 said:
It could be that this person does not know himself very well, that he is very well balanced, that he does not understand the questions very well, or that the tests just generally suck.
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Yeah, I'd consider him very well balanced. He understands the questions perfectly, but we both think he's probably over-analyzing them ;)

The reason I ask about the tests, though, is that I think most people find out their type initially (and casually) from a test, and then explore/research/study from that point if they are so inclined. But the test result provides a starting point. And his testing isn't ;)
 
Royal said:
Is there at least one letter or one function that he know he is ?
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Strongly I. But I can't type people, I'm not familiar enough with all the types from stored knowledge/study.
 
You could show him a basic description of the functions, and try to find which ones does he really relates to
 
We just did the Cognitive Process quiz, and he got ISFP (LOL - yet another type) but it actually seems to suit him. He loved the quiz, anyway, and we had a great time taking them together and analyzing them.

So it's all good :D
 
Royal said:
If it's all good, you're not going strong enough.
You have to drive him crazy.
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*grin* That's just not my style ;) I am willing to wallow in the AllGood for as long as practicable.
 
What everyone else said.

I've only tested as INFJ once. The rest of the times (and I've taken the test at least a dozen times), I've gotten INFP, INTP, INTJ and ISFP repeatedly. :)

Reading type descriptions helps, though I would recommend reading about functions and then determining your type.
 
Yea I'm another chameleon, oh dear God I've made like what, 300 topics about this.

What Indi said is very true, its not necessarily what someone does, but why they do it. Thats why I had such a tough time figuring it out, I thought I was every type because lots of the types do do similar things. But why they do it? Well each has their own reason. So I settled on ENFJ, but leaving it XNFJ for now.
 
I'm pretty strongly INFJ - tested twice.
But agreeing with the above, I think he's just really in the middle. Whihc is probably a good thing.
 
I've tested as ISTP, INTP, ISFP, ESTP, and on one really bad test ISTJ.

After a bit of questioning I've settled on ISFP.
 
I actually tested INTJ on Humanmetrics, it seemed to fit me to a T aside from the lack of empathy part which I could never figure out until I took the big long test inside the book "Please Understand Me II"
 
Sali said:
I actually tested INTJ on Humanmetrics, it seemed to fit me to a T aside from the lack of empathy part which I could never figure out until I took the big long test inside the book "Please Understand Me II"
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That's the very first test I took too, years and years and years ago. I still have the book around somewhere.
 
Not sure.

I've tested many times (though only on the internet) and I always think something different is going to pop up but it's always infj. I like my type though, it's the rarest of all others. And it's the same type as gandhi and jesus..
 
donkeybals said:
Not sure.

I've tested many times (though only on the internet) and I always think something different is going to pop up but it's always infj. I like my type though, it's the rarest of all others. And it's the same type as gandhi and jesus..
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Allegedly. Jesus could have been ENTP for all we know. In fact I'd say he likely was.
 
We also have mother theresa and opera. I'd be jealous too if I were an isfp. Mike Tyson and Usher just doesn't cut the mustard..
 
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