Does personality consist wholly in decision making?
No, of course not. That's why two people with the same "personality" type will be vastly different. MBTI, however, does speak only to decision making/thought processes.
Does personality consist wholly in decision making?
This rings truest to me. When I'm using my Fi I can certainly empathize with the ideas forming part of who I am bit. Most of the time my ideas are distinguishable from my self and are mutable by new data or input.ok being serious: A feeler probably thinks just as much as a thinker. But a feeler is likely to hold an emotional attachment to their views and opinions. If someone comes along trying to prove them wrong it makes them feel invalidated and a little hurt to find out that their previous notions were incorrect. (Mode of thinking: They are not just "ideas" they are "my" ideas and form a part of who "I" am; by rejecting them you are rejecting "me".) A thinker obviously feels but is detected and unaware of these emotions because a feeling itself can be considered "invalid" or wrong in the same way a feeler does if it contradicts their previous intellectual notions. (Mode of thinking: Sometimes when I hear that religious song I "feel" connected to God ,but I know it's wrong because I "think" those types of things are an impossibility.) Dominate traits are more likely to disregard non dominate traits that doesn't mean they are not equally felt or absent.
I like the way you have said it in your post, but have a question. How do you think ego plays into this? What about people who have an ego investment (but not an emotional investment) in their ideas? The times I've debated online, I often find a similar core dynamic (although different in surface style) with the majority of people in the debate regardless of how they are labeled. There are exceptions, but not enough consistency to make sense of the whole T-F spectrum.ok being serious: A feeler probably thinks just as much as a thinker. But a feeler is likely to hold an emotional attachment to their views and opinions. If someone comes along trying to prove them wrong it makes them feel invalidated and a little hurt to find out that their previous notions were incorrect. (Mode of thinking: They are not just "ideas" they are "my" ideas and form a part of who "I" am; by rejecting them you are rejecting "me".) A thinker obviously feels but is detected and unaware of these emotions because a feeling itself can be considered "invalid" or wrong in the same way a feeler does if it contradicts their previous intellectual notions. (Mode of thinking: Sometimes when I hear that religious song I "feel" connected to God ,but I know it's wrong because I "think" those types of things are an impossibility.) Dominate traits are more likely to disregard non dominate traits that doesn't mean they are not equally felt or absent.
Ah see, now you're getting all uppity! I meant that they are much more strict on the INTJ forum than they are here. They don't like meaningless or off-topic nonsense- of which this forum tends to be primarily comprised (I blame slant).
My favorite rules from INTJ forum:
They hate the 1337 $P3@K!!!
Does personality consist wholly in decision making?
I like the way you have said it in your post, but have a question. How do you think ego plays into this? What about people who have an ego investment (but not an emotional investment) in their ideas? The times I've debated online, I often find a similar core dynamic (although different in surface style) with the majority of people in the debate regardless of how they are labeled. There are exceptions, but not enough consistency to make sense of the whole T-F spectrum.
edit: If you go to a T-dominant forum and start debating, notice how often there is an ego-investment in the idea even in the face of clear contradiction. There are people who are clear-thinking and admit when they are wrong, but they are precious rare. What I'm not clear on is whether or not those clear thinkers are a subset of MBTI-labeled T personalities, or if there is a mixed representation. Not long ago I read an Fe dominant's opinion where she stated that she was not entirely objective because of her experience, but still made a compelling case. It struck me how rare that kind of clarity is for a person to be able to self-identify their personal influences. People who have a self-identity of being objective sometimes struggle to admit their ego investment and that they have made a "stupid" error in their thinking.
Nevertheless, I recently read an argument that absolutely swept the feet out from under a core point in my theology, despite several years of theology classes and lots of self-reading. Do I feel any "less" or personally offended after having been wrong for 6-ish years? No! I just have to go "well... crap. I sure messed that up," and switch perspectives.