The INTJ Personality Type, (and those close to it)

by done4good 43 Replies latest jw friends

  • done4good
    done4good

    I am compelled to write a bit about this at this late hour here in the US, because it is keeping me up.

    The recent four year old thread on the Briggs Myers personality type test that was dug up, produced an interesting finding. Many here, (at least tested informally for), the INTJ personality type. This is significant, because even if many who took the test and recevied this result, did so somewhat inaccurately, it still does not negate the fact that many have similar personality traits that do not fit in well with what most humans "do". INTJs make up about 1-2% of the world population, and the fact that so many here tested out this way does matter. It is not a mere statistical anomaly. Anyone with a background in probability theory would understand this.

    INTJs may very well make rational decisions easily, be particularly good at seeing the "big picture", etc., but the reality is, they do not deal with irrational behavior well. That includes their own irrational behavior, that they themselves are sometimes are susceptible to. Contrary to what some light hearted material on the subject might state or imply, INTJs do have feelings, they just internalize them. INTJs also do not understand irrational behavior particularly well at all.

    Why does this matter? Because human relationships are not rational. They are based on emotions and intuitive hueristics. INTJs expect humans to deal rationally with each other at all times. Guess what, we don't. None of us do. For example, when we experience shunning from a loved one, (yes, INTJs do respond to love), it hurts like hell. We do not have a built in mechanism for coping with this other than our analytical skills, which are inadequate to understand this irrational behavior. So guess what, we spend much of our time on forums like this, researching, reading, meditating, and pain killing, (INTJs can be more prone to alcohol and drug abuse), to find an outlet and closure to the pain we are experiencing.

    I would like to once again stress the point, that a statistical anomaly is not what we are seeing in these results. JWs make up about .1% of the total population, and only a subset of that number leave. A much smaller subset of that number, actually care to do any research, and understand their past experience of being a JW, as well as curious enough to learn the big picture theoretical ideas that INTJs generally gravitate toward learning. It is very likely that the high percentage of this type we see in the results is consistent with the audience we are sampling. Hopefully, this provides some clues in better understanding ourselves.

    d4g

  • EdenOne
    EdenOne

    Very interesting post, thank you.

    Eden

  • Frazzled UBM
    Frazzled UBM

    d4g - I am not sure I understand your point. I saw a lot of Ns in the Myers Brigg thread and a lot of NTs in particular and suggested that it is not surprising that NTs are Apostates as they can see through the WBTS BS and to take the point further it is not surprising that NTs predominate on JWN because JWN is a place for rational discourse and argument and NTs love rational discourse and argument. Other personality types may well be put off by the tone of some of the arguments on JWN. I am not sure that the fact there is also more INTJs than in the general population is of any greater significance than the prevalence of NTs. Also I woudl reiterate that Myers Brigg is not scientific and while it makes some intuitive sense I would be careful about taking the exact characteristics described as a complete description of everyone who has the same profile and drawing firm conclusions from that, otherwise it starts to become a bit like a horoscope. Cheers Fraz

  • done4good
    done4good

    Fraz-

    I completely agree that it is an uncontrolled test, and therefore not scientific. Any evidence is anecdotal at best.

    That said, there is a signifciant correlation, (not causation), between posting here and the NT personality type as represented by Briggs Myers. That, in of itself is worth at least some examiniation. This is how a statistician would view a correlation coefficient somewhere in the .3-.5 range.

    That is my point.

    d4g

  • AudeSapere
    AudeSapere

    I took the Briggs-Myer test about 20 years ago for work. I also scored as INTJ. At the time I was a full-fledged witness.

    Several years later, as I started college and at the same started to distance myself from the org, I tested differently. I don't remember how I scored, but it might have been ISTP. I questioned the results at the time but did not get satisfying answer as to how I could have different results. I had forgotten about that until now.

    I might re-take the test and see where I place at this stage in life.

    Is it normal for people to change like that? I have not read the other thread so might do that soon, as well.

    Interesting. Thanks for your comments here.

    -Aude.

  • Frazzled UBM
    Frazzled UBM

    d4g - I think we agree then - my theory as elaborated above is that there is a degree of self-selection that causes NT types to more readily become apostates and also to find the JWN environment stimulating.

  • 88JM
    88JM

    Not trying to de-rail anything here, but could it be that INTJ's are more likely the type of people that join a public internet forum to discuss their feelings and experiences etc.? Perhaps this is the preferred method of dealing with their feelings, for INTJ's? Do other personality types just let it go and move on perhaps?

  • Frazzled UBM
    Frazzled UBM

    88JM - I think that is similar to my point about self-selection onto JWN but I am not sure it is limited to INTJs, although the suggestion introverts may be more attracted to public internet forums may have some validity.

  • JWdaughter
    JWdaughter

    I'm an INTP (I took this years ago). So, I'm close, but no cigar. I'd be so interested to know how my mom scored:)

  • DATA-DOG
    DATA-DOG

    We all know the limitations of the "test." It's a little like the movie called "Divergent" where you have only so many categories to choose from. I ALWAYS get INTJ. It doesn't matter what version of the test I take. I am willing to accept that I may be an INTJ..IF the test is accurate and IF no new data is presented to the contrary. Much of it applies to me. Since the test is subjective, I have to refuse to be labeled as any type.

    If I am an INTJ, then I wish I wasn't. It's lonely and exhausting.

    DD

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