I post somewhat regularly both here and at INTPC. I like both, albeit the flavors are a bit different. I've been with INTPC since 2004, I believe ... and it was refreshing to find a place where there were a lot of people like me. I do believe however, that so many like types in one place run the risk of caricaturing themselves when the validation feedback becomes so one dimensional. I enjoy MBTIC for the diversity of types and different points of view. To me, it is a nice, healthy extension of my time at INTPC.
I've been at INTPc as a lurker since early 2005 then registered later that year. Like Nighthawk, I was glad to find the place and to be among my own species. I also agree with the risk of an INTP becoming "caricatured" over there because of the validation when expressing INTP traits.
Watching INTPc from an objective distance, it seems like an amoeba. The basic structure and content stay the same (majority of members are INTP or thought they were at one time, plus there's a core group of veteran INTPc members that stay). Yet, it is also constantly changing outward shape based on stimuli (variants in the INTPs themselves and different percentages of personalities coming in at any given moment), which gives it a different "feel" at different moments in its existence. Watching these things is fascinating to me and is one of the reasons I stayed.
MBTIc seems not to carry the same kind of interest for me as INTPc. I've lurked here off and on for almost the same number of years. I like it here okay when I want to read non-INTP-flavored content or I want to study all personalities in one place. ((brings out magnifying lens and popcorn)) But, MBTIc, for me, is like being in the real world. I get a lot of that every day. When I want a retreat...a place to be online where it feels like home...I go to INTPc.
One of the common complaints among people (online and off) is that there are cliques in society. Perhaps I've always been on the outside of cliques so don't feel affected by "clique wars." I see people band together in groups with common interests or similar hang-ups/insecurities/life problems. I think that is normal. I don't try to "break into" such groups if my interests or experiences aren't the same, so maybe that's why I don't feel slighted or shunned by "cliques." So, I guess maybe I don't have the "clique vibe" for either forum. It isn't a factor for me.
I know some who used to be on INTPc who came here and stayed rather than come back to INTPc. I was never sure of all their reasons, and I miss them over there. I come here to read what they have to say. I know they feel more comfortable here. I tried to figure out the difference by participating here under a different name. I got the same vibe here as people complain about getting at INTPc when they first go there. It doesn't chase me away, but it is noticeable to a newcomer.
I think that any forum with members who have been there and participating a long while is superficially welcoming to newcomers. Then, they open up and become accepting when they see a newcomer isn't there to attack or cause strife for its own sake and that they are going to stay for a while. I think this is the case at both forums. Until the old stand-bys see that a newcomer is going to be civil and mature, there's a maintained distance. That is understandable. There are exceptions to this, of course. There are veteran members on both forums who are accepting and welcome people with open arms until you are proven guilty (attacker/twit). Again, I think this simply reflects humanity and the way offline society is also.
Too much posing and insecurity at INTPc. It prevents people from discussing real issues without being attacked, leading to an environment of hostility towards the majority of topics that matter to people. (ie: INTPc would likely translate this as being "too sensitive" and unable to take it)
Admittedly, I rarely participate in the controversial areas of INTPc. Reasons include: the subject doesn't mean much to me; I've already made up my mind on what I think and I feel no need to persuade others to think the same way; my point-of-view is already being represented on a thread by the time I get there, so my participation would only be a, "yeah, what she said!" thing; sometimes, it has been talked about before and the OP didn't search the forum to find and read the thread(s) already on the subject but the newbies are discussing it and I leave them to it.
However, I do read the controversial threads (in INTPc, MBTIc, and other forums). There's posturing and insecurity to be found in all places. I don't think this fact should prevent a person from discussing "real issues" (they are real to the person who brought it up, usually). Perhaps one needs to stick around long enough to witness the people participating who aren't posturing or getting insecure.
The result, however, is that discussion is heavily self-moderated. Anyone attempting to discuss interests outside of the board-regarded-appropriate methods/topics gets pushed down fast. Those that wish to discuss a broader topic with others will tend to self-moderate themselves out of the board, leaving, again, only the core attitude.
I just don't see this over in INTPc...or here, for that matter. Name a topic, and I bet it can be found on INTPc. Perhaps there isn't as much discussion over certain topics as you would like, though. Or, perhaps the discussions there are too rewarding to "cold" logic for some to feel comfortable long-term in such an environment. I feel like I can discuss any topic there. Perhaps the majority won't agree with me on any given subject, but I don't feel rejected personally because of it. INTPs can generally be counted on to accept you for who you are as long as you don't try to push your beliefs onto them or try to judge them for their beliefs. They have a very "live and let live" attitude I appreciate. Encroach upon their freedoms, though, and it can get dangerous.
Why make a change though? If the people there are happy, then does it matter? If people aren't, they can come here, or elsewhere. Both gain - here, as a filtering system, and there as a den of refuge.
True. INTPc isn't the type of place that will make everyone comfortable. Nor should it be, imo. There are alternatives. I much prefer when people who aren't comfortable there find somewhere else to dwell rather than attack the people therein because of that discomfort. If you don't like being in my house, don't stay. I'm not going to rearrange the furniture for the one or two guests who keep banging their shins on my coffee table.
I remember that I actually complained about the INTPc clique thing at INTJforum one time (before I was a member). But that feeling seems to have changed into a strong community feeling. One of the strongest I've ever experienced on the net. Once you get the hang of the forum vibe, it really becomes quite different. You need perseverance, thick skin and a twisted sense of humour for that, though. I don't think that this is so different from how INTPs deal with acquiring friends in real life. On their terms perhaps. But you're free to not accept those or be aware of the mechanism as you accept. And indeed, once you're in, you're in.
(sigh) You understand. (hug) I knew I liked you for a reason.
I think the bolded section is one of the keys to accepting INTPc, too.
If one is curious, lurk there a long while and get to know the existing characters before going away in disgust. If it still isn't the place for you, that's fine. You probably weren't right for the place, either. That's fine, too.
From what I've observed in real life, it seems like INT's generally hang back from society and participate on a limited basis in things that really interest them. As a result, they are often the least known or understood people in a community. As a result, there can be some friction. A gathering of INTs, then, would be quite an oddity/unknown to non-INTs and, potentially, a source for a certain amount of repulsion or insecurity for those not of like ilk. As Uytuun continued,
I don't know - like all types, INTPs have their limitations and these are reflected on the forum and perhaps condensed because there are a lot of them around. Wouldn't hold that against them.
I like it there. It's "flawed", but aren't we all?
INTPc and think I should visit more than once in a while when it's slow here:
