[INFP] INFP = Copycat?!

[neofrizz]

Does the INFP easily take on the appearance of another type? If this is possible, are there particular types which the INFP tends to gravitate toward/copycat?



**If I just stumbled on something that's already textbook; let me know, or pretend I didn't...

 

[mlittrell]

there was a guy whose name was neidnegal (i prolly spelled that wrong) and he wrote profiles for each type and sports and such. the one thing that he was correct with was the INFPs ability to mimic (and this traveled over to the ENFP).

that being said he was a self proclaimed PhD and it turns out he was a fraud

which brings me to my next point. myers briggs is a model for the human cognition and should not describe behavior TOO much. though type can be reflected in behavior it is still a reflection and not the real thing. any "mimicking" or "acting" like another type is nurture (environmental variables) and not nature.

 

[quietmusician]

Oh yeah. I consider myself a shapeshifter. I used to be considered outgoing (ESFP maybe) back in my day (I'm only 22, but you know what I mean). I think for the past four years people would assume I am an INTJ or INTP. I think that's because my will for caring is slowly dying, lol. Nah, I'm just tired of feeling everything. So to answer your question, yes I often shift into other types.

 

[Gauche]

I agree with mlittrell on this.
It's probably not a matter of MBTI. There could be many other factors influencing our particular INFP out of MBTI.

Personally, I don't perceive INFPs as a particular shape-shifter.

 

[Siegfried]

I agree with mlittrell on this.
It's probably not a matter of MBTI. There could be many other factors influencing our particular INFP out of MBTI.

Personally, I don't perceive INFPs as a particular shape-shifter.

Yea, none of us are clear examples of type, we're all individuals, with our own coolness.

 

[mlittrell]

beautifully stated.

what i posted above ive been trying to push quite a bit. it seems that people are getting behavior confused with MBTI. the human cognition is not something so easily explained and thus we need a basic model to structure any thoughts around.

 

[frenchkiss]

For me, it can be really hard to blend into the atmosphere of a bunch of different types. I just stay quiet instead.

One-on-one, I tend to sort of morph myself to match the vibe of the other person probably more than most people do. It's partly empathy, but it actually also serves a self-protective purpose; I'm less likely to get hurt if I don't put the full force of my true personality out in the open.

I think I come across as ISFJ-ish at work (for my job I need to be organized and pay attention to detail), but I think N and P are probably my weaker preferences.

 

[Nonsensical]

My life has been quite a story..My dad says I was very ESFJ/P-like (LOL) up until I was about 5. My mother died when I was 3, and I moved a few times afterwards, and when I was 5 we finally settled down again. Because of all that was going on (environmental stimuli) I changed drastically until I was about 7. I was more quiet, and way more layed back. I'm think I was more ISFP-like. Life went on, and about 4 years ago, my father remarried. Last MarchShe ended up cheating on him, and moved out within a month, and it royally screwed up our family. I gained self awareness, and started thinking differently. My dad is extremely firmiliar with the MBTI and through him, and several tests, I started to shed the skins of who I thought I was, and became who I really am.

I don't mean to ramble on, but my point is that if drastic change is brought about, especially in times where a peson is most vulnerable (when I growing up), that it can the person. One could argue that types don't change that easily, but types are simply gerneralities, and are by no means set in stone. This may not be exactly related to the topic, but I feel it demonstrates the INFPs nature.

 

[Oleander]

I don't know if it's copying or a response that often comes out as copying but not always. Some people just turn me straight off. My mind won't function. Others, I will find myself responding to them in their style. I pick some accents up as well from people I'm talking with. It isn't conscious as far as I feel it.

 

[Lauren Ashley]

Does the INFP easily take on the appearance of another type? If this is possible, are there particular types which the INFP tends to gravitate toward/copycat?

Yes, my INFP dad is an INFJ wannabe.

 

[sleuthiness]

Copycat? What's a copycat? How much copying are we talking about?

I'm assuming that your question is for non-infps.

 

[CrystalViolet]

I wouldn't say mimic, or copy, but I do mirror to some extent the people around me. I adopt the mannerisms and inflections of speech of others far quicker than the majority of people. I think of it as camoflage.
It's a rare person who sees me in my natural state.
I take it it's seen as a bad thing? I see it as a natural step for a empathetic personality, provided you stay true in your self.

 

[jtanSis1]

It's because of the empathy that we understand what it's like to be them. Then, since we don't have many boundaries ourselves, we mimic for any reason we come up with.

 

[CrystalViolet]

That's so weird, I have a whole obstacle course of boundaries for people who want to get close to navigate through, yet I know what people are feeling (and by deduction what they are thinking, with no effort at all). To the point, I "mirror" mannerisms and inflections of voice of the the people around me.
When I think about it, it's kinda freakily sci-fi.

 

[TrueHeart]

INFP is sometimes called the Chameleon type. I look at it this way: when dealing with people, I "take on" various aspects of their own personalities so I can relate to them. It's not something I do deliberately: that's just naturally how I operate. I still remember (though it was many, many years ago) what a startling idea it was when I realized that other people (perhaps I should say persons of types other than xNFP) actually don't operate that way. Some people are easier to assimilate than others (perhaps the ones who are more unlike me are more difficult to do) and I find it easier to get along with them.

I think these lines from Keats are about this operation; I know it resonates keenly with the folks at INFPgc:

When I am in a room with People, if ever I am free from speculating on creations of my own brain, then not myself goes home to myself; but the identity of everyone in the room begins to press upon me so that I am in a very little time annihilated — not only among Men: it would be the same in a Nursery of children. John Keats (Letters, pp. 227f; October 27, 1818)

 

[JocktheMotie]

I actually do something similar. I will adopt the mannerisms, personalities, niceties that are accepted within a certain group in order to blend in. This excerpt from INTP profile I think describes it pretty well...

INTPs dislike making the first move and tend to mirror the emotional content of the other person. A jolly person will quickly bring the INTP out of his shell, as much as that is possible, while a serious person will find a serious INTP looking back at him. In this sense, INTPs preference for intuitive perception (rather than action) with respect to people results in them resembling a chameleon. The INTP can fit into many different modes of behaviour, even contradictory ones, in order to get into the mindset of the other person. The goal is to gain enough intuitive data to analyse and assess the person. In doing this, the INTP remains somewhat reserved, never wholly identifying himself with his surroundings. As chameleons, INTPs are therefore approachable and open, unless the Ne tells the INTP that the other person is a type he doesn't like, in which case the reserved attitude may become too obvious. The chameleon behaviour can be particularly strong when discussing something.

If INFPs do this too, maybe it's a characteristic of Ne function in introverts? Who knows.

 

[BerberElla]

Well for myself I don't think so, I may sometimes appear to the causal observer to be another of the feeling types, but I can't mimic the thinking types lol might try, but can't.

 

[CrystalViolet]

I can to certain degree IRL. Much harder online though, unless it's a topic I'm very much at ease with.

 

[iwakar]

I am very capable of this chameleonic behavior. I outstrip my INFP boyfriend in this ability by far.

I have no theories on it.

 

[bronte]

I'm capable of this too and think its how i connect with people but also why connecting with people is tiring - a feeling of losing yourself