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[SJ] Intellectually curious SJ's

Fidelia

Iron Maiden
Staff member
Joined
May 31, 2009
Messages
14,497
MBTI Type
INFJ
My ESTJ was very curious and inquisitive. It was one of the things that attracted me to him and I think from what I know about ESTJs now it had something to do with enjoying being competent at a lot of things and also being the go to person who could offer information, trivia, advice, opinions, help, expertise etc. He had a wide range of skills and was always taking a class or learning new things.
 

Lambchop

New member
Joined
Aug 13, 2009
Messages
235
MBTI Type
ISFJ
My ESTJ was very curious and inquisitive. It was one of the things that attracted me to him and I think from what I know about ESTJs now it had something to do with enjoying being competent at a lot of things and also being the go to person who could offer information, trivia, advice, opinions, help, expertise etc. He had a wide range of skills and was always taking a class or learning new things.

Giggly, you crack me up! Seriously, people need to kill the generalizations! SJ's are not a cult or sheep. Each is unique! I want to learn everything I can about everything in the world...from different religious philosphies to politics to human nature and I can't wait to start law school. Is that intellectual curosity? I also like to listen to people talk about their feelings and to nuture the crap out of people. That could be considered non-intellectual curosity.

I'm loving learning about the different types and how they think and see the world. Some people on this board make me laugh out loud and some leave me thinking about their comments for days randomly. I'm not interested in judging or generalizations. :steam:
 

Habba

New member
Joined
Jul 22, 2008
Messages
988
MBTI Type
ISTJ
Enneagram
1w9
I do long wikipedia-runs. Whenever I come upon a term or thing I know very little about, it's wiki-time! This has given me an extensive general knowledge, and I usually rock at games like Trivial Pursuit.

I like random stats and facts. I collect them.

A friend of mine (female ISTJ) also has a habit of collecting information. However in her case it's dialect-related words of any language. She's always excited to hear another new word.
 

simulatedworld

Freshman Member
Joined
Nov 7, 2008
Messages
5,552
MBTI Type
ENTP
Enneagram
7w6
Instinctual Variant
sx/so
I find that many SJs are more intellectually curious than they let on.

It's just kept private because the outer world needs to be kept rigidly and practically organized and there isn't much room for curious meandering outside your own thoughts.
 

NewEra

New member
Joined
Dec 21, 2008
Messages
3,104
MBTI Type
I
What separates the intellectually curious SJ's from the non-intellectually curious SJ's?

SJ's, on average, seem to be one of the least intellectually curious of the types, but some break this stereotype.

Do you think extroversion vs. introversion has to do with it? Maturity? Intelligence? Upbringing?

Yeah, I don't know what it is, but I'm not at all naturally intellectually curious. I know some NJ's who are baffled by my lack of curiosity. Basically I don't like to learn certain things (as dumb as that sounds), I have narrowed interests. Instead of curiosity, I have a desire to succeed in the world. My knowledge may not be top-notch (because of my lack of curiosity) but my hopefulness and work habits, when I'm pushed, make up for it. I'm going to try to become more naturally curious,
 

IZthe411

Carerra Lu
Joined
Jul 19, 2009
Messages
2,585
MBTI Type
INTJ
I think it has less to do with being intellectually curious, but for the purpose. If having the knowledge serves no purpose for the individual, then it's not worth it for them.

It depends on individuals. If it's within their purpose to take in the information, they'll do so.

There are a lot of intellectually curious SJs out there, most likely they aren't in the pursuit of anything that crawls across the screen.

I guess the NT intellect argument got old?
 

IZthe411

Carerra Lu
Joined
Jul 19, 2009
Messages
2,585
MBTI Type
INTJ
Or simply just a lack of caring about issues that to them are so removed and abstract and have nothing to do with them and what they do care about.

This. I'm not going to waste my energy debating on something that will benefit me none in the long run.
 

IZthe411

Carerra Lu
Joined
Jul 19, 2009
Messages
2,585
MBTI Type
INTJ
I'm intellectually curious. I wiki what I don't know. Even with words- if I don't know it, I'll look it up.

Rarely do I ask someone else. I do the work myself, and should it be necessary to share, I will.

There are some things that I will ask above researching myself. I noticed someone brought up car repair. I'm not going to read about is how to repair something. I might read forums to get a sense of cost and troubleshooting, but I'll ask someone I know who knows cars to tell me what needs to be done.
 

Amira

New member
Joined
Dec 18, 2008
Messages
199
MBTI Type
ISTJ
SJs perhaps seem less intellectually curious to you than NTs because we are systematic thinkers. We don't challenge your ideas or do the sparring back-and-forth like NTs do. That doesn't necessarily mean that we're less intellectually curious, capable, or intelligent than NTs. SJs tend to think "inside the box" and accept things as they are, incorporating ideas into universal belief systems, rather than challenge mainstream ideas and look for hidden meanings and connections.

So maybe it seems like we're not intellectually curious, but we're just not interested in testing ideas with you or engaging in debates or sparring. I'm not a confrontational person, so if someone tries to provoke me, I'm going to give my (differing) opinion, but I'm not interested in arguing with you. When I get attacked by people I tend to ask them questions about why they believe what they belive, rather than challenge their position. This is IRL face-to-face conversations - in writing, I will tear you apart. But I'm a really curious person who is more 5ish than SJ. I want to know about everything and anything.
Yeah, what dnrivera said. Plus, I usually have either thought about a lot of the angles of a topic or can think through the different opinions possible quickly, so I don't need to go through those motions out loud. It's simply more efficient for me to debate a topic internally and listen to others' thoughts on it when necessary.

I love reading up on topics as I am a very visual learner and it is easy for me to remember things I read. I tend to get hold of something and research it to death for a few weeks or months and then move on to another topic to study in depth. My whole family is like this so there certainly is an element of 'tradition' to it, but I think I would love learning even if I had a different upbringing.
 

Crazydaisy

New member
Joined
Jul 27, 2009
Messages
21
MBTI Type
ISFJ
I think the stereotype that S's aren't as intelligent as N's isn't quite right. My dad is an ISTJ and is VERY intelligent (graduated top of his high school in Toronto, has an MD and MPH). My mother (ESFJ) is also very intelligent and has a masters as well. I (I/ESFJ) would rate my intelligence as reasonably high (IQ tests that I've done suggest 120-125 range). I'm also very interested in stuff like the MBTI and new concepts and ideas (probably due to a tertiary Ti or Ne)
 
B

brainheart

Guest
Some of the SJs in my family (ISTJ, ESTJ) love to research and debate the hell out of things, but it's generally to confirm their beliefs or the established way of doing things. In other words, they'll uncover fact after fact to support their argument, but are not inclined to take new or contrary opinions into consideration. (Although the ESTJ is more likely to do so than the ISTJ.)

As opposed to me, who is open to other ideas and possibilities, so I will consider both the new and the old with equal weight. I think in this way I am more intellectually curious, while their command of extraverted thinking may make them appear more intellectual, not to mention enable them to succeed more adroitly in the traditional 'intellectual' pursuits.
 

OrangeAppled

Sugar Hiccup
Joined
Mar 20, 2009
Messages
7,626
MBTI Type
INFP
Enneagram
4w5
Instinctual Variant
sp/sx
The SJs in my family enjoy information a lot. They are all avid readers and like to learn. They love history and culture. They like to be knowledgeable in a variety of topics. They are not interested in analyzing though (which can bug me, as I am sure my analyzing bugs them).

They do find a comfort in what is familiar, but they also don't want to be the last one to miss out on the latest and greatest, so that keeps them out of a rut. They're not inclined to be interested in psychology or philosophy or theories/concepts in general though. They only pay them attention when they can apply them in their life (ie. they know someone with an emotional disorder, so they read up on it).
 
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