what is this girl?

[Fairy...]

INFJ or ISFJ?

-intuitive

-but she speaks in a 'concrete' language

-highly determined

-works herself to the ground

-highly perfectionistic

-over thinks things constantly and gets caught up with small matters (worry gets to her)

-excellent writing skills

-has difficulty explaining things (gets better with this when she comes to know a person and is relaxed)

-gets upset (more than the average person) when she hears about bad things happening close to home

-always says 'I just know. I can't explain it' - not sure how accurate this knowing is.

-loves reading esp on abstract type topics

-achieves more than her natural intelligence suggests

-talk to her the day before a big exam and it seems she doesnt know that much, but then ends up getting really good marks

 

[Amargith]

ISFJ?

My mom is one too and she has those inexplicable hunches as well that she follows but doesn't know where they come from. However, she's very much about the here and now and has a memory rivalling a computer.

 

[The_Liquid_Laser]

Could be either, but I'd lean toward INFJ.

 

[Kasper]

Sounds a lot more like ISFJ based on what you've said, but it's limited information.

 

[Glycerine]

IsFJ?

 

[OrangeAppled]

ISFJ - they're usually smarter than they appear. INFJs can almost project the opposite - smarter than they are, or just very smart period.

 

[whimsical]

infj

sensors dont like abstraction

 

[Shaggy]

IsFJ - sensors still can have intuition. They just don't seem to understand and/or accept these hunches as just hunches. My wife, ESFJ, tries to explain those moments as ESP or seeing the future through dreams. It comes natural to me. I stopped trying to understand it along time ago.

 

[thescientist]

I'm INTJ and a lot of these apply to me. Highly perfectionist, I overanalyze everything, have always excelled academically, and can never explain what's in my head.

-EDIT-
Didnt realize you narrowed it down to INFJ or ISFJ.

 

[Maxwell22290]

ISFJ sounds right.

 

[JustHer]

ISFJ sounds exactly right. My mom is a lot like that... she seems so highly intuitive but those "hunches" are actually Si coming into play. I think she just gets this strong awareness of a past experience and all the feelings associated with it.

 

[Fairy...]

thanks everyone.
she is definately an I and definately an F. I'm fairly certain she is a J, although I have noticed she is really only organised with her studies. She leaves other matters, such as her social life to the last minute and she is not great with saving money, organising finances etc.
She is pretty creative and a reasonably stylish dresser - very conservative, but sometimes will wear something a bit alternative.

 

[Totenkindly]

I have seen INFJs who come across as ISFJs far more regularly than ISFJs who come across as INFJs.

It's really difficult to "fake" N vs S, I think it is the primary "problem causing" function pair in relationships. It's difficult for each side to perceive the world in a way it does not; at least with T vs F, some of the logic is articulatable and thus can be applied even if you don't use it naturally, but with N vs S, it's like asking someone to see in colors they can't even perceive.

One interesting thing though is that generation impacts presentation of type. I think when type (as a theory) was developing, people found it easy to associate an archetype (such as SJ) with a particular set of behaviors, but within the last twenty years or so, Western culture has changed drastically and thus what is "traditional/standard" is changing too. There is much more openness in the culture, and this openness is still reflected by the stability-seeking SJs. I think they no longer look like the cliche image we have left over from the mid-last-century, when culture was very homogenous and all roles were very defined.

IOW, what I'm saying is that I meet ISFJs of Gen X and younger age (esp Gen Y and younger) and they're not nearly as stolid and closed and homogenous as those in the Boomer generations seemed to be. They can look more P and maybe even look more N due to the "openness/diversity" factor The culture itself has become flexible, and thus more flexibility and diversity has become one of their supported traits.

 

[raindancing]

Reading through the OP, my first thought was that it reminded me strongly of my dad, ISFJ

 

[fill]

The part that screams Si is:

gets upset (more than the average person) when she hears about bad things happening close to home

I've noticed Si users will instantly relate to anybody's pain- even when watching movies. If somebody's killed in a gruesome way, I'll say, "Oh, shit!" but they'll yell, "Ouch!" and scrunch up like it was them that died. This is all based purely on observation, though.

 

[mwv6r]

I felt pretty strongly that the description was INFJ, but then reading others' posts I'm not so sure. My mom is an ISFJ, and really the description could apply to either one of us. We're both very perfectionistic, good at writing, worriers, etc.

I need more info... could you describe any conversations you've had with her?

I think the biggest difference between INFJ and ISFJ is that INFJ's tend to be more alternative / farther from the status quo / "weirder." Vegetarian? Strongly idealistic political views? Kooky sense of humor? I think those would point to INFJ. We tend to project an image of normalcy and even conservatism in our professional life and with casual acquiantances, but scratch beneath the surface and you will find that intuitive wackiness, lol.

Strong focus on doing the right thing / fulfilling obligations, sticking to normal topics during conversations with friends, suspicion/unease with those outside the norm, generous in concrete ways, good with household chores, etc., etc. ... I'd say ISFJ. Generosity I think is the trait that stands out the most about my mom. She's constantly putting her loved ones before herself in concrete ways (e.g., giving her time, energy, money). I think of myself as a nice person, but my kindness is often limited to emotional support (shoulder to cry on, words of comfort, etc.) rather than physically doing things for others.