Is it possible to not have an MBTI type?

[Tyrinth]

Back when I was on medication I consistently scored as an INTP, and I totally agreed with this label.

However, when I am off my medication my personality becomes a bit... unstable.

After I stopped, my MBTI results started to be all over the place... usually IxxP, but I have even scored as an E from time to time... (Which admittedly confused the hell out of me, though I suppose I could be an E with severe social anxiety or something... but that's a question for another time...) And from time to time I score J, which is also weird.
And I don't quite agree with any type.

I'm just getting sick of floating between several types without quite falling into any of them...

So the original question... Is it possible to not have an MBTI type?

 

[FireShield98]

Back when I was on medication I consistently scored as an INTP, and I totally agreed with this label.

However, when I am off my medication my personality becomes a bit... unstable.

After I stopped, my MBTI results started to be all over the place... usually IxxP, but I have even scored as an E from time to time... (Which admittedly confused the hell out of me, though I suppose I could be an E with severe social anxiety or something... but that's a question for another time...) And from time to time I score J, which is also weird.
And I don't quite agree with any type.

I'm just getting sick of floating between several types without quite falling into any of them...

So the original question... Is it possible to not have an MBTI type?

That's how I feel about enneagram types. One day I'm a five, the next I'm a four, the next I'm a one, the next I'm a nine, the next I'm a six, etc.

I recommend taking a cognitive functions test and see what result you get on that. That's what completely confirmed that I was an INTJ.

 

[Tyrinth]

That's how I feel about enneagram types. One day I'm a five, the next I'm a four, the next I'm a one, the next I'm a nine, the next I'm a six, etc.

I recommend taking a cognitive functions test and see what result you get on that. That's what completely confirmed that I was an INTJ.

Actually I have, usually my top function is Fi, but after that it isn't really helpful. Either I get like 3 or four introverted functions in a row, or Se and Ne fight for dominance, changing randomly depending on when I take the test.

I guess INFP and ISFP would be the most likely given those results, but even my cognitive function scores change to the point where I don't have much faith in them.

(I was starting to settle on INFP, when for no apparent reason my Se scores went through the roof, and called everything into question for me... again...)

 

[garbage]

I have had similar experiences for similar reasons.

So, yeah, if you get confused, just treat MBTI as a subjective categorization scheme, perhaps even just as a snapshot at a point in time. You can maybe wind up figuring out a 'stable' type from there.

But don't fret too much about it. It's 'possible' to 'not have a type,' because the whole system is just a construct that's hardly scientifically backed.

 

[mikamickmac]

My GUESS:

Your MBTI type is determined by answering a questionnaire. Each question relates to only one of the pairs making up your MBTI type. E.g. One group of questions will be targetting your preference of E vs I, another group testing your preference of S vs N etc. If there is an even number of questions testing each preference then, mathematically, it is possible to not have an MBTI type. If the number of questions is an odd number, then you will have a Type (unless you've neglected to answer a question).

At the end of the day if your preferences are very weak (e.g, there was an odd number of questions but the answers indicating an I preference was only one more than the number of answers indicating a E preference) you are very likely to question your Type and ask questions like "Is it possible to not have an MBTI). It is also possible that you will experience inner turmoil when making decisions because you lack the biases often required to make decisions. You may often doubt the decisions you make (because you reflect on them from a different perspective to which you made the decision) and other people may find you inconsistent.

About 10 yrs ago, I used the Hermmann Brain Dominance Instrument as part of a Team Leader development course. I was one of three people that returned results indicating equal use of the 4 quadrants. The facilitator indicated that the three of us had the balance required to become CEOs. There was one proviso, however...if we could deal with the inner turmoil that might result from not having a preference. If we couldn't, he suggested we could end up in the loony bin if we tried to become CEOs. Maybe the same could be said of having weak preferences indicated by the MBTI test.

 

[Savage Idealist]

No one really has a 'type'. It's more of a matter of which type you most possibly relate to, but overall we share traits between any and all types.

 

[Medtnertunes]

I don't know what to think of MBTI when I buy it. When I don't buy it, its easy for me to feel that people are just people, not types, and this is a gross simplification that isn't even very consistent or meaningful. But the temptation that motivates me to buy it is when I get nervous about whether or not I'm compatible with my romantic interest, and then want to fall back on "type evidence" as proof that we'll get a long and like each other over the long term.