Talk to me about percentages and...

[Lady_X]

rather or not you place much importance on them. I feel like it's hard to give it a lot of weight since tests can be so unreliable but wonder how it effects the expression of different types.

Like for example my F/T was about 60/40 does that mean it's possible I would appear more detached or aloof then someone with a stronger F?

And would that be why I tested as a 7w8 Enneagram which normally corresponds with ENTP?

And would that also mean that someone who was pretty close in all areas would be really hard to type...or is a preference a preference...and the percentages don't really matter because they fluctuate depending on the situation....curious...thanks.

 

[Nihilen]

I think we can change our type, percentages don't matter much. I'll try changing mine.

 

[booyalab]

It would be more reliable and scientific to assign a percentage to your ice cream flavor preference. You could easily count the number of times in a year that you choose one over the other. But each question in a personality test does not represent a different situation, it's just a different way of articulating the same question. So any variation in the same choice over and over can only really be attributed to fleeting whimsy.

 

[ajblaise]

Small differences between two people in percentages might be indicative of some things, but I'd only really give weight to larger differences. Like a 20% E compared to a 80% E.

Maybe somewhere around 40% or 50% is where I think a difference would most likely be noticeable in two people's personality.

 

[Lady_X]

okay i think i'm understanding correctly then...thanks.

 

[mlittrell]

ya percentages in regards to type are stupid. in regards to the general population, they could have a lot of relevance though i would like to see an updated version from keirseys version

 

[redacted]

rather or not you place much importance on them. I feel like it's hard to give it a lot of weight since tests can be so unreliable but wonder how it effects the expression of different types.

Like for example my F/T was about 60/40 does that mean it's possible I would appear more detached or aloof then someone with a stronger F?

And would that be why I tested as a 7w8 Enneagram which normally corresponds with ENTP?

And would that also mean that someone who was pretty close in all areas would be really hard to type...or is a preference a preference...and the percentages don't really matter because they fluctuate depending on the situation....curious...thanks.

Yeah the percentages don't mean much. I regularly test close to equal in T/F, most often falling a bit on the T side.

You really gotta do it by function analysis. An Ni dom who uses T more than F is only an INTJ if their Thinking is extroverted. If it's introverted, they're INFJ by definition (like me).

Differences in percentages might signify a difference in actual behavior, or different interpretations of the questions, or differences in mood, or differences in self-perception, etc. Too much variability. The tests don't mean that much anyway...I tested as an ENTJ the first time I took one.


I do think there is variability in function usage within types. But I don't think tests can really pull that variable out.


People close on the one-dimensional spectrums of T vs. F or whatever may still be quite easy to type if one mode of judgment is heavily extroverted or introverted.

 

[Lady_X]

^^ got it...cool thanks.

 

[mlittrell]

ya the problem with percentages is technically you can be 50/50 which doesn't work well with MBTI

 

[Lady_X]

so...you prefer to look at it more as like a sliding scale...like someone is a moderately expressed extravert or...very feeling...depending on what is observable?

or what?

 

[A Schnitzel]

It would be more reliable and scientific to assign a percentage to your ice cream flavor preference. You could easily count the number of times in a year that you choose one over the other. But each question in a personality test does not represent a different situation, it's just a different way of articulating the same question. So any variation in the same choice over and over can only really be attributed to fleeting whimsy.

What she said.

 

[mlittrell]

so...you prefer to look at it more as like a sliding scale...like someone is a moderately expressed extravert or...very feeling...depending on what is observable?

or what?

well i dont look into it that much anymore, if they are an F they are an F, a T a T. but when i used to i would look at it like a see saw or whatever those things are called. i would usually look at it in regards to the functions though and not the individual dichotomies. now i really just look at it in regards to temperament but i look at the strength of the functions very generally and not that much.

EDIT:

the reason percentages (or really any form of a scale) are stupid is because environment seems to have a large factor while taking the test. if i were to take the test now i would probably type as an NT of sorts. now it is still good to get an idea of how strong they might be but its not worth wasting the time thinking about it.

 

[Lady_X]

^^ haha...thanks...makes sense...no need to put such definitive labels on people anyway...i quite agree.

 

[mlittrell]

^^ haha...thanks...makes sense...no need to put such definitive labels on people anyway...i quite agree.

you are quite welcome

 

[Pancreas]

You really gotta do it by function analysis. An Ni dom who uses T more than F is only an INTJ if their Thinking is extroverted. If it's introverted, they're INFJ by definition (like me).

I would think that would only work if there was a significant preference for Ti over Te. But I'm relatively new to this, so not entirely sure about that. Feel completely free to correct me if I’m wrong.

Anyway, I've tested ISTP almost every single time I've taken tests and I'd have to say the percentages work for me, and that may only be because I’m answering questions in the way they are supposed to be answered, and not through a slightly different understanding of the words used, etc.

But, like ajblaise said, only larger differences would really be able to be used. Really, given the inaccuracy of measuring ‘personality’, to get the best picture you’d need to take into account the so called percentages, the ordering of the preferred functions as well as the individual dichotomies preferred. And even then, it’s going to be inaccurate because the tests try to quantify something that can’t really be quantified.

 

[garbage]

I don't think the individual preference percentages mean much, especially because they're at the whim of whatever test you take.. but the collection of the four percentages might mean something (albeit somewhat insignificant) taken as a collective. Someone who consistently scores 100% on all of their attributes would probably identify more greatly with their type description than someone who's more borderline across all of them.

If function order is a more important determination of type, and if there's a difference between extraverted and introverted functions, what would borderline J/P even mean? After all, that particular preference flips one's entire function order.

Even tests that deal with function order, or indeed any other personality measure, could be subjected to the whim of the moment. Strict quantification of this stuff is tricky at best, misleading at worst.

Despite all of that, I still include mine.. albeit just as random trivia

 

[redacted]

I would think that would only work if there was a significant preference for Ti over Te. But I'm relatively new to this, so not entirely sure about that. Feel completely free to correct me if I’m wrong.

There usually is a significant preference for one direction of Thinking. And if not, you can use the inverse of the direction of Feeling. One of them is gonna have a significant preference.

It's technically possible that someone could have equal preference for Te and Ti AND Fe and Fi. But that's gonna be a problem with any way of grouping personalities (except if you make one personality type for every person on earth, but that's pointless).

 

[edcoaching]

On the real MBTI the percentages mean nada. You take the Indicator, learn about the preferences, self-select, and decide in tandem with the INdicator results the preferences that describe you best. The scores only tell you how clear you are.

Then you leave instruments behind. You've got your 4 letters. You figure out what that means to you. Read up on the common strengths and stresses of your type. Do they fit? Where could you continue to mature or improve skills? How do you continually trip up and are there strategies that work for others of your type that might work for you? Do your foibles give insights into persistent communication or relationship problems?

The power's in the theory, not scores and instruments...

 

[Lady_X]

^^ thanks!