I've reduced my blog to a fairly skeletal format. I felt the need for a change. One thing I'd like to try is doing shorter, but more frequent, posts. So, I'm going to try to get everything out within a few paragraphs.
I'm not sure what it is, but it seems really popular lately to type oneself as an INFJ. For awhile there, there was sort of a precious attitude "We're the rarest of types, so if you think you're one of us, you're probably wrong." Now, though, it has become the Type Six of the Myers-Briggs. When in doubt, type as INFJ seems to be the unspoken rule. In doing so, descriptions of Extraverted Feeling get stretched to the point of almost describing Introverted Feeling.
I see a lot of people that are probably INFPs, INTPs or INTJs typing themselves as INFJ. There's a bizarre sort of question begging in place. The process goes something like this:
(1)I think Person A is an INFJ
(2)Person A does not fit most of the characteristics associated with INFJ type dynamics.
(3)I still think Person A is INFJ.
(4)Person A does fit some of the central characteristics associated with Type X, or at least moreso than INFJ.
(5)The person does not, however, fit some of the peripheral characteristics of Type X
(6)The person must not be Type X
(7)The description must not fully capture INFJ and they're really INFJ
(8)Persons B, C and D will now be typed as INFJ based on similarities to Person A.
Look at the concepts, and take Ockham's razor to it. Look at the type descriptions and see what the best fit is. Then, look at the explanation of the functions and look at how those are present in your personality. If you find yourself uttering the phrase "not fully captured in the literature..." then you're probably stretching the system to fit people (yourself or others) into that type.
