this post was submitted on 04 Nov 2025
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me_irl
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People will shit on astrology and then gloat about MBTI like it's any different.
There's a contradiction here. If your MBTI type isn't 'fixed' and is based on how you decide to answer questions, then it implies that you can choose your own outcome and MBTI type, rendering it meaningless.
If your MBTI is fixed because it is based on how you answer questions so long as it is without the intent to alter its outcome, then it is not anymore deterministic than a horoscope.
At the end of the day, people see what they want to in themselves and discard the rest, whether it's reading a horoscope or MBTI profile.
I fail to follow your logic here. The idea is that the answers you give - which are assumed here to be "without the intent to alter" - are based on your personality, and can therefore be used to measure it. I'm not sure what the word "deterministic" means in this context, but the answer do not determine the personality - they are determined by it.
"Fixed" is also not a good word - one's personality, and the way they answer such questions, can change during their lifetime as they get older and shaped by experiences.
The mapping of MBTI questions and results have no basis in science or modern psychology. The perceived accuracy of the results of the test is created through the Barnum effect. It's not any different from how a horoscope might say 'scorpios have intense emotions'.
It's not the the results are untrue, it is that the reader will always introspect on the qualities that they are told that they have, and find it true to some extent.
For example, I can tell you that you are a messy person, or I can tell you that you are organized person. In each instance, you would be able to find supporting evidence for both.
This is because the human mind is far more complex than the black and white definitions given by MBTI. If anything, horoscopes give you a much longer list of non-specific attributes to think about, which might lead to more introspection.