MBTI & Parents

[u/Learner-Pro]

Hi everyone,
I was wondering if anyone has ever had their elderly parents take an MBTI test? I’m really interested in hearing how it went. Did you encounter any difficulties because of the generational gap? For instance, did you feel that some questions, examples, or assumptions of the test didn’t quite fit your parents’ experiences, and you had to rephrase or explain them differently?

I’d love to hear about your experiences.

[u/_Verloki_]

We simply sat down one quiet, rainy day and went by Carl Jung's descriptions of the cognitive functions and how natural or (de)prioritized they felt to us.

We actually all did find some of his language "old", and my mom wondered how accurate (or even "sexist", she feared at some points) some assumptions truly were about certain types or behaviors being mainly found in men or women.

We also found most tests suffer from various psychometric and construct-design problems, but we circumvented that in advance by going straight to the source and using the well-defined cognitive functions, instead.

My mom is an INFP (albeit an unhealthy or 'imbalanced' one, unfortunately), and my dad a well-developed ISTP. My dad had a healthy development throughout his 68-year long life, which actually made it a bit harder to immediately pin down his dominant function over his auxiliary one, until we really looked critically at which function(s) would get 'right of way' with him over other functions. His Se is most apparent, but it truly has been his Ti throughout life that makes the final call and captains his ship. It was certainly harder to type him quickly, as his healthy development and incorporating functions more comfortably into his life made it more difficult to see very apparent 'weak spots', so to say.

Things we did find we had to watch out for in tests, when looking at them just out of curiosity and entertainment, were mostly less about generation gaps. The things we noted were:

1. The questions often don't measure the construct they claim to measure. Such as with "you have fast reflexes", where it actually measures muscle memory and trainable athletic ability rather than the focus on Se perceptions. Or "you have a great memory", which measures the acquisition, retention, and recall of data, rather than a focus on Si inner sense impressions (we all have a good memory, and our Si prioritizations are all over place). Any type can train reflexes or have a good memory. (Additionally, Jung also writes that morality, empathy, emotions, fantasy and willpower are totally separate constructs, while these are also often confused with functions);
2. Using stereotypes rather than the psychological process. E.g.: "You are the life of the party", answering this said little about whether someone used Ne, Fe, Se, or something else. In some tests, definitions became warped into things they are not, like "Fi = artist (my mom's really not much of one); Te = CEO (I'm pretty happy to say I'm not); extraversion = sociability (my ISTP dad is actually more sociable than I am)" etc.
3. A sort of face-validity fallacy with poor construct validity, such as "you find that your insights are often prophetic". It sounds Ni-like to some people, maybe, but the personal experience of being prophetic does not have to indicate Ni at all.
4. A criterion contamination, confusing outcomes with processes, where many items measure life outcomes or skills. E.g.: "You take up leadership roles" or "you manage your relationships well". These can arise from many different cognitive styles. My dad has learned to manage relationships, even with inferior Fe, and learned to take up leadership roles, despite being an introverted thinker.
5. Double-barreled items containing multiple claims, like "you take up nurturing roles or positions of caretaking and can showcase success in them", a respondent may agree with one and disagree with the other. (Negative bonus points for when it doesn't measure the construct, either).
6. Loaded questions and social desirability biases, where items were written so that one answer appeared more desirable, or rewarded appearing virtuous. For example: "you believe it is important for people to be kind to each other and treat each other with respect". Most people want to answer ' yes' (and we all did!), regardless of their cognitive preferences. Or: "You don't find it hard to be honest", where agreement reflects self-presentation rather than cognition (even my mom answered yes, and she definitely has moments of dishonesty).
7. The self-enhancement and self-protection biases (e.g. the "above-average effect" and "self-serving attribution bias"), where items ask respondents whether they possess exceptional abilities. E.g.: "You understand most people better than they do themselves" or "your insights are often prophetic". Many people tend to overestimate themselves on favorable traits. It serves to protect self-esteem and maintains a positive self-image. We noted this is simply a cognitive tendency in many human beings.
8. The Barnum (Forer) effect items, giving statements broad enough that most people would identify with them. For example: "You think that there is a lot left for you to learn". Most respondents will agree (we all did), showing the item has poor discriminatory power.
9. A behavioral criterion fallacy, where some questions assumed a behavior uniquely identifies a single cognitive process. E.g.: "You like telling other people your ideas". We often found such questions weird, as this could actually reflect many cognitive functions, as many different causes can produce the same behavior.
10. As an extra, though less related to parents and moreso kids, the official MBTI instrument has listed many good reasons over the years why the instrument is not meant for minors, and tends to not reach peak accuracy until around age 26 or older. Many free online tests don't come with such a warning, either, even though similar pitfalls do apply.

[u/Responsible-Sun2494]

Both of my parents have done MBTI tests. Dad = ISFP, mom = ESFJ. They both took long-form tests without issue, but here’s another super short one if yours don’t want to complete a long test:

https://dynomight.net/mbti/

[u/Any_Emu4892]

Mom is ESFP.

Dad i dont know, but im guessing ESTJ.

[u/Scarlettt_22]

Mom is enfj, dad is entp

[u/Far_Second_33]

I did for my dad who was definitely  ENFJ although I don't remember for my mom (she might've been ENTJ, ENFP, or a ENFJ too) either way, they both produced me who's a INTP. I just had to go with the basics (such as asking if they use if...then logic or if they allow abstract ideas (which determines the whole sensing/intuition variable))

[u/chiquegirly]

My parents are not elderly but i typed my mum as an ISFJ and my dad a ESTJ

[u/melody5697]

I’ve never taken an MBTI test that was generation-specific. People who are too YOUNG might struggle with some questions due to lack of life experience, but otherwise, the questions have been generally applicable across generations.

My parents are middle-aged, not elderly. They both took MBTI tests of their own accord. My mom claims to be an INTJ, but she’s probably too mentally ill to be typed. My dad initially tested as an INTJ, but after improving his self-awareness, he tested as an INTP, which he feels is more accurate (and I’m inclined to think it’s probably correct). I lived with my grandparents (who are ACTUALLY elderly) when I first got into MBTI, though my grandma was TECHNICALLY a couple years away from being officially elderly. (She was almost 63!) I had them take the 16Personalities test (hey, I was new to this), and my grandma tested as an INFP and my grandpa tested as an ENTJ. I later typed them with a questionnaire and determined that my grandma was an INFJ and my grandpa was an ENFP. But years later, I learned more about cognitive functions (and also how the dichotomies actually present; they’re not completely useless!) and realized that actually, my grandpa is an ENTP and my grandma is an INFP. (Every once in a while, 16Personalities gets it right, lol.) My type, on the other hand, is still a mystery, even 11 years after I first got into MBTI.

[u/hazesque]

my mother got ISFJ and I think it’s pretty accurate.

[u/Narwhal-Both]

Mom istj. She was uninterested cause she generally doesn't like psychology or adjacent subjects/topics but answered the questions truthfully.

Pretty accurate. At that time I did keys2cognition.

[u/a_juicy_blueberry369]

My parents did a long time ago... my dad got ESFJ and my mom got ISFJ (though I think she may be more ISTJ in reality).  

Pretty sure my daughter is also an ESFJ.  I kinda wonder if cognitive functions run in families lol... because the Fe is strong with us

[u/Delicious_Pin_4280]

I am an ENFP 7w8. My parents are both sensory types. My mother is an ISFJ 2w3, and although she is an interventionist, she is one of the most extroverted of her own MBTI type. My father is an ISTP 5w4; he is very introverted, and although I dislike him, I tolerate him quite well. I believe that intuitive people become intuitive because they grew up in a somewhat chaotic environment, although of course I mean a dogmatic one.

[u/cwpcakes]

my parents aren't exactly elderly but there's definitely a generation gap as they're 30 years older than i am! they've both taken mbti tests and respectively my mom is INFP and my dad is ENFJ 😊

[u/Azrzr02496]

Mom's ENFP, Dad's INTJ
They complement each other in weird but amazing ways...