I did my Myers Briggs Type Indicator accreditation 6 years ago, and one of the things that made a big impact on me at the time was when they told us that your MBTI profile is inherited. If this is true, that would make it one of the few profiles of this type where this is the case. In fact I can’t think of another one where this is also true.
I must admit I was a bit sceptical about it. Surely we develop these preferences for how we live life from the way we’re brought up, don’t we?
What’s your reaction to the idea that it is inherited? Can you see your preferences in one or other of your parents? What about “downstream”, in your children if you have them?
When I asked myself this, I was won over by the evidence literally sitting in front of me. I’m an ENFP, and very conveniently for this purpose (and don’t we both wish we’d know this before we got married!) my wife is an ISTJ! This is excellent for having diverse perspectives on life under the same roof, and the occasional source of conflict! A subject for another Blog, I think.
Anyway, I have used the MBTI with my two children (at the age of 16 , preferences are clear enough to do the profile). Guess what? My daughter looks like me, similar outlook on life, and is an ENFP, same as me. And my son looks like my wife, has her approach to life, and is an ISTJ like her. A clear genetic split, following all the rules that I vaguely recall learning at school about genetics.
Not enough evidence in its own right to prove anything, but I for one am convinced by it. Have a think about what evidence you have around you, and come to your own conclusion
If you are interested enough to want to take this further, contact me and I will give you a FREE 20 minute consultation on your MBTI profile.
I know MBTI is the cognitive aspects of your personality and cognitive traits are typically inhereited, however I think it depends. A lot of time experiences and environment are big factors too.
I turned out with a TOTALLY different type to my parents. My mom is an ISFJ-T and my dad is an ISTJ-A. I’m an ENTP-T and that result has been extremally consistent. I assume that I either developed more based on environmental influences or possibly inherited more of my cognitive traits from extended family. My dads mom and both sisters are extremely extroverted. Only one of my siblings, my maternal uncle and I have the Thinking Prospecting traits (They’re both INTP and I’m ENTP). Literally both sides of my extended family and most of my immediate family have the feeling and judging traits. I’d say we’re mostly turbulent ISFJ’s and ESFJ’s. So yeah, I think its questionable. Maybe SOME of it is inherited for SOME people, but its mainly environment in my opinion.
Hi I am interested in this. I was adopted and my psychotherapist told me I was a square pegbin a round hole growing up. I met my birth mother and father. My mother and I have some similarities but I think her superego has flipped with her ego because she acts like she has been possessed sometimes and the things she has said to me are not from a pure heart. Sometimes I see her real self but it’s a dichotomy in her body, like the good and evil. The good is rarely allowed to come through. I see myself in her a lot. Unfortunately the badness has made me cut ties but I seek understanding of who I am and who I am in relation to my genetics and nurture. I’m an Infp BTW.
Hi. I’ve been wondering for some time now, how I ended up being an INFJ. Both my parents are ISTJ and my brother is an ISTP. I’m literally the only intuitive, feeling person in my family. I’m currently trying to test my grandparents and my great grandma. And it’s interesting because I was the first kid. Do you have any theories on how two ISTJs could’ve raised an INFJ??
Hi Kassandra. Interesting! I am no expert, but my take is that that Introversion is inherited, the other letters you have developed in your formative years. Were you interested in hobbies which developed an intuitive instinct I wonder? Things requiring more creativity and less precision? Acting perhaps, art requiring a big brush, as it were? Have you learnt anything from profiling your grandparents?
Have you looked at each types function stack? My theory is that we inherit functions but not necessarily in the order of dominance due to our nurture.
I think I have an answer. I’m an infj female and I think that being an infj takes 2 parts. I believe you need to be born with the structure of your brain set up for being an infj as well as you need to go through some trauma to activate it (I believe the trauma needs to be at a relatively young age before your an adult). I know my grandmother was an infj and my mom was a narcissistic, cold person, the opposite of my grandmother. my dad was a good, average guy and my point is that I have absolutely nothing in common with my mom, however, my dad and I have a lot of similarities, same with my brother and I, and especially my son and I. even though they are all different personality types, like my son is a entp, when we are together we act so much like each other and even have the same mannerisms. so, in a nut shell there is an environmental factor that will shape our personality and also genetics that get passed down too. I also want to add that my grandmother and I were very close and though our brains operated the same, we didn’t act like each other if that makes sense? I believe that bc she had lived her life and already developed a sense of who she was with her personality, and just the overall wiring of her brain, that made it a “finished project” whereas when I was growing up with the influence of my parents and brothers interactions that took my undeveloped brain and created/influenced it’s corks, mannerisms etc. differently than someone like my grandmother who had a different family life. and now I see it in my son how even though he’s a entp, he’s still so much like me and my family always points it out. I believe that unlike all the other personality types that are multifaceted in the sense that it’s genetic and environmental factors that give it to you, with infj it’s those plus trauma at a young age that’s what is needed to create us. a lot of the adults I work with in the rehab clinic all come from a childhood trauma and I can definitely say that talking to them all and getting to know the life they chose to live/how they lived it, they are not infjs. it takes more than just trauma at a young age to make someone an infj and you can’t just be born with it. at least that’s my take on it. hope this helps.
It’s curious to me how many INTJs were mentioned in the comments considering their low percentage of occurrence.
Susan – INTJ (of course)
I hadn’t noticed that, Susan, but that’s probably because I’m an ENFP, ho ho!
Hi,
This is an interesting prospect- I would be interested in your findings! However I probably don’t fit the theory in terms of close relations- My mother is ENTJ and my father is ESTJ. I, However, am always typed INFJ. So I didn’t really inherit much but a judging factor from my parents. Saying this though my mother swears I am the identical personality to my grandmother (her mother) and that’s she was INFJ too. Is it possible to skip a generation?
Hi Sophie. I’m afraid I don’t know enough to comment. I am but a lay practitioner of MBTI, and we didn’t get into detail about the inheritance factor. I have heard it said before about skipping generations and can certainly relate to it broadly myself,ie I think I am basically my grandfather. Try popping the question to an MBTI online forum (eg LinkedIn) maybe?
I’m an enfp and so is my mom. My dad is an intj and my husband is also an intj. My little sister is an enfj. I come from a family of n’s and I have been really curious about this topic because I’ve seen patterns and I’m curious about stuff like this!! It fascinates me!!! My mom is an enfp who is a strong “p” but I’m an enfp that has some “j” characteristics probably because my dad was my role model growing up. I used to love how organized he is and the way he thought and I also love how my mom thinks. I’m an enfp who hates being late and so I believe Myers Briggs types have a sliding scale/percentage of “e or I” “n or s” “f or t” “p or j” that makes us uniquely us
Fascinating isn’t it Sophia. Sounds like your J is well developed and learnt from your Dad, but P is preference. I hate being late too, and am ENFP. I know other ENFP’s for whom time is just a measure of some sort but certainly not something concrete!
INFP male here. My mother was INFP, and my grandmother too was an INFP. Plus we’re all HSP on that family line. My father is an INTJ, and so are both my brother and my first nephew. So, yes. Type genetics is real.
Interesting, thanks for helping to validate the genetic theory, Roberto!
Interestingly enough my dad is I in TJ and I am I NFJ but we both have a dominant introverted intuition I did not grow up with my dad but visited him once a year in the summer I always sensed we had common personality traits but this is concrete evidence
This is so interesting, Personally I think it’s genetics. My Mother: ENFJ, Father INTJ, on my mothers side my grandma is: ISFJ and grandfather ENTP. I am an INFJ my brother an ENTP my son is an ENFJ.
That begins to look to me as if maybe it skips one generation. Not that I have any evidence for that at all. I have often wondered about it. Thanks for sharing.
Just to echo your point…I was curious about the same thing so I put it to the test. My son, who looks just like me, took the instrument and is an INTJ just like I am!
My other son, who looks more like his mother, and lives with her as well, took the test and is the same type as she is; ENFJ. I was pretty shocked but since I validated my hypothesis, I was also happy as well 🙂
In an aytempt at further research on it, I gave Google a try and found your article so I wanted to return the favor to you and provide more evidence to backup YOUR research.
Godspeed,
-A
My husband is INTP and I am an ENTJ. We have three children: INFP, ENTP, and ENFP. From where did the F come?
Hi Kristina
It could be that your T preferences are the version of you that comes through at work, and that the F is in fact the real preference for you and your husband. I would suggest you both redo the profile if you are interested. Could also be that when you completed it before you were in a time of stress or change.
Do drop me an email if you would like to redo it using a free online version.
Michael
Hi Mike.
Have you had a chance to check out the Human Brain Dominance Index (HBDI)?
https://www.thinkherrmann.com/
Nice web-site, Mike. I like the stream of consciousness “blogs”. So much more engaging, puls your wisdom and humour shine through.
Regarding the “inherited” MBTI preferences, two comments:
1. This is the nature (genotype) vs nurture (phenotype) argument which has dominated psychology since Freud started eyeing his mother suspiciously. Always good for a lively discussion!
2. With recent discoveries from neuroscience about neuroplasticity, I don’t accept that personality type is fixed, let alone a fixed characteristic. Sure, it’s damn hard to change, and that leads to the proliferation of coaches and trainers seeking to build on the acknowledged experts in behavioural change, such as Milton Erickson. So another topic for discussion, and good for business.
Looking forward to your next contribution, and keep it real – or do I mean insensitive, or is that just a personality characteristic? 🙂
Dave Loewy
Engaging Wisdom Ltd