Assessment Accuracy
Please don’t write to me saying you must be an INFJ just because that’s what you got on “the test.”
And please don’t tell me how many times you’ve taken it, either. That assessment is one data point—nothing more. And frankly, it’s often wrong. Some experts estimate its inaccuracy at anywhere from 25% to 50%.
To put it plainly: it’s not a blood test.
I know it’s unpopular to question “the test,” but if it’s this fallible—if it’s frequently off the mark—does it really make sense to base major self-understanding or even life decisions on it?
David Keirsey once remarked:
“My guess is that the various Jungian instruments—MBTI, Keirsey Temperament Sorter, Singer-Loomis, Gray-Wheelwright,
MMTIC—are wrong about half the time, which is to say they misclassify about every other person.”
Questioning
So, instead of clinging to the result, ask yourself some deeper questions:
• Have you taken time to validate your results?
• Have you gone through a genuine process of self-discovery?
• Do you really understand what the letters mean?
• Does the INFJ description—ideally a research-based one, like Berens/Nardi—feel eerily accurate, like someone read your diary?
• Or is this just a fun new idea you stumbled across?
The truth is, the more you understand the underlying framework, the better equipped you’ll be to recognize your own typological pattern. You might even find clarity right here.
But please—don’t treat “the test” result as a final, definitive answer about your type. At best, the assessment offers a doorway—an invitation to explore how you function and what you value. Whether the result ends up being accurate depends on you.
“The test” is not the answer. It’s a starting point.
Why “The Test” Alone Can Be Misleading
The Frog Researcher: A Little Allegory
A researcher was conducting an experiment with a frog for his doctorate degree.
He placed a frog on a table and said, “Jump.” It jumped four feet. Then he cut off one leg of the frog and said “Jump,” and the frog jumped three feet. Then he cut off the second leg and commanded it to “Jump.” The frog could jump only two feet. Then he cut the third leg, and when he said “jump,” the frog could jump only one foot.
Then he cut off the fourth and last leg and commanded it to “Jump.” Now, the frog could not jump.
The researcher wrote and submitted his thesis with the conclusion:
“When a frog loses all four legs it becomes deaf.”
The thesis was rejected.
The reason cited for rejection of the thesis was:
The sample size was too small to arrive at the conclusion!
Frog Anecdote Conclusions
Reactions to the story usually include:
- that is how research is done
- numbers are important
- something is more important than logic
- methodology cannot overtake common sense
- are they so stupid to conclude like this....
- to evaluate a thesis like this, one should...
The best ones say:
- people always conclude with insufficient evidence;
and...
- do frogs have four legs? I thought they had only TWO!!
Thanks to Senthil Athiban for sharing this fable
Navigate this section using the hamburger menu (☰) in the upper right corner.
Reading & Invaluable Resources
If you would like to know more about typology in general, here's some useful material.
Read More
Newsletter/Blog - Dolphin Dive
This chronicles how one INFJ is moving through the world.
Take a Look