Difference between INFJ and ISFJ?
[INFJ]
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Well, lets break it down by cognitive processes first off-
ISFJ: Si Fe Ti Ne
INFJ: Ni Fe Ti Se
Now, the difference in dominant functions is pretty apparent. With ISFJ's you typically get a pretty traditional mindset - this is how things should be... this is how it *should* work. A singular perspective on the world. With INFJ's, you typically get a person who can see things from multiple angles and change perspectives or even entire world views, sometimes at the drop of a hat. With Fe as a secondary, and Ti as tertiary... both seem to act similarly. They both care for people, mold themselves to societal desires, and rationalize internally. With the inferior function of Se, INFJ's often have trouble "living in the moment" - I'm not sure how inferior Ne would manifest.
Overall, I'd say an ISFJ is more grounded than an INFJ, which can be a little more free-spirited and urm... out there (in a good way). INFJ's can tend to get either very mystical or as exceedingly analytical as an INTP, which isn't often the case with ISFJ's, from my experience.
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Hello hello:happy:
What Malovane is saying is we are a bit wierd and unpredictable:happy:
we are a bit wierd, abstract and very deep. My best bud is is ISFJ its a good team. Yeah Im a free spirited revultionary<well in my mind I am. She is a very sweet very well adjusted very practicel down to earth nurse.
have a lerk though the INFJ forum it should be pretty clear how attitudes differ from the topics we discuss.
hello teddy. Im thinking of getting a medium in the INFJ forum.
TO THE OTHERS PLEASE SHOW YOURSELVES AND POST!!! I REALLY LIKE IT WHEN YOU POST!
What Malovane is saying is we are a bit wierd and unpredictable:happy:
we are a bit wierd, abstract and very deep. My best bud is is ISFJ its a good team. Yeah Im a free spirited revultionary<well in my mind I am. She is a very sweet very well adjusted very practicel down to earth nurse.
have a lerk though the INFJ forum it should be pretty clear how attitudes differ from the topics we discuss.
hello teddy. Im thinking of getting a medium in the INFJ forum.
TO THE OTHERS PLEASE SHOW YOURSELVES AND POST!!! I REALLY LIKE IT WHEN YOU POST!
The difference between S and N is the one I've always had the most trouble with to be honest. One of my friends is an ISFJ and I sometimes struggle to tell the difference between our personality types. One thing I've noticed is that she seems to be much more grounded in the here and now. She seems to focus more on present circumstances while I tend to think more about the future and what could be. I'm not sure if that's personality related or something else, but that's one of the biggest differences between us that I've noticed anyway.
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Yeah, that's definitely the S/N difference.
I still don't know enough about Ni to really comment on it, but Si is always using past data and experiences to understand the present (and near future). Like you said, I'm very focused on what's happening right in front of me, both in terms of time and in terms of place. That's not to say I never think about big picture issues or the long future, but that's generally not my focus in life.
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I don't usually feel guilty for asking people for favors, but there are times when I think I'm asking too much of the person. Usually, I'm just thinking of asking it in a way that will give me the best chance of them accepting.
Do I overthink? Of course. All the time. I wouldn't calling over *thinking* though. I would just call it my Ni and judging going a little overboard.
Yes, I do cry easily, but not too bad.
Do I overthink? Of course. All the time. I wouldn't calling over *thinking* though. I would just call it my Ni and judging going a little overboard.
Yes, I do cry easily, but not too bad.
ISFJ's more emotional and pessimistic? Hmm.. well, both of the ones in my life are incredibly stable and usually optimistic. INFJ's seem to be pretty moody overall in comparison, though emotional may not be the best way to describe it. Any type can become emotional and pessimistic if they are unhealthy.
It's rare that I ask someone for a favor. If I do, I'm in real need... and don't feel particularly guilty about it. I try to pride myself on independence, though.
Do we ever think? Sometimes I believe my brain is boiling from over thinking and over analyzing. Many of the INFJ's I've met here are fairly brilliant.
Cry? Speaking for myself - Very very rarely. Then maybe a decade of pain will just surge through, and I'll be right as rain.
Sorry, I just checked wikipedia, why does it say INFJ is Ni Te Fi Se.
I just want to clarify. :happy:
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INFJs tend to be a lot cooler than ISFJs. 
My first love and I think every girl I've seriously liked were INFJs.
I'm pretty sure my sister is an ISFJ, although her OCD, Bipolar Depression, and medications for those may make this a bit less accurate. Cognitive function tests show her as having very low Ti and fairly high Te now (and as she describes it it does seem like falling back on Te as her tertiary), but she seemed to have better Ti before she was medicated. On the other hand, her Se is pretty terrible and during her rare manic episodes she tends to show a lot of both types of intuition.
ISFJs tend to focus more on the past, often nostalgically. They tend to want to go back to how things where when they were children, while INFJs tend to be more focused on their goals for the future. ISFJs are creatures of habit, while INFJs like trying new things.
(As a general rule of thumb,
Si- focus on the past
Se - focus on the present
Ni-focus on the future
Ne-focus on how things could be in various alternate realities)
Aspirational Se can be seen in a natural tendency to be physically clumsy, but once it begins to develop it can also create a strong urge to indulge the senses in activities like dance and travel. It seems largely responsible for the typical INFJ's great appreciation for art.
A big part of Ne is considering lots of alternative perspectives and possibilities. I believe that inferior Ne manifests largely though doubts and worrying, through considering all the little things that could potentially go wrong. Before one is mature enough to accept it, it may instead manifest through the unwillingness to consider alternatives.
I remember watching a video once that said that those who focus more on the past are much more likely to suffer depression and those who focus on the future are much more likely to suffer anxiety. ISFJs may thus be more depressed and INFJs more anxious.
My first love and I think every girl I've seriously liked were INFJs.
I'm pretty sure my sister is an ISFJ, although her OCD, Bipolar Depression, and medications for those may make this a bit less accurate. Cognitive function tests show her as having very low Ti and fairly high Te now (and as she describes it it does seem like falling back on Te as her tertiary), but she seemed to have better Ti before she was medicated. On the other hand, her Se is pretty terrible and during her rare manic episodes she tends to show a lot of both types of intuition.
ISFJs tend to focus more on the past, often nostalgically. They tend to want to go back to how things where when they were children, while INFJs tend to be more focused on their goals for the future. ISFJs are creatures of habit, while INFJs like trying new things.
(As a general rule of thumb,
Si- focus on the past
Se - focus on the present
Ni-focus on the future
Ne-focus on how things could be in various alternate realities)
Aspirational Se can be seen in a natural tendency to be physically clumsy, but once it begins to develop it can also create a strong urge to indulge the senses in activities like dance and travel. It seems largely responsible for the typical INFJ's great appreciation for art.
A big part of Ne is considering lots of alternative perspectives and possibilities. I believe that inferior Ne manifests largely though doubts and worrying, through considering all the little things that could potentially go wrong. Before one is mature enough to accept it, it may instead manifest through the unwillingness to consider alternatives.
I remember watching a video once that said that those who focus more on the past are much more likely to suffer depression and those who focus on the future are much more likely to suffer anxiety. ISFJs may thus be more depressed and INFJs more anxious.
Not sure why they say that. Ni Te Fi Se is an INTJ.
Oops, I'm sorry!!
I typed INTJ instead of INFJ when searching Wikipedia. That's why!
Made a mistake, lol :laughing:
that is the functions of a INTJ and definitely not INFJ
...lol i need to read the whole way and refresh my tab after a few minutes
Emotional? Yes. Pessimist? Meh. There's a thread about that somewhere down the list actually. INFJ's looking sad or something like that. I think we react to things just like most other people do but we don't tend to share those emotions very openly. I personally do feel guilty when I ask people to do me a favor because I don't like the idea of imposing my needs on them. I only overthink things when the effects are longterm, so college major, employment, etc. Finally as to crying, I wish I cried more actually. For some reason I have a really hard time crying no matter how sad or depressed I get. :sad:
ISFJs to me seem to pay more attention to physical appearance of others. For example I noticed they would read somebody's facial expression, body language, pose, notice their clothing, may be something they are carrying, etc. and then try to make some conclusions about the person from this. I've had ISFJs try to guess my mood from my facial expression a few times. To the contrary my ability to pick up information from observing such physical cues is rather inferior.
ISFJs are very good at remembering various details and specifics, such as quotes from books, names of authors or actors, dates, places, and so on. INFJs tend to suck at this.
ISFJs also seem to like making puns in humor more than INFJs. INFJs I think gravitate more towards irony. I am not sure about this one though. May be it is the the ISFJs that I know.
I think both types can be stuck on the past. Ni is also a past oriented introspective function that leads INFJ to observe and contemplate a lot on what they have observed, what has already transpired, what is in past. But in this contemplation the specifics gets erased and details become more alike and ultimately interchangeable. Memories become fluidic and start to interlink. Perception of past becomes like one endless ocean. I think for ISFJs to the contrary memory is kept very sharp and each thing they remember sort of gets stored in memory in very high resolution. I have very little Si though but sometimes I get flashes of almost photographic memory where I can remember in high detail a place a visited before or somebody's face. I think this might be my extremely inferior Si letting itself be known. Normally such things are rather obscure for me.
ISFJs are very good at remembering various details and specifics, such as quotes from books, names of authors or actors, dates, places, and so on. INFJs tend to suck at this.
ISFJs also seem to like making puns in humor more than INFJs. INFJs I think gravitate more towards irony. I am not sure about this one though. May be it is the the ISFJs that I know.
I think both types can be stuck on the past. Ni is also a past oriented introspective function that leads INFJ to observe and contemplate a lot on what they have observed, what has already transpired, what is in past. But in this contemplation the specifics gets erased and details become more alike and ultimately interchangeable. Memories become fluidic and start to interlink. Perception of past becomes like one endless ocean. I think for ISFJs to the contrary memory is kept very sharp and each thing they remember sort of gets stored in memory in very high resolution. I have very little Si though but sometimes I get flashes of almost photographic memory where I can remember in high detail a place a visited before or somebody's face. I think this might be my extremely inferior Si letting itself be known. Normally such things are rather obscure for me.
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you have described me and my freind perfectly. My mum is also an ISFJ I an highly recomend them as fanstistc types as mothers <3
She drives me up the wall with her details, she can call me up and spend 30 mintutes on how her new scarf matches her hand bag so well. Im on the other end of the phone mendiating and saying 'yes nice' at regular intervals. She has a fantasitc memory and attention to detaile. She buys the best gifts because she remebers what I like and the Ne makes her consider lot of things that I might like. The best gifts ever!
My Si is rubbish im so glad she can remeber things from my past that I cant.
I dont feel guilty for asking poeple to somthing. I operate on Karma. I know I will do somthing nice back and that the person who is helping me out is a good egg. I can remeber the good eggs at least.
I cry more easily than she does, but I know for a fact she puts my needs first. So when the shit hits the fan and boths of us a bit scrwed up she gets in there first. She asks me how I feel and what happend to me and when Im crying she doesnt cry she jst hold me and I know inside she's dying because shit has happend to her to. Im wellig up just think of it.
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ISFJs can be more demanding. At times they inspire people around them to be better. At other times, they seem always let down by those around them who are not "good enough" and mope about it.
As far as what our intelligent INTP friend said... if an ISFJ focuses on the past, then they're always trying to return to that ideal, and are probably often disappointed as those ideals (in themselves and less healthily, in others) don't come to be.
If INFJs are more focused on the future, then they are trying to create the ideal which is not yet come, which means that whatever acts they do, they do to improve themselves... others... and their situation so someday they will reach that ideal. But our ideal isn't set in stone, like a vision of the past would be...
Our ideal is an ideal depending, absolutely, on the many variations that come with the different people and situations that surround us. We don't try to force people to act by our ideal, but rather guide them to be better on their own terms through an intimate understanding of them.
As far as what our intelligent INTP friend said... if an ISFJ focuses on the past, then they're always trying to return to that ideal, and are probably often disappointed as those ideals (in themselves and less healthily, in others) don't come to be.
If INFJs are more focused on the future, then they are trying to create the ideal which is not yet come, which means that whatever acts they do, they do to improve themselves... others... and their situation so someday they will reach that ideal. But our ideal isn't set in stone, like a vision of the past would be...
Our ideal is an ideal depending, absolutely, on the many variations that come with the different people and situations that surround us. We don't try to force people to act by our ideal, but rather guide them to be better on their own terms through an intimate understanding of them.
That's absolutely true. ISFJs tend to be guilty about receiving good things, and stressed that they will have to repay it in order to be "good". Whereas an INFJ would just be appreciative of the gift, and know that they will remember the gift and pay it back when an opportunity to do so presents itself. Far less pressure.
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Well of course you think so, you silly NT. :tongue:INFJs tend to be a lot cooler than ISFJs.
I think that's a really good, straightforward way of describing it. Right on point.magister" said:
Very interesting. I'd say that makes a lot of sense.magister said:
I think your description is generally on point. However, I also think it's incredibly biased. It strikes me as painting INFJ's as people who are out there making the world a better place through their idealistic views of the future and ISFJ's as stubborn, non-bending people who put themselves in boring, depressing ruts and can't accept people that don't view life like this. I'm not saying this was your intent, and of course from your perspective the Ni way of looking at life is preferable...but I think your description here is a little heavy on the positives of INFJ's and the negatives of ISFJ's.
Now, don't get me wrong...I'm not saying ISFJ's can't and don't have tons of issues...God knows we've analyzed them to high hell on the ISFJ forum. I know we can be stubborn, we can get ourselves stuck in ruts, we can get very down on ourselves, we can feel unappreciated, and we can be unimaginative, among other things. But while I haven't delved into the INFJ forum deeply, from what I've seen INFJ's can have their own whole set of issues as well.
In all fairness, I only know one surefire INFJ (and I have an online friend who has tested as INFJ), and she's a friend from college that I only see about once a year. She's an amazingly awesome person and a fantastic friend. So I don't have much to base things off of.
However, while ISFJ's aren't as adept at pushing towards ideals and constantly changing ourselves and others as well as INFJ's are, we do have strengths in dealing with the here and now. There are immediate needs that people have, and we generally are very capable and strikingly consistent in delivering them to people. Our consistencies can be viewed as boring or unimaginative in one light, but in another they can be viewed as extremely loyal, dependable and unrelentingly deep.
Also, you make it seem as though our fondness for the past is depressing, unattainable or useless. I've found extreme joy and inner peace in reliving past experiences, and I've found many ways of keeping up these consistencies and traditions in my own life. I explained this in a fairly detailed manner in this thread:
http://personalitycafe.com/isfj-forum-nurturers/39496-si-ocd-am-i-just-completely-crazy-2.html
To me, it's almost like the old conservative vs progressive argument. I've never felt as a whole one is better than the other. There are some things that are just fine the way they are and should be kept consistent, there are others which should be improved upon. It's not as though every single change that's ever been made has been good.
And of course, we're talking in extremes here...it's not as though ISFJ's have no N capabilities and INFJ's have no S capabilities. ISFJ's like routine, but that doesn't mean we never change or try anything new.
So basically...I think you hit on some differences of ISFJ's and INFJ's, but I didn't see much in your post that showed how well they balance each other out. I know that was probably not your goal in posting, but like I said, I found it to be very uneven in describing the strengths and weaknesses of the two types. I firmly believe that all 16 types are equal, even if some people, including myself, prefer and get along with some types more than others. So I do hope you do believe and see that, even if you didn't wish to display it in your description.
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Haha, I don't believe in the words "Too positive" when it comes to my fellow INFJs. Like many other INFJs, I'm tribalistic. I love my tribe
roud:Well... when I thought about the differences between ISFJ and INFJ, it was the ISFJ negatives that came to my mind, because those are the things that stick out to me most. I have to watch my ISFJ friend put herself through some pretty torturous stuff, and since it bothers me a lot, it's very present in my mind because I often think about why I wouldn't put up with half of the crap she puts up with. But, I get it... I was a little negative on ISFJs so you want me to admit that ISFJs have good aspects, and INFJs have bad aspects... a bit defensive on your part, but fair enough. :tongue:
I know ISFJs have good aspects. One of my best friends is an ISFJ and I adore her (She isn't interested in men. It's platonic). We just spend the whole time that we're hanging out listening to each other's gripes, laughing about the world, and talking about how much we appreciate the other. It's fantastic.
Of course, this same ISFJ stressed herself out so badly helping people and fulfilling her obligations that she had to be hospitalized for a panic attack as well as many other painful-to-watch things.
I could fill up a page talking about times that she might have well have shot herself in the kneecap, she put herself through so much crap that I wouldn't have put up with for a second. I try to hug her extra warm when I see her, and be extra considerate to make up for it... but I never can quite keep up with all the pain she puts herself through.
When it comes to love, perhaps. INFJs can really fuck up good. Aside from love, I find INFJ to be a very balanced type.
^ Spot on. INFJs are very distant. ISFJs are very often far more present for current events.
I don't think I said that... ISFJs connection to the past is a cornerstone that I've seen ISFJs use to motivate themselves to do great things and flood their friends and families with warmth. I'm more just concerned that ISFJs hold themselves, and others, to expectations that, from what I've seen, can often be unrealistic.
That argument has always seemed like a no-brainer to me. Perfection is impossible to achieve. As such, any nation that doesn't strive to constantly improve and better itself in a competitive world will be left behind. Conservatism in this day and age is a ridiculous concept.
Ni is rubbish for sports like paintballing, etc. I'm always looking to stimulate and strengthen my Se.
There is a great power in the human spirit to reach heights and sink to lows. I will not deny that power for one of any type to hit the highest heights of virtue, or of one of any type to so resoundingly drive themselves into the ground.
However, as Plato said, no two things in the universe can be equal. Such a thing is impossible. So as for your hope that I believe that all types are equal, You don't need to hope. I do not believe in the concept of equality.
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