ENFP's & Race
Hi people! I know there are not a lot of correlation's between type and race. But I have been wondering, have you seen more ENFP's in certain races more than others? I'm african-american (black) and I wonder if there are a lot of us that are ENFP or other races like latino, white/european, middle eastern, asian, african, caribbean etc. Please give me your valuble imput and IF you're comfortable, let us know what race/ethnic background you are. I think this will be interesting to see. Thanks everyone:wink:
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Interesting topic... possible personalties based on ethnic backgrounds and traditional upbringing.
Still... I would think ENFP's would be pretty widespread across all ethnic backgrounds. I'm white so nothing special there :tongue:.
I'm not a pro on personality types..are they more genetic? I've had the same views of an ENFP for as long as I can remember. I would assume a majority of it would be genetic and a splash of experience. Then again it would make more sense personality is built over time through experience... I don't know. I'll just guess 50/50 right now.
Still... I would think ENFP's would be pretty widespread across all ethnic backgrounds. I'm white so nothing special there :tongue:.
I'm not a pro on personality types..are they more genetic? I've had the same views of an ENFP for as long as I can remember. I would assume a majority of it would be genetic and a splash of experience. Then again it would make more sense personality is built over time through experience... I don't know. I'll just guess 50/50 right now.
I'm Caucasian, as you can clearly see in my avatar, and I would say that the ENFP typing is very widespread. As far as typing being genetic, that question spans back to the basic nature vs. nurture argument in sociology and psychology. The nature argument suggests that every aspect of our psychological being (temperament, intelligence, personality, etc.) is hardwired into us at birth with very little room for variation. Nurture suggests that we are conceived with a clean slate and our enviournment determines a vast majority of what we are like as we grow. It all depends on which professional you ask.
Through research and conclusions based on said research, I believe that we are wired with certain aspects of ourselves, such as our food preferences and general temperament, but these can be changed through enviournmental factors. For example, a child could be born to have a dislike for cabbage, but is raised in a family where cabbage is a main source of food. As time goes on, the child will grow to tolerate or even like cabbage as an adult. The same is possible for personality types. Someone could be born an ENFP, but with an extremely strict family and years of redirection, the child could grow to become an INTJ or something of the sort. The opposite may be true for INTJs that are raised in a family that encourages expression of feeling and are good at picking up on body language/expressions. This may result in an ENTP, or even an ENFP (though an ENFP could be a stretch there). Granted, these are just my conclusions, and they do not have much scientific backing as far as personal experiments go.
Through research and conclusions based on said research, I believe that we are wired with certain aspects of ourselves, such as our food preferences and general temperament, but these can be changed through enviournmental factors. For example, a child could be born to have a dislike for cabbage, but is raised in a family where cabbage is a main source of food. As time goes on, the child will grow to tolerate or even like cabbage as an adult. The same is possible for personality types. Someone could be born an ENFP, but with an extremely strict family and years of redirection, the child could grow to become an INTJ or something of the sort. The opposite may be true for INTJs that are raised in a family that encourages expression of feeling and are good at picking up on body language/expressions. This may result in an ENTP, or even an ENFP (though an ENFP could be a stretch there). Granted, these are just my conclusions, and they do not have much scientific backing as far as personal experiments go.
Wow! This is EXACTLY why I love this site! How often do you get to have a interestingly robust dialog with another male ENFP?! This is awesome. WakeHopper, I think you're right. Genetics+experience would be a solid majority of what make a certain personality. But what about environment? For instance: My mother is an ENFJ as well as my sister-in-law. My eldest brother is an ENTJ and my older brother (I'm the youngest of 3) is probably an ESFP. I wonder if social or financial status would also play a part in this? I was raised in a poor house-hold and now live in lower-middle-class neighborhood (a.k.a. the ghetto) Your views? (Gosh, this is interesting!):crazy:
Well I think veingogh covered it extremely well. I'll go with my family next! My dad is an ISTJ and my mom a ENTJ so it's a bit of a mystery where that FP came from. My best guess...... nurture. Experience in school and relations with other peers.
I would assume the F came from being emotionally hurt a lot and in reaction I care much more about feelings then with logic. The P came in sort of the same way, I felt many people including myself were judged to quickly... my dad would always assume it was my fault because he only used logic and past history for a conclusion. This bothered me so much that I became a strong P and reserves judgment of others until i get to know them.
I think this really backs up veingogh's thoughts on the subject
I would assume the F came from being emotionally hurt a lot and in reaction I care much more about feelings then with logic. The P came in sort of the same way, I felt many people including myself were judged to quickly... my dad would always assume it was my fault because he only used logic and past history for a conclusion. This bothered me so much that I became a strong P and reserves judgment of others until i get to know them.
I think this really backs up veingogh's thoughts on the subject
Wow! Thanks for your thorough input and research! I'm think it's more in between nature & nurture. So I guess that means I agree with you! :laughing: It's true that you are born with certain traits that are inherited from your parents, kinda like a base personality. With time, environment and child rearing methods; it molds and changes according to the child's psyche and linked with the DNA make-up within the brain. (Woah, I hope I just made sense there!) But..... What makes a person develop into an ENFP? I'll be the first to say that I was abused as a child by a family friend. Did that have an effect on me becoming an ENFP? I was raised in a fatherless home; does that play a part? I moved from school to school as a child; did it mold me? Please, your input..... now..... express.... opinion.... feelings..... history..... facts..... research..... tell it..... and................GO!:crazy:
HAHA beat you too it! Were thinking the same thing! I want to hear more thoughts on this subject! Wow talk about off subject of the thread. I don't know about you guys but this has me uber excited...I want to hear from other ENFP's... like 1.What personalities they were raised around.-family and such- 2. Where do you think you got your personality traits from?
Great minds think alike sometimes, WakeHopper! Any events in your life that you felt shaped you and conditioned you to be an ENFP? Joys, tragedies etc? (Not meaning to get into personal though! If I am then I'm sorry):blushed:
Wait did you miss my post?
I bet ENFP's would be pretty awesome jurors huh? That P is probably really important in a case.Well I think veingogh covered it extremely well. I'll go with my family next! My dad is an ISTJ and my mom a ENTJ so it's a bit of a mystery where that FP came from. My best guess...... nurture. Experience in school and relations with other peers.
I would assume the F came from being emotionally hurt a lot and in reaction I care much more about feelings then with logic. The P came in sort of the same way, I felt many people including myself were judged to quickly... my dad would always assume it was my fault because he only used logic and past history for a conclusion. This bothered me so much that I became a strong P and reserves judgment of others until i get to know them.
I think this really backs up veingogh's thoughts on the subject
Sorry WakeHopper. I wasn't listening enough. I don't know what it's like to live with guardians. I was raised by an Idealist. A lot of my pain growing up came from watching my mother struggle to make ends meet. Despite my upbringing, I love being an ENFP. I think most of us do. We seem to be well-rounded people. Now, here's another ball I'm about to toss to ya'........ What about the correlation between type and weight?
I'd almost hope there wasn't one....I never had a problem with weight.
Well lets see, a heavier set person might be treated differently around peers right? If this has an effect on the persons developing type I'm not sure. I'd really like to say no,(thats my feelings talking) although YES it's probably the people they surround themselves with and interact.
A direct correlation between weight and type wouldn't make any sense but external factors surrounding that individual would. I have to keep thinking about this one, there's a lot to consider.
Well lets see, a heavier set person might be treated differently around peers right? If this has an effect on the persons developing type I'm not sure. I'd really like to say no,(thats my feelings talking) although YES it's probably the people they surround themselves with and interact.
A direct correlation between weight and type wouldn't make any sense but external factors surrounding that individual would. I have to keep thinking about this one, there's a lot to consider.
PS: I've never looked up parenting from guardians but I'll tell you what I thought.... Instead of us ENFP smothering with feelings, guardians want order and a plan of attack at all times. My parents want us to have a planed life and a really safe one. OMG talk about hover parenting.
I'm Mexican/Italian/Irish/Comanche with olivey skin... and I'm a fatty... and I'm a total ENFP. My younger sister is an xNFJ and I grew up with a schizophrenic + PTSD male bioparent and a born-again INTJ female bioparent.
@[email protected] Sooooo many questions.... So many responding ideas in my head.... The brain death.... x.x
Lemme try... Bear with me here if I start to fail at this. My thoughts just exploded with all the ideas since I last checked this thread...
2. I get my traits from the way I was raised, and my mother's hyperactive tendencies. I don't know too much about my father, but everything that I hear about him makes me think he was carefree and very... devious. Maybe some of my deviant and zany traits are inherited. >
Lemme try... Bear with me here if I start to fail at this. My thoughts just exploded with all the ideas since I last checked this thread...
You actually made quite a bit of sence there, so no worries. ^^ As for a person becoming an ENFP... There are many ways, actually. The most obvious way is that you were raised around an enviournment that nurtured the same behaviour and personality traits expressed by an ENFP. Given the information in your post, however, there is a slightly more complicated reasoning for this. It's just a theory that I have been developing, but I think the reason for a lot of peoples' extroverted and emotional personalities is due to the perseverance of the human mind and its ability to adapt to almost anything. There are studies that show trauma changes brain chemistry, and the levels of certain hormones that are released into the body. A fatherless home mixed with your feeling personality could indicate you (at least subconsciously) do not want others to feel emotionally abandoned the way you did without a father figure in the household. The ENFP personality can be described as outgoing, but I have seen a few places mention the word "clingy." Your lack of a father in the home and moving from school to school could contribute to that as well. As far as the abuse goes, that would contribute to your extroverted and feeling aspects, possibly even intuitive. This is because of (again, I know) the human mind's resilience and ability to cope with many things.
1. I was raised around... Well, I really don't want to try typing my uncle and grandmother. I hold them both in too much of a negative light to be objective there. They were both highly emotional, abusive in all ways, and didn't seem to have a problem brushing things under the rug. I was raised to be submissive and quiet, to do everything in order and as I was ordered. I am now the exact opposite. I'm warm and friendly, and I have loads of trouble with organization and taking impolite orders.
2. I get my traits from the way I was raised, and my mother's hyperactive tendencies. I don't know too much about my father, but everything that I hear about him makes me think he was carefree and very... devious. Maybe some of my deviant and zany traits are inherited. >
It depends on the age and maturity of the person when it comes to correlations between almost anything and type. If the person was overweight as a child and had little support from family growing up, was ridiculed by his/her peers, and so on, there would be an introverted and most likely thinking type right there. If the person was overweight in later years when he/she has more maturity and (hopefully) so do the person's peers, then there is a smaller chance that the person would change to an introvert. Similar things apply for underweight and average.
I'm not sure if MBTI is affected by race, but it may rather be affected by culture of ethnicity. For example: a culture which heavily values tradition and order which uses laconic punishments on the disobedient would be more likely to have a generally higher abundance of SJ's and a lower number of rebellious types such as SP's, NTJ's, and ENFP's.
Also a factor is which traits bring about success in an ethnic society. An enterprising ENTP is more likely to succeed in a militaristic state that values military prowess in its leaders versus a caste system where violating the rules of the system is likely to result in exile or execution. A successful individual is much more likely to breed and pass on their MBTI and personal traits, thus increasing the chances that more people will be similar to them.
Also a question is the physical environment where the group is. In an area with scarce resources, aggression and perseverance are likely to be useful traits that assist the owner in garnering more resources for himself and icnreasing the likelihood that he will have a higher number of progeny.
A race is too broad a category for this sort of question. Caucasians live in environments as dissimilar as Siberia and Normandy with vast cultural differences between the two regions. Negroids live in areas as different as the plains of Kenya and the deserts of Sudan. ********** live both the rainforests of Vietnam and the steppes of Mongolia.
It is very probable that certain cultures develop certain traits because of the MBTI balances of their members, which are affected by factors such as values and the necessity of conflict. While areas of predominately a single race tend to share a few characteristics such as Southeast Asia having very collectivist cultures and Europe tending to have a grunt worker class and a disparate aristocracy.
Also a factor is which traits bring about success in an ethnic society. An enterprising ENTP is more likely to succeed in a militaristic state that values military prowess in its leaders versus a caste system where violating the rules of the system is likely to result in exile or execution. A successful individual is much more likely to breed and pass on their MBTI and personal traits, thus increasing the chances that more people will be similar to them.
Also a question is the physical environment where the group is. In an area with scarce resources, aggression and perseverance are likely to be useful traits that assist the owner in garnering more resources for himself and icnreasing the likelihood that he will have a higher number of progeny.
A race is too broad a category for this sort of question. Caucasians live in environments as dissimilar as Siberia and Normandy with vast cultural differences between the two regions. Negroids live in areas as different as the plains of Kenya and the deserts of Sudan. ********** live both the rainforests of Vietnam and the steppes of Mongolia.
It is very probable that certain cultures develop certain traits because of the MBTI balances of their members, which are affected by factors such as values and the necessity of conflict. While areas of predominately a single race tend to share a few characteristics such as Southeast Asia having very collectivist cultures and Europe tending to have a grunt worker class and a disparate aristocracy.
mbti types are random at birth, you're just born a certain type- that's why some parents say that they can tell what sort of personality their baby has very early on.
although African people i've met are always so happy. it's strange because you don't seem to get any petty social behaviour with Africans, the ones i've met always have a refreshingly happy live-and-let-live attitude, which i guess is the ENFP attitude.
although African people i've met are always so happy. it's strange because you don't seem to get any petty social behaviour with Africans, the ones i've met always have a refreshingly happy live-and-let-live attitude, which i guess is the ENFP attitude.
^Maybe it's because they are used to barely being alive so this is like heaven to them.
I'm a Caucasian ENFP (borderline I, though), and if surroundings count too for comparison purposes, my parents are an ENTJ father and ESFP mother, and my older brother is an INFJ, and younger sister is an INTP.
EDIT: More specifically, heritage-wise: half French (with a very small percentage of Native American) and half Swiss (or might be German even further back on that side)
EDIT: More specifically, heritage-wise: half French (with a very small percentage of Native American) and half Swiss (or might be German even further back on that side)
Yeah interesting post. In my particular area I only know one other ENFP and he's white, then again, in sum total of my decently "close" friends which numbers around 20, there IS only one guy from another race. An african-american who is an ISTP. I do see merit in this post's premise though, it's interesting to consider.
I'm Mexican American. I've never felt like I belonged to any type of a group. I've always been on the "outside".
Don't we all? I've felt like that all my life.
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