Introversion v Introspection

[Coolydudey]

Recently I realised that Intropsective describes me better than Intoverted (in the sense that it's a more accurate description of what I do when I'm doing it, as opposed to something I do most of the time, although I would bet my ratio of introspection/thinking is higher than the average introvert).

Introspective: characterized by introspection, the act or process of looking into oneself.
Introspection:
1. observation or examination of one's own mental and emotional state, mental processes, etc.; the act of looking within oneself.
2. the tendency or disposition to do this.
3. sympathetic introspection.

Of which I do all 3.


Introversion:

1. the act of directing one's interest inward or to things within the self.
2. the state of being concerned primarily with one's own thoughts and feelings rather than with the external environment.

I mean, both describe me well, but I'm not your stereotypical introvert in that I quite like group company from time to time, I can find big parties and clubs fun if I have my share to drink, and I start to feel restless if I don't spend some time with a friend for a whole day.


On the other hand, I'm almost permanently introspecting; whatever I'm doing, my thoughts will also turn inwards in the way described above for some time.


Theory A: It's just me


Theory B: It's also just me, but introspection is something that characterizes INTPs better in general (Introspection requires introversion but is something a bit different)


Thoughts?

 

[Brontosaurie]

introvert is the world according to itself from a certain point of view, indistinguishable from its totality, while extravert is in the world acting. cognitively, that is; an introvert may perform more overt actions, and vice versa. that's not it. i'm trying to get at a seeming paradox but it's not going well. maybe it was only ever a paradox in my head anyway.

introspection is desirable or at least should be. introversion is not; it's probably neutral or maybe even a mental illness. then of course you can say all traits belong in the variance of a healthy pool but that's safe and boring, not taking the human condition itself into account. i don't claim that introversion is unhealthy but the idea is appealing.

introspection belongs to Ne. Ni-types think they are introspective but they're not. they just get lost in ideas and overwhelmed by the tide of amassing conviction. in some extreme cases this becomes a peculiar narcissism. Ne becomes narcissistic too, but it's very different. Ni are oblivious to their narcissism and thus trapped because they can't see it. Ne are acutely aware of any self-centeredness and can always rationalize it - even use it to leverage the projection of a self-awareness and wit - and are thus trapped because it works. but not seldom the Ni has a crude, understated, reactive, token appreciation of their egocentrism whereas Ne may appear extremely oblivious to theirs when given to the concept of unrelenting authenticity, so my words are useless. maybe to Ni the self isn't even real.

the advantage of Ni is certainty. the advantage of Ne is openness. sometimes Ni is completely taken by an undeniable vision of introspective content, but it cannot actively maintain the multiplicity required for competent introspection like Ne+Ji can. perhaps this better illustrates what i tried to say in the first paragraph.

straying a bit. regarding your query, i think it would be a mistake not to identify as introvert just because you sometimes hang out or whatever. also there's no need to unify typology introversion with introversion in a more classic or popular or scientific sense. finally you don't have to choose between introspection and introversion. i may have misinterpreted something.

 

[Sinny91]

On the MyPersonality Multi-something tests, Introspection was my highest score, as was my Introversion on MBTI. I have been observing everyone elses Multi tests linked on this site, not all INTP's were leading on the Introspection front.

 

[Alias]

I think Introspection is an Intuitive thing, but it's found more in Introverts, probably.

Keirsey replaced Intuition with Introspection, because he saw sixth-sense type Intuition as more of an NF thing.

 

[Inquisitor]

All types are capable of introspection, but introverts do more of it than extraverts. That said, the way that Jung describes introversion/extraversion is somewhat different than the stereotypical picture of introverts being shy/withdrawn and extraverts being outgoing and gregarious.

First of all, Jung believed that attitude (introversion/extraversion) was entirely genetic.

Second, extraversion relates to objective reality e.g. people, things, places, and so forth. The tendency is for the individual to be oriented towards merging with what is objective. This is in fact, a danger because it necessarily involves suppression of subjective reality. When this happens to the extreme, the unconscious subjective (i.e. introverted) function manifests in "archaic" and "primitive" ways. It can be very difficult to understand what this is like if you're an introvert, but this way of thinking about it helps explain why extraverts are more likely to achieve worldly success when young, but have midlife crises from overextending themselves into what is objective and neglecting their subjective side.

Introversion is basically the same idea, except that now the individual seeks to merge with his own subjective impressions, thoughts, feelings, etc.

In either case, when the individual is caught in the grip of the inferior (repressed/unconscious function) Jung prescribes use of the auxiliary to help bring the contents of the unconscious into conscious awareness. I'm not exactly sure how he went about doing that with his patients because I haven't gotten that far...

My point is that introspection is something that "introverts" (those who have a dominant function that is introverted/subjective in direction) are in danger of doing too much, and "extraverts" risk doing too little.

 

[Haim]

introvert is the world according to itself from a certain point of view, indistinguishable from its totality, while extravert is in the world acting. cognitively, that is; an introvert may perform more overt actions, and vice versa. that's not it. i'm trying to get at a seeming paradox but it's not going well. maybe it was only ever a paradox in my head anyway.

introspection is desirable or at least should be. introversion is not; it's probably neutral or maybe even a mental illness. then of course you can say all traits belong in the variance of a healthy pool but that's safe and boring, not taking the human condition itself into account. i don't claim that introversion is unhealthy but the idea is appealing.

introspection belongs to Ne. Ni-types think they are introspective but they're not. they just get lost in ideas and overwhelmed by the tide of amassing conviction. in some extreme cases this becomes a peculiar narcissism. Ne becomes narcissistic too, but it's very different. Ni are oblivious to their narcissism and thus trapped because they can't see it. Ne are acutely aware of any self-centeredness and can always rationalize it - even use it to leverage the projection of a self-awareness and wit - and are thus trapped because it works. but not seldom the Ni has a crude, understated, reactive, token appreciation of their egocentrism whereas Ne may appear extremely oblivious to theirs when given to the concept of unrelenting authenticity, so my words are useless. maybe to Ni the self isn't even real.

the advantage of Ni is certainty. the advantage of Ne is openness. sometimes Ni is completely taken by an undeniable vision of introspective content, but it cannot actively maintain the multiplicity required for competent introspection like Ne+Ji can. perhaps this better illustrates what i tried to say in the first paragraph.

straying a bit. regarding your query, i think it would be a mistake not to identify as introvert just because you sometimes hang out or whatever. also there's no need to unify typology introversion with introversion in a more classic or popular or scientific sense. finally you don't have to choose between introspection and introversion. i may have misinterpreted something.

I like my introversion,if it were not for it,I wouldn't learn as I am now,I would think less time on one idea and might even not discover or fulfill my creative part which is a main thing for me.
Introvert people can have more time to work of their ideas.
Between choosing a life of learning vs a social life,life of learning is more interesting to me then the everyday life.

 

[Brontosaurie]

I like my introversion,if it were not for it,I wouldn't learn as I am now,I would think less time on one idea and might even not discover or fulfill my creative part which is a main thing for me.
Introvert people can have more time to work of their ideas.
Between choosing a life of learning vs a social life,life of learning is more interesting to me then the everyday life.

couldn't agree more. i was thinking strange for the sake of it.

 

[Reluctantly]

There isn't much separating introversion from introspection other than nuances, which some people argue just to try and separate them as mutually exclusive. Reason being, introversion requires being immersed in your own thoughts and feelings, but to do so requires some recognition of them, which implies a level of introspection. An extrovert only has to focus on the objective world outside them and need not understand or even immerse themselves in their own thoughts and feelings to be extroverted.

That said, I'm suspicious of users that claim they are introverted, but not introspective. Either they are confused on the basic terms, lying to themselves, or want to believe they have an introverted attitude when they do not.

you know,,,

My point is that introspection is something that "introverts" (those who have a dominant function that is introverted/subjective in direction) are in danger of doing too much, and "extraverts" risk doing too little.

Yes, this is a good point. It's a central concept behind Jung's types.

 

[Yellow]

I can't imagine any cognitively normal/healthy people failing to be introspective on a regular basis. Introversion seems different. It's like introversion is a state of being, while introspection is an activity.

 

[Reluctantly]

Well, that is why types have both an introverted and extroverted component.

Extroverts have the problem of not paying enough attention to their own thoughts and feelings, so in order to have a functional and adapted psyche, they need to adapt a second introverted process, contrary to their more natural extroverted one. For Ne types, as an example, it is either Fi or Ti, whichever is more natural for them. This is why Jung focused on eight types and not 16 because the second function is more subdued, yet something of a balancing psychic force.

Otherwise, an introvert or an extrovert risks losing touch with some aspect of reality, either their inner subjectiveness or the outer objective world, something Jung elucidates as a neurosis of each function in psychological types. I suppose it's ironic then that a lot of INTPs have at one point mentioned being subjective as something to avoid when it implies a neurosis of the mind.