The Meaning of INFJ: What It Is and How To Use It

Do you know your Myers-Briggs personality type? Whether you’re an Advocate, a Protagonist, or somewhere in between, these personality test results can help you gain a better understanding of yourself and the people around you. Read on to learn more about the INFJ personality type!

What Does INFJ Usually Stand For?

INFJ stands for introverted, intuitive, feeling, judging. This is a Myers-Briggs personality type. An INFJ usually has Introverted Intuition, Extroverted Feeling, Introverted Thinking, and Extraverted Sensing. Known as The Counselor or The Advocate, INFJ personality types are creative, driven, and dedicated.

INFJs have a strong personal value system. These strong value systems are often coupled with good communication skills, and INFJ personalities hold people’s opinions at a level of great importance. 

INFJs are highly intuitive individuals, often lost in their own world of hidden meanings. They have high expectations for themselves and others, and they are insightful visionaries who can make a real difference in the world. 

INFJs are the rarest type of enneagram types. They make up 2% of the general population of women and 1% of the general population of men.

Famous INFJs

While being an INFJ is rare, you will find that many INFJs are passionate creatives who dedicate their lives to helping others. These celebrities are sensitive and reserved with strong intuition and insight. While they may be introverted, they often understand people very deeply.

• Fyodor Dostoevsky
• Shirley MacLaine
• Brené Brown
• Florence Nightingale
• Jane Goodall
• Jimmy Carter
• Noam Chomsky
• David Keirsey
• Mohandas Gandhi
• Eleanor Roosevelt
• Carl Jung
• Emily Bronte
• Edward Snowden

What Is the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)?

According to Very Well Mind, the Myers-Briggs Personality Type Indicator is a personality quiz that explains a person’s personality type, strengths, and preferences. The resulting Myers-Briggs type is made up of four letters. These are a quad of binaries: E vs. I, S vs. N, F vs. T, and P vs. J. These different personality traits provide insight into a person’s complex virtues to help them reach their full potential.

The inventors of the MBTI are Katharine Briggs and Isabel Myers. They created the MBTI based on the work of psychologist Carl Jung. 

Extraversion vs. Intraversion

The first letter in the Myers-Briggs personality test determines if a person is introverted or extroverted. This segment of the MBTI shows how people interact with and respond to the world around them.

If someone is introverted, their primary mode of living is focused internally. They need time to recharge alone. An introvert’s secondary mode would be external. 

The opposite is true for an extrovert, who gets energy by being around people and can feel drained if they are alone for too long.

Sensing vs. Intuition

The sensing versus intuition scale examines how people synthesize information. Usually, people who prefer sensing are very attuned to the world around them. They are focused on facts, details, and senses and need hands-on experience.

People who are intuitive-dominant prefer examining the world through patterns and impressions. Usually, people who are intuitive-dominant prefer creating theories, thinking about possibilities, and postulating about the future.

Thinking vs. Feeling

This letter in the MBTI focuses on how people make their decisions: thinking or feeling. People who are feelers often consider the impacts their decisions will have on people and their emotions. 

People who are thinkers focus on data and facts. While this does not mean that thinkers focus exclusively on hard data or that feelers make decision exclusively based on emotion, it examines people’s immediate instincts.

Perceiving vs. Judging

Finally, this scale examines how people confront the outside world. People who are judgers tend to lean toward firm, decisive action. People who are perceivers tend to be very flexible and adaptable, but they can be more wishy-washy when it comes to decision making. 

Remember that all of the above elements of the MBTI are a scale. No one is completely an extrovert or introvert, sensor or intuitor, thinker or feeler, or perceiver or judger. Often, people fall in the middle of the spectrum. The MBTI was designed to compile a personality type depending on how you behave and process the world around you. It is not a hard and fast rule.

The Different MBTI Types

There are sixteen different personality types. Each of these has its own name meant to encapsulate what the type behaves like. The INFJ personality type is the Advocate. 

Which one of these describes your personality type?

• ISFP – The Artist
• ENTJ – The Commander
• INTP – The Thinker
• ESTJ – The Director
• INTJ – The Architect
• ESTP – The Persuader
• ENTP – The Debater
• ISFJ – The Protector
• ENFP – The Champion
• INFJ – The Advocate
• ISTP – The Crafter
• ENFJ – The Giver
• ESFP – The Performer
• INFP – The Mediator
• ISTJ – The Inspector
• ESFJ – The Caregiver

What Else Can INFJ Stand For?

According to The Free Dictionary, the abbreviation INFJ can also stand for the International Nursing Foundation of Japan (Tokyo, Japan). It should be fairly obvious which of these potential meanings a person intends when using it.

If you are in a situation in which you are discussing personalities and personality types, INFJ will probably be used to stand for Introverted Intuitive Feeling Judging. If you are in a situation in which you are discussing international nursing programs, it will probably stand for the International Nursing Foundation of Japan.

Conclusion

If you are ever in a situation in which you are confused by what someone means by INFJ, don’t be afraid to ask them to clarify. It is always better to ask for clarification than to make a false assumption. 

The abbreviation INFJ most often stands for Introverted Intuitive Feeling Judging. This is one of the sixteen Myers-Briggs personality types. 

Sources:

1. INFJ – What does INFJ stand for? | The Free Dictionary 
2. Myers-Briggs Type Indicator: The 16 Personality Types | Very Well Mind 
3. Myers-Briggs Type Indicator – an overview | ScienceDirect Topics