Ns versus Ss

[lynkemma]

I was having a discussion with an ISTJ friend last night, and she expressed some dismay at an attitude she'd come across in an Intuitive community - that is, the idea that Sensors are somehow inherently inferior to Intuitives. She'd come across many statements along the lines of "I could never be close friends with a Sensor," and "Sensors are

Comments

[eternitat]

Most of my family are Sensors.

Sensors often put me down for lack of common sense. Never mind I'm almost 30 and still have all my visible body parts. Never mind I have not gotten into trouble with the law. I have ZERO common sense according to them.

I love using my imagination. It helps me get through hard times in life.

My teammate at work is very much a Sensor. She's a step by step learner. She's very visual while I'm very auditory. She uses lots of visuals in her storytimes while I use a lot of songs and rhymes.

[eternitat]

I'm strongest in the N myself. When I talk to distinctive Sensors, it is as if we were speaking two different languages indeed.

I just want to jump into things. My colleague needs to do things step by step.

[lynkemma]

Interesting input, thanks for linking. As for the quoted conversation, however, the so-called N-responses are the sort of answers that would drive me bonkers. If wanting clear and factual answers is an S-trait, then my S-side must be stronger than I thought.

[saeble]

S's outnumber N's 3 to 1, as a consequence its always an uphill battle through life for an 'N', the whole world is essentially built around an 'S' friendly framework. That's always going to add up to resentful 'N's.

In some settings n's are superior, in others, S's are.

What really bugs me is that, (even given my bias), the majority of situations actually favour an 'N' perspective. It's a very rare occasion where a pure 'S' approach will net the quickest/best outcome. Sadly, in a good many circumstances, the S's hold sway/power, so the painful plodding is status quo. :)

[lynkemma]

the painful plodding is status quo.

I think this is the core of my question, really. Why is it that from an N-perspective, Sensors are seen as people who plod painfully, rather than people who work systematically, carefully, responsibly, whatever - i.e. why is the view of the Sensing approach automatically so negative?

...Having said that, I'm bang alongside you about the reason why Ns might feel resentful. Numbers account for a lot.

[lynkemma]

*nods* We certainly need both. And frankly, I think the Sly approach is, in many cases, of more value and use in the real world than the Nly one. I have plenty of Ns around in my RL, and a lot of them (especially the NPs) are maddeningly impractical.

[jeroentiggelman]

Let me first ignore the question itself and focus on the context of the question. (Yeah, I am an N.)

she expressed some dismay at an attitude she'd come across in an Intuitive community - that is, the idea that Sensors are somehow inherently inferior to Intuitives. She'd come across many statements along the lines of "I could never be close friends with a Sensor," and "Sensors are boring!" and the like.

I think one of the important things that hopefully the MBTI might make one realize is that people are different. They have different preferences and if you pay attention to that you can work (or be friends) much better. But it can also that people really do have specific expectations of friendships that not all other types may satisfy easily. So I think that a remark like "I could never be close friends with a Sensor" is more of an expression of the compatiblity between the speaker and Sensors in general, and less of an "attitude that Sensors are somehow inherently inferior

[lynkemma]

Thank you, interesting response. I agree with the immaturity of the Sensing-hating comments. Since you don't want to go into personal details, I hesitate to ask, but nevertheless:

Still, the statement that in general I get along better with other intuitives would be a true one. I think I simply find it easier to relate to them.

If you're willing, could you expand on this? Why/how do you find it easier to relate to other intutitives? (Not that I disagree, I'm just curious as to what your specific reasons are.)

[jeroentiggelman]

I like discussing things on a high level of abstraction and I am naturally less preoccupied with accuracy on a detail level (unless it is needed in context). I have less experience in conveying the same ideas in a manner that is more material. Also, I like to step outside of any existing frames and see what I find there, even if I do not have a direct application.