Writer's Block: Taking It Personally

[rocknload]

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Short answer: I think those tests are bullshit, and me saying hey, I'm an ENTP! is about as useful as saying hey, I'm a Leo/Virgo cusp! In fact, in my case the astrological sign is closer to describing my personality, but it's not like it's saying a lot anyway. The profiles are always filled with phrases like: "They tend to have a perverse sense of humor as well, and enjoy playing devil's advocate." Or: "Sometimes they exaggerate problems and overreact to stumbling blocks, but generally they are positive and their natural pride and stubborn streak keeps them from giving up." Those sound awfully specific, don't they? But honestly, how many people wouldn't identify with those statements?

Pop psychology usually pisses me off, though.

Comments

[sunsetsred.livejournal.com]

See, the reason I think it's completely different from astrology is that it's not going "LOL YOU'RE THIS RANDOMLY" and overly vague and generic. It's like saying you're left-brained or right-brained, it's an actual "Okay, are you an introvert or extrovert?"

Now, any description that is supposed to define a million people who just happen to share 4 characteristics is going to be a generalization, but it's not that much of a stretch to go "extroverts are more outgoing than introverts".

[rocknload.livejournal.com]

People being left-brained or right-brained is actually totally made up psuedo-scientific bullshit popularized by the media, though! That in particular drives me nuts, in fact, probably because it freaking ignores the fact that people are not logical or creative—they traits are not polar opposites, they actually coincide more often than not, and drawing weird lines like that makes no sense.