It can be difficult to tell whether you are a perceiver or a judge because you need both of them throughout your day.
What percentage of the population are perceivers? In a study conducted in Sep 2017 by StatisticBrain, 54.1% are judgers vs 45.9% are perceivers. Within the same gender, women tend to have more proportion of judgers vs perceivers (12.4% more judgers) compared to men having 4% more judgers only.
Source: statisticbrain.com
Judging vs. Perceiving is measured by having people choose between sentence pairs such as
- "I like to have things decided." vs. "I like to stay open to respond to whatever happens."
- "I like to make lists of things to do." vs. "I appear to be loose and casual. I like to keep plans to a minimum."
- "I like to get my work done before playing." vs. "I like to approach work as mixed work and play."
- "I plan work to avoid rushing just before a deadline." vs. "I am stimulated by an approaching deadline."
What is the difference between being a perceiver and being a judger
Perceivers are often seen as more open-minded and laid back than a judger. They are also more spontaneous and adaptable. Some also refer to the P as “prospecting” rather than “perceiving.”
16personalities.com shared more statistics on the differences between a prospector and a judger:
- 72% of those with the Judging trait say they are focused on and dedicated to their goals and rarely get sidetracked, compared to 21% of those with the Prospecting trait.
- 66% of those with the Judging trait say they set specific goals that they hope to accomplish each day, compared to 34% of those with the Prospecting trait.
- 76% of those with the Prospecting trait say it's hard for them to focus on one thing for a long period, compared to 50% of those with the Judging trait.
- 69% of those with the Prospecting trait say they jump from one topic in a conversation to another quickly, compared to 47% of those with the Judging trait.
Judgers are typically organized and like having order and structure, whereas perceivers are more spontaneous. Perceivers have high emotional intelligence and tend to be warm and empathetic people who are attuned to the feelings of those working around them.
Are Judgers better than Perceivers?
There are no "better" traits in all situations and it is not the intention of the test. While having deadlines suit Judgers, Perceivers can focus outwardly and explore opportunities and possibilities better.
- Deadlines, plans, and predictability make Judgers better at managing a stable project.
- Being innovative, energetic, a Perceiver can focus on new concepts and ideas better
Why judgers and perceivers drive each other crazy
People with strong Judging preferences need proper planning and cannot accept people with strong Perceiving preferences, in an unknown environment. Judgers will think Perceivers are irresponsible while Perceivers think Judgers overthink.
A survey of a newsletter married reader showed that 25% of folks who responded are both Judging and almost 10% are both Perceiving while the remaining 65% are mixed. Rebecca comments on her differences in marriage on tolovehonorandvacuum.com:
Throughout our marriage, this has been at the heart of every single fight we have had. I look around the apartment and see 74 things that need to get done before the weekend, 5 days away. Connor sees it as “Sweet! I have 5 days before I have to do those 74 things!” and happily plugs in his video game to enjoy his time off while I stew and clean, feeling oh so sorry for myself that my husband just expects me to do everything and not even lift a finger.
A "mixed" couple (one Perceiving and one Judging) can complement each other very well if they have developed themselves enough to be able to accept each other's differences.
The labels judging and perceiving appear not entirely accurate because they seem to only define how you take in information.
- Judging implies evaluating external data and methodically making decisions
- Perceiving suggests a more natural, sensory, and time-consuming approach to receiving, assessing, and deciding on the information.
We all use both Judging and Perceiving as we live our day-to-day life. Within the context of personality type, the important distinction is which way of life do we lean towards, and are more comfortable with.
Big Five Personality Traits and MBTI
A StackOverflow user mentioned that the MBTI traits overlap with those of the Big Five (the most widely adopted model of personality) concerning the Big Five have been studied extensively.
The MBTI Judging dimension and its Perceiving counterpart overlap to a large extent with the Big Five trait conscientiousness (e.g., Furnham, 1996, McCrea & Costa, 1989). This is not surprising if you look at how Judging vs. Perceiving and conscientiousness are measured similarly:
Conscientiousness is measured by items that are similar to Judgers such as
- "I get chores done right away."
- "I carry out my plans."
- "I stick to my chosen path."
Thus, there appears to be a clear semantic overlap between the two constructs.
Conclusion
The Judger and Perceiver are just derived personalities and will change in different situations. You can or improve yourself by understanding the differences and using the right personality in the right situation.