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Most of the time, they're simply misunderstood.
By Emily Van Devender — Last updated on Feb 27, 2023
The Myers-Briggs personality spectrum consists of 16 personality types, each identified by four letters. And while there are plenty of positive qualities for each type, there are also dark traits that can rear their ugly head.
The ISTP personality type (Introversion, Sensing, Thinking and Perceiving), also known as the Virtuoso, has many positive attributes, including a knack for fairness, deep curiosity, creativity, confidence, practicality, and logic.
However, some of these positive traits are the roots of resulting negativity.
5 Dark Traits of the ISTP Personality Type
1. Indifferent
Because of ISTP's trademark curiosity, it's easy for someone with this personality type to lose interest in things quickly. This applies to school, careers and even relationships.
People with an ISTP personality type often under-perform with tasks due to a lack of interest in abstract ideas and a distracting sense of curiosity. In fact, they have a high likelihood of being diagnosed with ADD or ADHD.
They become bored with work that isn’t hands-on or particularly interesting to them.
2. Workaholic
This personality type is notorious for being hands-on, seeking work that produces tangible products or solutions. However, as a result, ISTPs are prone to becoming consumed by their work.
While they thrive in certain careers as craftsmen or designers, their cravings for productivity and competition easily create an unhealthy relationship with their work life.
3. Temperamental
Due to their introversion and interest in the exploration of tangible objects and activities, ISTPs often find difficulty in forming deeply-bonded friendships or relationships.
Because of their temperamental tendencies, they typically form an array of surface-level relationships with others based solely on shared interests rather than emotional bonding.
As for an ISTP’s bad side, expect to be met with malevolence. Their desire for equity and fairness often results in a lack of restraint in taking revenge.
4. Commitment-phobic
ISTPs crave independence but the flip side of this is the inability to commit to long-term romantic relationships. And the few deep relationships ISTPs form, can get a bit messy.
This personality type is known for having commitment issues inside and outside of relationships. They like to take things day by day and retain their freedom.
This means that if the ISTP is not fully interested and invested in a relationship, it is likely they will have no reservations about leaving it. This is thanks in part to their focus on their own needs over those of others, and their impulsivity.
5. Detached
ISTP personalities have trouble adequately expressing emotions. While they can be highly emotional people on the inside, their emotions sometimes manifest unprompted. Consequently, they won’t necessarily feel the emotion at the appropriate moment.
When put on the spot emotionally, ISTPs come across as awkward or insincere in spite of the fact that they genuinely care. Someone with this personality type also might deliberately hide negative emotions in an attempt to avoid conflict, but this further complicates their pre-existing communication issues.
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Emily Van Devender is a freelance writer based in Colorado, USA. She writes about astrology, politics, feminism, and psychology.