How Personality Shapes Open-Mindedness about Beliefs: A Study

Why Open-Mindedness Matters

Open-mindedness is one of those qualities that nearly everyone claims to value. But in practice, it takes many forms. Some people are deeply curious about what others believe and why. Others would rather not go there. Some approach unfamiliar viewpoints with genuine interest, while others lead with skepticism. These differences raise an important question: does personality shape how open-minded we actually are?

To find out, we created the “Open-Mindedness” survey, which asked how interested people are in others’ beliefs, what motivates that interest, how they handle belief-related conversations in close relationships, and whether they see their own beliefs as evolving over time. Over 12,500 people across all 16 personality types responded, and the results point to clear and sometimes dramatic personality-driven differences – with certain traits predicting open-mindedness far more strongly than others.

Open-Mindedness Across Personality Types

The most consistent divide in the data around open-mindedness and personality runs along the Feeling and Thinking traits. Feeling types reported stronger interest in others’ beliefs, invested more effort in understanding them, felt more motivated by the desire to connect with another person, and were less likely to lead with skepticism. Thinking types, by contrast, cared more about whether someone could logically defend their beliefs and were more drawn to the differences between their views and others’. This split appeared across a wide range of questions, making it the most reliable predictor of how a person engages with the beliefs of those around them.

The Intuitive and Observant traits were almost as influential, though in a different way. Rather than shaping the emotional tone of engagement, they shaped the depth and direction of curiosity. Intuitive types were more likely to explore the origins of beliefs, expect their own beliefs to change, and report that they hold the same beliefs as others but for entirely different reasons. Observant types, particularly when paired with the Judging trait, showed a stronger preference for stability and were less likely to anticipate their beliefs evolving.

The Introverted and Extraverted traits played a more targeted role, especially in the social side of belief exploration. Introverted types were notably more uncomfortable when someone tried to persuade them of a belief. Extraverted types – particularly those with the Intuitive trait – were far more likely to check in on friends’ beliefs and to assume they already know what close ones think. The Extraverted trait alone didn’t predict open-mindedness in a broad sense, but it did predict how willing someone is to engage in belief-related conversations.

Perhaps the most revealing finding was the set of responses that held true regardless of type. Every personality type preferred to understand the origins of someone’s beliefs rather than the beliefs themselves. Every type said their beliefs grow stronger through evolution rather than through the passage of time. And across every type, most people said their primary motivation for exploring someone else’s beliefs was to better understand that person – not themselves. These shared patterns suggest that, whatever our personality differences, most people value growth and connection over rigidity.

How Much Personality Types Care About Others’ Beliefs

When it comes to caring about what other people believe, personality makes a significant difference. Diplomat personality types consistently show the strongest curiosity and invest the most effort in understanding others’ beliefs. Explorer types, on the other hand, tend to be far less engaged. But interest alone doesn’t tell the whole story – these five survey questions reveal not just how much each type cares, but what motivates that curiosity, from a desire to understand where beliefs come from to the hope that the process will deepen a personal connection.

Level of Interest in Others’ Beliefs

Diplomats stood out for their interest in other people’s beliefs. ENFP personalities (Campaigners) led all types, with 61% saying they are “Very” interested in other people’s beliefs, closely followed by ENFJ personalities (Protagonists) at 60%. INFJ personalities (Advocates) and INFP personalities (Mediators) weren’t far behind. The Feeling trait appears to be a key driver here: across every Role, Feeling types expressed stronger interest than their counterparts with the Thinking trait.

At the other end, ISTP personalities (Virtuosos) reported the least interest in others’ beliefs – fewer than 10% said they are “Very” interested, and over 43% chose “Hardly” or “Not at all.” ISTJ personalities (Logisticians) and ESTJ personalities (Executives) also showed limited curiosity. Both the Observant and Thinking traits seem to reduce interest, with Intuitive personalities reporting stronger engagement with what others believe.

Preference for Beliefs or Their Origins

Regardless of overall interest level, nearly every type cared more about how people came to have their beliefs than about the beliefs themselves. Analyst types were especially drawn to origins: ENTJ personalities (Commanders) led, with 79% preferring to know how someone came to hold their beliefs, and INTJ personalities (Architects) came in at 76%. Even types with lower overall interest in the topic preferred to understand the origins when they did engage.

The most telling pattern came from the “N/A” responses, which effectively measured disengagement. Nearly a quarter of ESTP personalities (Entrepreneurs) and about 21% of ISTPs answered “N/A” when asked whether they prefer others’ beliefs or their origins – the highest such rates for any personality type. For these types, the question may simply not have felt relevant. Still, among those who did express a preference, every single type chose origins over the beliefs themselves, suggesting that when people care enough to explore someone’s worldview, they want to understand the reasoning behind it.

Discomfort with Persuasion Attempts

Many people find it uncomfortable when someone tries to persuade them of their beliefs – but Introverted personalities most of all. ISTPs led, with 77% saying persuasion attempts make them uncomfortable, followed by ISFP personalities (Adventurers) at 75%. Every Introverted type agreed at rates above 65%, making the divide between Introverted and Extraverted personalities the clearest on this question.

The types least bothered were ENTP personalities (Debaters) and ENFJs – both around 49% said it makes them uncomfortable when someone tries to persuade them of their beliefs, essentially a coin flip. For Extraverted, Intuitive personalities, someone else trying to change their mind may feel less like a threat and more like a chance for an engaging conversation. The gap between the most and least comfortable types was nearly 30 percentage points, showing how dramatically the same social situation can land depending on personality.

Motivation for Exploring Others’ Beliefs

When asked whether they hope a deeper understanding of another person’s beliefs will increase their understanding of that person or of themselves, most types chose the other person. Feeling types leaned into this choice most strongly. ISFJ personalities (Defenders) led, with 80% saying they hope to better understand the other person, closely followed by ENFJs and ENFPs at around 79%. This fits with the Feeling trait’s natural emphasis on interpersonal connection – for these types, exploring someone’s beliefs is primarily about deepening a relationship.

Thinking types were more likely to select the self-focused option, though no type came close to a majority choosing it. INTJs led, with 36% saying they mainly hope to better understand themselves, followed by ISTPs at 35% and ENTPs at 34%. This tracks with the way Thinking types tend to approach the world – viewing encounters with differing beliefs as material for testing and refining their own ideas. Still, even among the most self-oriented types, roughly two-thirds said they ultimately hope to understand the other person better.

Effort Invested in Understanding Beliefs

Diplomats once again led the field in how much effort they put into understanding other people’s beliefs. ENFJs reported the highest rate, with 48% saying they put “A lot” of effort into understanding others’ beliefs, followed by ENFPs at 45%. INFPs and INFJs were close behind. For these personality types, understanding what others believe isn’t a passive curiosity – it’s something they invest real energy in, consistent with their drive for meaningful connection.

At the other extreme, ISTPs stood out at the very bottom – only about 6% reported putting “A lot” of effort into understanding what others believe, and over 42% chose “Very little” or “None.” Sentinel types like ISTJs and Explorer types like ESTPs also showed low engagement. For these practical types, spending energy probing others’ belief systems may simply not feel worthwhile – particularly when those beliefs don’t directly affect their daily lives.

How Personality Types Judge Others’ Beliefs

Not everyone holds others’ beliefs to the same standard. Thinking personalities – and the Analyst Role in particular – proved the most evaluative and questioning, from expecting people to defend what they believe to approaching conversations with default skepticism. But there’s a subtler pattern in the data too: many types arrive at the same beliefs as the people around them, yet through completely different reasoning. Intuitive and Feeling types reported this experience most often, hinting at just how differently each personality type processes the world.

The Importance of Well-Defended Beliefs

Analysts care the most about how well someone can defend their beliefs. ENTPs topped the list, with 77% saying a well-defended belief matters to them, and ENTJs were close behind at 75%. INTP personalities (Logicians) agreed at 67%, putting all four Analyst types above every other type in the survey. The Thinking trait appears to be the decisive factor – across every Role, Thinking types were more likely to say that how well someone defends their beliefs matters to them.

ESFP personalities (Entertainers) were the least concerned with how well others defend their beliefs, at just 46%, with ISFPs and ISFJs similarly unbothered. These Observant, Feeling types tend to prioritize personal experience and emotional connection over logical argument, which may explain why a polished defense doesn’t carry much weight with them. The gap between the highest and lowest types exceeded 30 percentage points – a clear sign that personality shapes whether people judge others by the strength of their reasoning.

Default Skepticism Toward Others’ Beliefs

ENTPs were the only type where a majority – 51% – said they typically start a conversation about someone else’s beliefs very skeptically. The remaining Analyst types hovered just below the halfway mark, all between 47% and 48%. For these personalities, skepticism isn’t hostility – it’s a default mode of engagement. Their Intuitive and Thinking traits drive them to question before accepting, treating claims as something to be examined rather than taken at face value.

ENFJs were the least likely to start conversations about others’ beliefs skeptically, at just 19%. ESFJ personalities (Consuls) and INFJs were similarly open, both around 24%. The Feeling trait is the sharpest divider here: Feeling types were far less inclined to open a conversation with doubt. For many of them, starting from a skeptical position may feel adversarial or counterproductive – especially when their primary goal is understanding and connection rather than critique.

Shared Beliefs, Different Reasons

Diplomats were the most likely to notice that they share the same beliefs as other people but for entirely different reasons. INFPs led, with 67% reporting this experience, and the other three Diplomat types were all within two percentage points. These Intuitive, Feeling types tend to examine beliefs through a deeply personal lens, so even when they reach the same conclusion as someone else, the path they took to get there often looks quite different.

Sharing beliefs for different reasons was least common among ISTPs, at 45%, with ISFJs close behind at just under 50%. Observant personality types in general reported lower agreement, possibly because their more concrete, experience-based reasoning tends to follow more conventional paths. Interestingly, Analyst types – who approach beliefs very differently from Diplomats – also reported this experience at high rates, suggesting that any type with strong Intuitive tendencies is likely to forge its own unique reasoning, regardless of where that reasoning leads.

Beliefs in Close Relationships: Assumptions and Check-Ins

Close relationships often create a sense of familiarity that extends to beliefs – many people assume they already know what their nearest and dearest think about the world. But assumptions can grow stale, and not every personality type treats them the same way. This group of questions explored whether people presume to know their loved ones’ beliefs, whether they actively verify those assumptions, and how past disagreements shape that behavior. The results point to a curious gap between how confident people feel about knowing others and how willing they are to test that confidence.

Assuming Knowledge of Close Ones’ Beliefs

Most personality types do assume they know many of the beliefs of the people they’re very close to. ESFPs led the way, with 74% saying they assume they know their close ones’ beliefs, followed closely by ENTJs at 73% and ENFPs at 71%. Extraverted types in general were more likely to make this assumption, perhaps because their frequent social engagement creates a steady flow of information about the people in their lives. The pattern held across Roles – the Extraverted version of each pairing tended to agree at higher rates than its Introverted counterpart.

ISTPs were the only type to dip below 50% on this question, and ISFPs were the next lowest at about 55%, followed by INTPs at 57%. These more reserved types may be less inclined to assume they know what others think – or they may simply interact with close ones in ways that don’t surface belief-related conversations as often. In many pairings, Thinking types showed slightly less confidence in these assumptions than their Feeling counterparts. But there were notable exceptions – ENTJs, for instance, assumed knowledge of close ones’ beliefs at 73%, well above the 67% rate for ENFJs. This suggests that while analytical caution may play some role, other factors like social confidence and engagement style can easily override it.

Checking In on Friends’ Beliefs

While many types assume they know what their close ones believe, far fewer occasionally “check in” on their friends’ beliefs to verify those assumptions. The Extraverted, Intuitive types stood apart here – ENTJs and ENTPs both said they check in on friends’ beliefs at roughly 58%, with ENFJs and ENFPs close behind at around 55–56%. For these personality types, checking in on friends’ beliefs may feel like a natural extension of their love for deep conversation and intellectual exchange.

The drop-off was steep among Introverted and Observant personalities. Only about 26% of ISTJs and 28% of ISFPs said they check in on friends’ beliefs, while ISTPs brought up the rear at just 18%. That means more than four out of five ISTPs don’t actively revisit what their friends believe. The gap between the highest and lowest types was a striking 40 percentage points, making this one of the most personality-dependent behaviors in the entire survey. It appears that proactively discussing beliefs requires both the social initiative that comes with the Extraverted trait and the abstract curiosity driven by the Intuitive trait.

Effect of Past Disagreements on Checking In

For those who do check in on friends’ beliefs, past disagreements don’t necessarily make them more likely to do it again. In fact, across nearly every type, the majority said they check in less often when they’ve disagreed with a friend in the past, not more. ENTPs were the sole exception, with 51% saying they check in more often after past disagreements – a result that aligns with their well-documented appetite for debate and intellectual challenge. ENTJs were the next closest at 48%, followed by ENFPs at 46%.

ISFPs showed the strongest pull in the opposite direction, with 78% saying they check in less often after prior disagreements. ISFJs and ISTJs followed a similar pattern, both above 73%. For these Observant, often harmony-oriented types, past conflict may serve as a signal to tread more carefully rather than re-engage. The Feeling trait amplified this effect – Feeling types were broadly more likely to step back after a disagreement, possibly to protect the relationship or avoid renewed tension. The data suggests that for most people, disagreement doesn’t spark further exploration of beliefs. Instead, it quietly discourages it.

Self-Reflection and the Evolution of Personal Beliefs

Beliefs don’t exist in a vacuum. Learning about what others think can prompt people to reexamine their own positions – or it can reinforce what they already hold. This group of questions explored how personality types respond internally when confronted with differing viewpoints: whether exposure to other beliefs triggers self-doubt, what draws their attention during belief-related conversations, and how they expect their own beliefs to change over time. The Prospecting trait and the Intuitive trait emerged as the strongest predictors of openness to personal belief change, while Observant and Judging types showed greater comfort with stability.

Self-Skepticism Triggered by Others’ Beliefs

No personality type reached even 50% agreement that finding out about others’ beliefs makes them more skeptical of their own – most people, it seems, don’t question their own convictions simply by learning what others think. Still, there was a clear personality divide. INFPs were the most likely to report becoming more skeptical of their own beliefs, at 46%, followed by INTPs at 44% and ISFPs at 41%. The Prospecting trait was the most consistent predictor – across every pairing, the Prospecting type agreed at higher rates than its Judging counterpart, sometimes by 10 or more percentage points.

At the other end, ESTJs were the least likely to report growing self-skepticism, at just 23%, with ENTJs at 25% and ESFJs at 26%. Judging types – particularly those with the Thinking trait – appear most comfortable standing firm in their existing beliefs regardless of what they encounter. The results paint an interesting picture: Prospecting types, who already tend to keep their options open, are also the most willing to turn that openness inward. For Judging types, encountering a different viewpoint rarely seems to shake the foundation of what they already believe.

Interest in Similarities vs. Differences

When discussing someone else’s beliefs with them, most personality types said they’re more interested in the differences from their own beliefs than the similarities. But the margin varied widely. ENTPs led the difference-focused camp, with 73% saying they’re drawn to where beliefs diverge, followed by INTJs at 71% and INTPs at 70%. These Analyst types treat conversations about beliefs as a chance to probe where perspectives differ – consistent with their broader tendency to challenge ideas and test assumptions through contrast.

A few types bucked the trend entirely. ISFJs slightly preferred similarities, at 52%, and ESFJs and ESFPs were essentially split at 50%. These Observant, Feeling types may find common ground more satisfying – or simply more productive – than dwelling on where opinions clash. The contrast between Thinking and Feeling personalities was stark here: Thinking types consistently gravitated toward differences, while Feeling types were more evenly split. This suggests that the Thinking and Feeling traits shape not just how people form their beliefs but also what catches their attention when they discuss them.

Expectations of Belief Change over Time

ENFPs were the most likely to expect their beliefs to change over time, at 74%, followed closely by INTPs and INFPs, both above 72%. The Intuitive trait made the biggest difference on this question – Intuitive types agreed at significantly higher rates than their Observant counterparts. These types spend more time imagining possibilities and questioning assumptions, so it makes sense that they’d see their current beliefs as a work in progress rather than a finished product.

Sentinels were the least likely to anticipate change. Only 45% of ESFJs said they expect their beliefs to evolve over time – the lowest rate in the survey – and ISTJs were close behind at just under 50%. For these types, stability in beliefs may feel less like rigidity and more like reliability. Their Observant and Judging traits orient them toward proven principles and established ideas, making the prospect of shifting beliefs less appealing – or perhaps simply less imaginable. The nearly 30-point gap between the highest and lowest types reveals how different personality types can be in their relationship with certainty itself.

How Beliefs Gain Strength: Evolution vs. Duration

Every personality type said their beliefs become stronger the more they evolve, rather than the longer they hold to them – but the margin differed considerably. ENFJs and ENTPs led, with 84% of each type crediting evolution, and ENFPs and ENTJs followed at about 82%. Intuitive personalities favored evolution by overwhelming margins, consistent with their broader pattern of valuing growth, adaptation, and intellectual refinement over tradition and constancy.

ESTJs were the most likely to credit duration, with 36% saying their beliefs strengthen the longer they hold them – the highest of any personality type, though still a minority position. ISTPs, ISFJs, and ESTPs also leaned more toward duration than other types, all around 30–33%. For these Observant types, time-tested beliefs may carry a kind of earned authority that feels more trustworthy than beliefs that have been repeatedly revised. Still, even among the most duration-oriented types, roughly two-thirds chose evolution – a reminder that across all personalities, people tend to value beliefs that have been shaped and tested more than beliefs that have simply endured.

The Personality Traits Behind an Open Mind

This survey shows that open-mindedness isn’t a single quality that people either possess or lack. Instead, it’s a set of related behaviors – curiosity, effort, self-reflection, tolerance for persuasion, willingness to revisit assumptions – each shaped by personality in different ways. The Feeling trait drives empathetic engagement. The Intuitive trait drives exploratory curiosity. The Extraverted trait drives active participation in belief-related conversations. No one trait captures the full picture, which means that even types scoring low on one dimension of open-mindedness may score high on another.

The most striking finding may be how rarely people let others’ beliefs trigger genuine self-questioning. People are willing to listen, to learn, and even to invest significant effort in understanding others – but turning that lens inward appears to be a step most are reluctant to take, regardless of personality.

Still, the data offers a hopeful takeaway. Across all 16 personality types, people overwhelmingly said that their beliefs grow stronger through evolution, not through the passage of time. This points to a shared – if sometimes quiet – commitment to growth. Whether that growth comes from deep emotional connection, rigorous logical analysis, or a casual conversation with a close friend, the direction is the same: toward beliefs that have been tested, refined, and ultimately chosen.