# MBTI and Chess



## Smocaine (Jun 4, 2018)

What type do you believe to be generally:

A) The best at Chess (and games/eSport titles like it)

B) The most inclined to play it.


I'm inclined to posit that the INTP/INTJ types would be the best at chess (particularly the INTP). To me the Ti-Ne function pair is ideal, seeing as it both covers the raw calculation and the observant/pattern recognition parts of the game. What are your opinions?


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## Handsome Dyke (Oct 4, 2012)

I suspect that xNTJs are more inclined to play. Te is better than Ti for strategizing. I am an INTP, and I've never been able to get into chess because of the element of chance introduced by the opponent being able to do so much to alter gameplay. I like games in which I have everything figured out ahead of time (meaning that I know the rules and more or less what to expect and can figure out how to win based solely on that knowledge), so gameplay that can change wildly depending on what the other player does is not attractive to me; strategizing is not fun to me. 

Trying to mentally list all the moves the other player can make and all the responses I can make is a good memory exercise but rather taxing and not much fun. Excessive conditionals make games seem less substantial, like I'm just thinking, turning my gears, rather than actually playing anything. 

But maybe I see games this way simply because I specifically use games to exercise Ti more than Ne.


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## Highway Nights (Nov 26, 2014)

I'm not a pro or anything, but I don't typically lose.

One of those 9 year old chess prodigies would probably annihilate me though

Anyway, best players I know are an INTP friend who usually beats me, and this one (probably ESFP) guy I kind know who I was always too afraid to play because he was writing an academic paper on chess, and I heard that and was just like "nah, I don't want to get trashed in front of people."


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## shameless (Apr 21, 2014)

I agree Te use are key here

My moms the best I have known being INTJ

But even my ENFP ex was pretty good with his tert Te at chess

I will play but I honestly suck at it. It’s just more mental exercise for me than it is something I seriously seek to compete at.


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## Sparky (Mar 15, 2010)

Magnus Carlson (best male chess player) appears to be ENFP Capital Communist, Possession-focused 8PM, while Hou Yifan (best female chess player) appears to also be ENFP Capital Communist, Possession-focused, 8PM. This tells me that they are keen on taking possessions (which makes sense, since you "take" opponent chess pieces), and they are skill-focused (8PM). Capital Communist means they are very individual-personal-oriented, while ENFP tells that they are extroverted (interacting with many people), and uses Fi-Te (gauging others emotions, strong personal values, and an overall strategic mindset). It's also important to note that they begin playing chess at five years of age.

You can read more about what Capital Communist, Possession-focused, 8PM mean, in MBTI+, here: https://www.personalitycafe.com/myers-briggs-forum/1132474-mbti-add-personality-systems-enhance-character-description-profiling-7.html

It's also important to note that Hou and Carlson are of the physical ange number 13, which means they deal with simplicity, or make the complex simple. Also, just because they are possession-oriented, it doesn't mean they just focus on accumulating material belongings; it also means they see a use for everything, so every chess piece likely matters more to them than the average person.


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## Drecon (Jun 20, 2016)

Chess is a complicated game that uses multiple different skills. Good chess players will use all of their cognitive functions. 

Generally, functions are tools. You can use tools in different ways and for different purposes. Any type can be a great chess player because they just have to learn to play the game in a way that uses their skills in the best way. 

That said, I've read in the past that INTPs are overrepresented in chess. I think chess really speaks to Ti and Ne, so I believe it. Not sure if they're bound to be better at it though, they might be more likely to play it than other types though.


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## SpaceMan (Dec 11, 2014)

I suspect the Ti / Ne combo is the most common in Chess. Examples of Ti/Ne (xNTP) chess players to my knowledge are:

Magnus Carlsson, Hikaru Nakamura, Bobby Fisher, Viswanathan Anand, Mikhail Tal (and more)

whereas:

Garry Kasparov appears to be an xNTJ (off the top of my head)

also something worth mentioning is Maurice Ashley, someone who I suspect might have an Ni/Fe combo. There are probably more NF players out there, but I don't know the chess scene well enough. I Am interested in seeing if there are SJ's, SF's and SP's (etc.) among the grandmasters though :thinking:


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## Handsome Dyke (Oct 4, 2012)

Drecon said:


> Good chess players will use all of their cognitive functions.


 ...to play chess? What purpose does Fi serve in chess?


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## SpaceMan (Dec 11, 2014)

Sparky said:


> Magnus Carlson (best male chess player) appears to be ENFP Capital Communist, Possession-focused 8PM (...)


ENFP? I mean, I could get behind ISTP, ISTJ, any T type really before convincing myself that magnus carlsson is an ENFP. What makes you think he is an ENFP?


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## Ocean Helm (Aug 25, 2016)

Most likely to be good: INTJ (I don't think INTPs are inclined to take it quite as competitively)
Most likely to be naturally good: INTx


SpaceMan said:


> ENFP? I mean, I could get behind ISTP, ISTJ, any T type really before convincing myself that magnus carlsson is an ENFP. What makes you think he is an ENFP?


I believe he said he was INTJ somewhere.


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## Stevester (Feb 28, 2016)

Nicomendes MacIdriss said:


> ...to play chess? What purpose does Fi serve in chess?


''Why do the the white pieces play first?? Racist game is racist''


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## SpaceMan (Dec 11, 2014)

Ocean Helm said:


> I believe he said he was INTJ somewhere.


Ah, I see - then that resolves his typing, ofc assuming that his typing is correct (everyone seems to be an INTJ these days). 

But personality wise, I still feel like he could be a P over J - considering how infamous he is for being "lazy". 

--

Supposedly a friend of Magnus responded on Quora:

https://www.quora.com/Is-Magnus-Carlsen-lazy

worth noting:

_(...) Magnus thought Kasparov’s training regime was too hard. He just wanted to play and have fun, not study all day long.


When Magnus is not playing in tournaments, he doesn’t spend his days studying chess, like most people think. He spends time watching football and basketball, playing football and basketball, watching movies and TV shows, playing cards, board games and video games, hanging out with friends and family, going out partying, staying up till late at night, sleeping in till the middle of the day and generally going about life without a care in the world. (...)_​
If he is an INTJ, he does not possess the stereotypical J qualities.


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## Ocean Helm (Aug 25, 2016)

@SpaceMan even J's reach their limits though. Is this supposed friend credible? Even on the same Quora thread someone else posted something saying "he keeps an intensive routine of training, study and tournament play." So yeah while he may be less J than Kasparov I still kind of doubt he meets the threshold of being a P especially given that self-typing.

From the same person who talked about his lazier traits on Quora:


> One of his best friends (who knows him better than me) told me that Magnus actually took an MBTI test and he came out as an INTJ indeed.


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## SpaceMan (Dec 11, 2014)

Ocean Helm said:


> @SpaceMan even J's reach their limits though. Is this supposed friend credible? Even on the same Quora thread someone else posted something saying "he keeps an intensive routine of training, study and tournament play."


nah, I have no clue on whether he is credible or not (or more credible than the other person on the same thread). It could very well just be popular opinion (magnus being lazy).



> So yeah while he may be less J than Kasparov *I still kind of doubt he meets the threshold of being a P especially given that self-typing*.
> 
> From the same person who talked about his lazier traits on Quora:


Fair enough - you make a valid point :thinking:


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## Drecon (Jun 20, 2016)

Nicomendes MacIdriss said:


> ...to play chess? What purpose does Fi serve in chess?


Being motivated to do the things you love to do? 

Fi is mostly a force for motivation. It can also help to focus on certain things over others.


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## TemP14y3R (Feb 15, 2019)

I really suck at it tbh. Mostly I'll walk away from the chess table before the game even starts or comment how weird each chess piece looks.


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## Jordon P (Nov 11, 2020)

Saiyed Handsome **** said:


> ...to play chess? What purpose does Fi serve in chess?


INFP here. Playing chess since age 7. I’d say Fi makes me intensely in the aesthetic of chess and I often see the board and pieces as an immersive world in which I (technically) have control over whether I live or die (Te speaking). If Chess captures an INFP’s attention they will probably dedicate a vast amount of time in learning the philosophic/strategic side of chess. The weakness is that whilst we can spot good moves at high levels for other players with Ne, during our own games we may be blinded by emotional connections to pieces (Fi). So in answer, Fi mainly has it’s use in getting you to the chess board, equipped. Where upon Ne/Te should really take over.

Another thing I might add is that I have taught another INFP (my ex-gf) to play chess. What I noticed we have in common is that we are both sapiosexuals which tells me that logic/intelligence is part of our Fi value systems and therefore drawn to activities where those traits are present and demonstrated.


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## Electra (Oct 24, 2014)

I like to play chess with humans but not against the computer. I would say I don't suck at it but I'm not the best in it eighter. I sometimes do it for fun when I get bored. I then use a chess app which unfortunetly only let me play against the computer unless I register which I don't wanna do.


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## islandlight (Aug 13, 2013)

I'm no good at games involving strategy, and I don't enjoy them.


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## Glittris (May 15, 2020)

I never liked chess and I never liked strategy games either, I was better at collecting sheep in AoE2 than min-maxing building up my armies in order to conquering my opponents, I am rather good at puzzle games though. I lean towards chess is more a Ti/Ne-thing.


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