Myers-Briggs Types in The Big Bang Theory: Amy Farrah Fowler (INTP)

Amy Farrah Fowler from the Big Bang Theory is typically identified as the INTP Myers-Briggs personality type (often referred to as MBTI). I don’t think there is any other prominent theory on her, unlike some of the other more controversial characters in the show. In this case, we agree with the general consensus on Amy, although we seriously considered ISTP before settling on INTP. Hopefully this makes sense!

The Myers-Briggs Personality Type of Amy Farrah Fowler

Dominant Ti:

“I find the notion of romantic love an unnecessary cultural construct that adds no value to human relationships.”

“No rules? We’re not gonna get drunk and have a six-way with the Blue Man Group, are we? …So there are some rules.”

“It was very entertaining, despite the glaring story problem.”

“Well, that makes sense. The prefrontal cortex is responsible for planning and anticipation, and patients with brain lesions…”

Amy presents as completely detached and emotionless at the beginning of the series. She describes everything in a technical way, stripping a lot of the emotional value from it. For instance, viewing romantic love as an unnecessary cultural construct. As the series progresses, she turns less “robotic”, but she’s prone to sharing personal information about herself in an emotionally detached way, not realizing how it sounds until the words leave her mouth and/or she notices people’s reactions.

Amy filters everything she sees or hears through how it makes sense to her. For instance, when Sheldon is reading about how the element of surprise can be a key component in humor, Amy launched off from that statement to explain why that would be on a neurological level. Of course, this has also shown to make her accidentally critical, like when she points out Indiana Jones has no impact on the outcome of the story as a glaring problem in one of Sheldon’s favorite movies, Raiders of the Lost Ark.

Another good example of Amy’s Ti can be seen during one of the trips to Vegas that her, Penny, and Bernadette take. One of the girls proclaims that there was going to be no rules on this trip. Amy immediately questions the accuracy of that statement by producing a fairly extreme scenario. When they admit that getting drunk and having a six-way with the Blue Man Group wasn’t allowed, she points out, “So there are some rules.”

Auxiliary Ne:

“Actually, our relationship agreement covers a wide array of scenarios, including career changes, financial instability, intelligent dog uprising.”

“But you did do it. So what if it didn’t go all your way? That’s what makes it an adventure.”

“Would it alarm you to know that I hid those things here two years ago just in case this ever came up?”

Amy links up with Sheldon when it comes to Ne, playing into some of his tendencies to invent scenarios. This shows up with their relationship agreement. Her and Sheldon consider the future possibilities of their relationship, resulting in the relationship agreement covering a wide array of scenarios, plausible and implausible. She generally shows herself to enjoy considering random what-if scenarios, as demonstrated by a what-if game that her and Sheldon invent near the beginning of their relationship.

However, unlike Sheldon, Amy doesn’t typically use her Ne to catastrophize. Rather, she’s open to new experiences. For the most part, Amy goes along with whatever people want, being willing to put herself in new situations. She even leads the way at times, such as when she dragged Leonard to a wedding with her and encouraged him to participate in a variety of activities with her. Overall, Amy can be quite spontaneous, which is why her and Howard get so caught up in having fun during the Scavenger Hunt that they don’t even bother to finish it. They enjoy the journey, more than reaching the end point.

Amy also uses her Ne as a creative outlet, such as inventing her own language (which she offers to teach Penny). Similarly, she sets up a secret spy operation for Penny, with Bernadette going undercover for Penny to learn about Priya and Leonard’s relationship. She feeds Bernadette responses and sometimes creative lies. In her own life, Amy would invent some overly specific scenarios to get family off her back, such as making up a pretend boyfriend named Armin, the miniature horse breeder.

Tertiary Si:

“Not just some day. In exactly four years.”

“No, it was okay. The DJ let me dance one slow dance with my mop before he shut down. Whenever I see a bucket of dirty water, I still hear Lady in Red.”

While not nearly on the level of Sheldon when it comes to being particular and pointing out details, Amy does have a tendency to hone in on things in her own right. She is good with dates and is quick to offer up specific information. Subsequently, she can be prone to nitpicking, which is shown when her and Sheldon are working on the show, “Fun with Flags.” Amy gets very exacting, constantly calling “cut!” in order to achieve something very specific. Amy’s detail oriented streak is one of the things that Sheldon and her bond over. They create games surrounding very specific and niche information that is readily apparent to the both of them, but is not common knowledge by any stretch for anyone else.

Amy also shows some signs of remembering detailed sensory impressions, like while recalling her prom experience. She states that every time she hears the song Lady in Red, she sees a dirty mop bucket, because she slow-danced with a mop while cleaning up after prom. Amy also feels the urge to recreate some of the past experiences that she missed out on, such as a slumber party with Penny and recreating prom.

In addition, her Si gives her specific expectations for date nights and other relationship activities, even to the extent that she’s planned exactly when her and Sheldon will get married (four years in advance). Amy is frequently disappointed when Sheldon subverts these expectations, but she tries to plan for and seize opportunities whenever she can. For instance, Amy hides sleepover kits all throughout Sheldon’s apartment at some point, hoping to be able to capitalize on any future opportunity to spend the night.

Inferior Fe:

“Really, Amy? Gossip?” – Sheldon Cooper

“His quirks just make me love him more… Someone please agree with me.”

Amy’s inferior Fe comes out most prominently in her interactions with Penny. Amy has never had a group of friends in the past, so she basks in her friendship with Penny. Amy consistently crosses personal boundaries, being unaware of what typical social conventions and acceptable topics of discussion look like. In short, she seems to be ignorant of everything relating to social protocol. However, she is somewhat aware of this weakness, in addition to being sensitive about the consequences of her lack of awareness. Of course, this makes her look like she’s desperately clinging to Penny for friendship. This is in stark contrast to Sheldon, who, while also lacking in social awareness, does follow a set of absolute social protocols. In addition, when he does break social protocol, Sheldon seems relatively unconcerned. He either proclaims that he didn’t know and that people should really inform him before putting him in situations, or he just simply doesn’t care.

Amy enjoys gossip and drama, using these things as a way to get integrated into the group. After getting a taste of Fe dynamics, Amy at one point even becomes a bit egotistical and starts playing Penny and Bernadette against each other. She relishes being in the center of the social dynamic, bashing Bernadette while talking to Penny, and bashing Penny while talking with Bernadette. She even gets actively upset when her attempts to escalate their disagreement fails, and even gets flustered when the two of them come to a resolution. After all, once it’s over, she has to return to her original social position, which is not in the center of their social dynamic.