Quilting Personality Research Study Results
- Page Two

. . . . See Page 1 - Introduction: Personality Types of Quilters

Are quilters cut from the same swath of personality cloth? Is there something about quilting that grabs a particular part of the human personality? Are some people born with a quilting gene - a quilter waiting to happen?

Or is it an *affliction* passed down the generations (like being a Chicago Cubs fan) or one of those accidents of a certain time and place that well could have been different?

Well if you are curious as we, you may be interested in the results of a study we've been doing on Myers-Briggs Personality Types of Quilters.

If you are curious about your own Personality Type - and don't know it - you can go to our Personality Type Inventory page (go here) to take a little inventory that will suggest what might be your type letters. There's also some links at the bottom of the page to help you learn more about the Myers-Briggs model of personality types.

-- Ross & Joanne Reinhold

Personality Type and Our Survey Questions
On Quilting Habits

We posed 4 questions about quilting to each quilter who completed our personality type survey.

Results

Q. What Type of Quilter Are You?

Art - 19.8%
Traditional - 75.1%
Long Arm - 5.5%

Personality Type Implications:

Type most often attracted to Art Quilting: INFP - 26.1%
(average of all types: 19.8%)

Type most often attracted to Traditional Quilting: INTP - 82.1%
(average of all types: 75.1%)

Type least attracted to Long Arm Quilting: ISFP - 1.7%
(average of all types: 5.5%)

Commentary:

The top five occupations appealing to INFP Types include Fine Arts & Architecture so it comes as no surprise that this type leads all personality types in describing themselves as Art Quilters.

INTPs are composers and drawn to orderly compositions. According to the occupational data on personality types Chemistry is the number one career choice of INTPs. Think about the orderly organization of the table of elements and consider the orderly arrangement of quilt blocks to form the whole quilt and overall composition. So the order and organization of traditional quilt patterns appeals to the INTP mind.

ISFPs are hands-on artisans with keen attention to detail. The piecing part is far and away their most popular part of quilting process. So using a long arm machine would put too much technology between them and their craftsmanship. Plus it doesn't involve crafting the details of the composition that they most enjoy.

Q. Your favorite part of the quilting process?

Designing the quilt - 38.9%
Piecing the quilt - 51.8%
Top Quilting - 9.3%

Personality Type Implications:

Type who most enjoys the design process: INFJ - 63.6%
(average of all types: 38.9%)

Type who most enjoys the piecing process: ISTJ - 65%
(average of all types: 51.8%)

Type who most enjoys the top quilting process: INTP - 17.9%
(average of all types: 9.3%)

Commentary:

Like INFPs, INFJs are often attracted to Fine Arts and Architecture as occupations. Using their imagination, using their creativity, and an affinity for organization are characteristics that would most attract INFJs to the design part of the quilting process.

ISTJs, like ISFPs who are #2 in most enjoying the piecing process, are known for their keen attention to detail. They are also very task oriented and organized; they can be depended upon to follow-through and finish the job. So the piecing process fits well the character of an ISTJ.

INTPs affinity for composing also accounts for their having twice the normal interest in favoring the top quilting part of the quilting process, as it involves bringing all the pieces together to produce the finished composition. A half-finished symphony brings no satisfaction to an INTP.

Q. Number of work-in-progress projects going at the same time?

1 - 2 — 21.2%
3 - 5 ---- 48.5%
6 - 8 ----17.7%
9 or more ----12.6%

Personality Type Implications:

Type most likely to have 9 or more projects at same time: ESFP - 21.4%
(average of all types: 12.6%)

ESFPs (and ESTPs) are known to be artful multi-taskers, adept at having lots of balls in the air at the same time and loving it and maybe even needing it. Being required to stay on one long job til finishing it is like a prison sentence. ESTPs actually recorded an even higher percentage of 9 or more projects (25%) but our sample size of ESTPs was too small to give them the #1 status over ESFP. Both ESFPs and ESTPs describe themselves as Traditional quilters which is consistent with the craftsman . . .

Type most likely to have only 1 or 2 projects at same time: ISFJ - 30.2%
(average of all types: 21.26%)

ISFJs are among the most organized, reliable and dependable of all the personality types. So it makes sense that they would want to stick on a given project to completion and avoid having too many balls in the air at once. If the quilting project is for someone they care about or is a group project for a charitable cause, that would only strengthen the ISFJs determination to stick to the project until it was finished versus starting competing projects. I also suspect that ISFJs emotional well-being would be most upset if circumstances prevented them from finishing a project.

Q. Approach in use of Quilt Patterns

Quilt from purchased patterns - 27.9%
Adapt existing patterns to my own tastes - 59.5%
Design my own patterns - 12.6%

Personality Type Implications:

Type most like design own pattern: INFP - 25.9%
(average of all types: 12.6%)

As the Personality Type most attracted to Art Quilting and a personality type strongly drawn to artistic and creative endeavors, it makes sense that INFP types would most frequently designs their own pattern.

Type most likely to adapt existing patterns: ISTP - 79.3%
(average of all types 59.5%)

ISTPs are hands-on and practical crafters who hate to waste time and energy so spending time designing ones own patterns versus getting to work on the task at hand isn't appealing. On the other hand, they are also among the most "independent minded" of all personality types and seem to not like to follow a given recipe exactly so using purchased patterns as is or buying kits is often unappealing. So adapting existing patterns is the practical middle ground - allowing them to get into the project rather quickly yet adapt it to their own style of doing things.

Type most likely to follow & use purchased patterns: ISFP - 47.3%
(average of all types: 27.9%)

As ISFP is the quintessential Quilting Personality Type, it makes sense that their main interest is in the crafting part of the quilting process versus spending time designing their own patterns. Like the ISTP it is the practical hands-on part that they most enjoy. Rather than create their own design, the fun part of the design process for an ISFP is "window shopping" for different patterns and picking one out they like. For those who buy a complete pattern and kit, the value here is it relieves the ISFP of some of the pre-planning and organizing that goes into starting a project.

Personality Type Bookstore

Interested in learning more about Personality Type? Here's a few recommended books to consider.