Wow, that's a big post by greendestiny.
I like your analysis of ZWJ - very deep and thorough.
I'll keep it somewhere in my hard drive
Guo Jing has the benefit of appearing later in ROCH. More mature. Less hesitant or slow in thinking - but more powerful and heroic. That increases his character points. ZWJ does not have the benefit of appearing when older. At the end of HSDS, he is only in the early 20s. Not the common age of being sensible and decisive.
ZWJ certainly is less decisive than other JY heroes. He uses his feelings. He over-respects Xie Xun. He couldn't really decide on the girl he loves until his trip with ZM to Shaolin. But to be fair to him, the girls make it harder for him - and the one he's most attracted to is an enemy.