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- ============================================================================
-
- Personality Type Summary
-
- Revision 4.2 - ASCII Text Version
- 06-October-1993
-
- Jon Noring, Editor and INFJ
- (noring@netcom.com)
-
-
- Copyright 1993 by Jon E. Noring. This document can be freely distributed in
- any format as long as it is kept intact in its entirety and not modified in
- any way.
-
- ============================================================================
-
- TABLE OF CONTENTS
-
- I. A PERSONAL NOTE
-
- II. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
-
- III. GENERAL INTRODUCTION
-
- IV. INTRODUCTION TO PERSONALITY TYPING
-
- V. DESCRIPTION OF THE FOUR PREFERENCE SCALES
-
- VI. VOCABULARY FOR EACH PREFERENCE SCALE
-
- VII. THE SIXTEEN PERSONALITY TYPES
-
- VIII. THE FOUR KEIRSEY-BATES TEMPERAMENTS
-
- IX. RESOURCE MATERIALS ON PERSONALITY TYPING
-
- ============================================================================
-
- I. A PERSONAL NOTE
-
- This document, the Personality Type Summary (PTS for short), is truly a labor
- of love. I originally wrote this for the distributors in my network
- marketing business. My intent was to help them better relate to themselves
- and to others by understanding the principles of personality typing. Since
- that first version, the PTS has been greatly modified and expanded, with
- contributions from many people. I do not consider this document to be "the
- final version", and so I welcome any and all feedback to improve it in all
- aspects. I especially would like to firm up the Resource Materials section
- by adding more titles, including some of the important articles from peer
- reviewed journals.
-
- If you have access to Usenet, the 'BBS' of the Internet, I encourage you to
- subscribe to the newsgroup 'alt.psychology.personality'. In that newsgroup,
- all aspects of normal (not neurotic) human personality are discussed. Well
- over 95% of all the discussion pertains to one model of personality modeling,
- generically called 'personality typing', which is the subject matter of this
- document. Thus the very original and not too obvious name for this document,
- "Personality Type Summary".
-
- In addition, an extensive archive of personality-related files has been
- established on the Internet, and these files can be retrieved via anonymous
- ftp. If you're not sure your site has anonymous ftp access to the Internet,
- then ask your system administrator. If you do, but don't know how to use ftp,
- again ask your system administrator for help. The site name is 'netcom.com',
- the directory path to the top of the archive directory is
- /pub/noring/personality .
-
- I hope you enjoy the wonderful world of personality typing as much as I do.
- Give it a test drive. You may just find it: fun, challenging, significant,
- and useful (quiz: why did I choose these four words? Find out below!).
-
- Oh, and have a great day (a typical NF closing).
-
- Jon Noring
- Internet e-mail address: noring@netcom.com
- Personality Type: INFJ
-
- ============================================================================
-
- II. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
-
- I would like to thank the many people who provided input to make this Summary
- possible. Special thanks go out to the following individuals (listed in
- alphabetical order) for their extensive suggestions, contributions, proof-
- readings and, where needed, criticisms:
-
- Joe Butt (jabutt@sacam.oren.ortn.edu), INTP,
- Frank Fujita (ffujita@s.psych.uiuc.edu), ENTJ,
- Marina Margaret Heiss (mmh0m@poe.acc.virginia.edu), INTJ, and
- Brian Yamauchi (yamauchi@alpha.ces.cwru.edu), ENTP
-
- ============================================================================
-
- III. GENERAL INTRODUCTION
-
- As we look at the people around us, we observe the great variety of
- personality traits among them. As examples, some people are very outgoing
- and fun-oriented, while others are more quiet and introspective; some people
- are highly analytical in decision making, while others use their feelings for
- deciding; some people feel more comfortable living a planned, orderly life,
- while others prefer to live spontaneously. Though the number of observed
- traits appears finite (albeit large), the subtle and unique interaction
- between these traits confidently leads us to the conclusion that every
- individual on this planet is gifted with a truly unique personality.
-
- Despite this conclusion, the question naturally arises: "Can we model, at
- least approximately, human personality?" A related and even more important
- question is: "If we can model human personality, does such a model have any
- value or interest?"
-
- To help answer these questions, let me cite an analogy. Physical scientists
- are continually striving to improve the models (better known as theories) of
- nature. It is by these theories, and only by these theories, that human
- beings can attempt to understand and make sense of what is observed. For
- example, physicists have developed several theories (e.g., relativity, quantum
- mechanics, electromagnetics, etc.) to explain particular phenomena. Because
- a common link between all these theories has not yet been found despite great
- effort (the elusive, almost quixotic Grand Unified Theory), many physicists
- consider it probable these individual theories are incomplete, being subsets
- of more complete, but as of yet undiscovered, theories that can be linked
- together. Yet, despite their probable incompleteness, physicists and
- engineers confidently apply these theories to real world problems, with
- usually great success.
-
- Though the above analogy of modeling the physical world does not exactly apply
- to personality modeling, some of the underlying principles do hold true. Many
- personality models have been developed from the beginning of recorded history,
- each of them having their strengths and shortcomings. No "true" model of human
- personality has yet been developed, and it can be argued that human
- personality is just too complex to ever be able to model perfectly. However,
- many of the models that have been developed do seem to approximately and
- reasonably model human personality, or at least some aspects of it, to an
- accuracy that makes them useful and predictive. This last point, admittedly,
- is one of current debate by psychologists and non-psychologist alike (e.g.,
- what is "reasonable accuracy?"; what is "predictive"?; what is "useful"?).
-
- So, assuming that we can model human personality with "reasonable accuracy",
- what value would such a model have? I can see two values: 1) giving an
- individual a better understanding of themselves and thus helping them to
- personally grow and to build self-esteem, and 2) helping an individual
- understand and thus relate more effectively with others - not only for their
- personal relationships such as with a spouse and with close friends, but for
- other relationships as well, such as co-workers.
-
- Some people have personal, even emotional, difficulties with any kind of
- personality modeling. As an example, one common and recurring argument used
- against personality modeling is that it "puts people in boxes" (this exact
- phrase, or a variant of it, is heard quite often). On the surface this
- argument sounds good, but as you explore that argument further, you generally
- find that it is really a statement expressing either a fear that personality
- modeling can be misused or abused (which it can, just like everything else in
- the world), or, a feeling that personality modeling somehow devalues people,
- or, for a few people, their ignorance combined with a neurotic level of
- skepticism.
-
- I would counter these underlying reasons by saying that personality models do
- not put people in boxes, people put people in boxes - all developers of
- modern personality models do acknowledge the imperfections and limitations of
- their models and associated metrics, and reasonably intelligent and
- responsible users heed these warnings. Also, personality models do not
- devalue people. In reality they show us the diversity of normal human
- personality which helps us to better understand and appreciate others who
- are different from ourselves, and to understand and accept people is to
- value them. This in itself is sufficient reason to develop practical models
- of normal human personality that can be used by all people, not only by
- psychologists.
-
- ============================================================================
-
- IV. INTRODUCTION TO PERSONALITY TYPING
-
- As stated in the General Introduction, many personality models have been
- developed. The personality model/system presented in this Summary is the
- most well-known one in the world-at-large, generically called "Personality
- Typing". Personality typing was first developed by Carl Jung in the early
- 1920's. In its purest form, Jungian personality typing is arguably the most
- complex view of human nature ever described, and even today it is quite a
- task to attempt to understand Jung's writings on personality (see the Resource
- Material section at the end of this Summary for references to Jung's works).
-
- Fortunately, in the 1950's, Myers and Briggs resurrected Jungian personality
- typing, modified it somewhat by adding a fourth scale, simplified its
- description, and developed a psychometric called the MBTI, the "Myers-Briggs
- Type Indicator" for measuring their revised system of personality typing. The
- MBTI test and associated model has become so famous that today many people
- refer to personality typing as the "MBTI", but in a rigorous sense this is not
- true; the MBTI is only one test instrument among several for determining
- personality types, though it is by far the most widely used. Hereafter,
- unless qualified, 'personality typing' refers to the personality model
- developed by Myers and Briggs, and adapted by others such as Keirsey and
- Bates, while the MBTI refers to their test.
-
- In a somewhat oversimplified nutshell, personality typing as defined by Myers
- and Briggs, and more recently by Keirsey and Bates and others (I will not
- even attempt to explain Jung's view of personality typing), essentially
- assumes that much of our personality can be defined by dividing it into four
- orthogonal (or independent) preference areas or scales: energizing,
- attending, deciding, and living (defined in detail below). Within each scale
- we have a preference for one of two opposites that define the scale (also
- described below). This makes for a total of 16 different combinations
- (2x2x2x2), each of which defines one particular and unique personality
- archetype.*
-
- -----
- *Here's where Jungian thought comes into play since particular combinations
- of preferences can have profound effects on overall personality by interacting
- in quite complex and dynamic ways, even though the preference scales
- themselves appear to be independent of one another in a practical sense.
- (Some minor correlation has sometimes been observed in the preference scales.
- From a practical viewpoint, however, the four scales can be considered
- orthogonal).
- -----
-
- It is a curious and interesting observation that personality typing is not
- used nor studied much within the research/academic psychological and
- psychiatric communities, at least compared to other models/metrics, nor is
- it universally accepted. Some reasons for this are that, first of all,
- personality typing is automatically rejected by some schools of thought on
- purely philosophical grounds (e.g., cognitive psychology, social psychology);
- it would not matter to many of the proponents of these schools of thought
- whether or not personality typing was shown to work in the real world! These
- people tend to focus more on scientific purity/orthodoxy than on "engineering"
- practicality. (Both of these "world views" of science and its application
- are equally valid and important.)
-
- The second reason is more pragmatic: personality typing does not measure
- mental health since it assumes that all preferences and types are equally
- normal and healthy. Thus, many therapists who are treating mental illness do
- not usually find it useful for their purposes since they almost always need
- to understand the mental health of their patient and so they tend to use other
- psychometrics, such as the MMPI, which are specifically designed for this
- purpose. However, this doesn't mean that practicing psychologists totally
- eschew personality typing - some do use this system for their patients/
- clients, particularly for helping people to "find themselves" and for other
- non-mental health related purposes such as marriage and career counseling.
- In addition, counselors find that their clients can quickly understand this
- model, and the many lay-oriented books on the subject of personality typing
- are a great aid to understanding, thus augmenting the efforts of the
- counselor.
-
- Outside of the psychological community, however, personality typing (with
- the MBTI being the most used metric) is by far the most widely-used model of
- human personality. It is used extensively in career counseling and
- development, business and education. Its penetration into these areas stems
- partly from the fact cited above that it does not touch upon the tricky
- aspect of mental health, which is better dealt with by trained counseling
- psychologists and psychiatrists.
-
- Personality typing also assumes that all types, preferences, and temperaments
- are equally valid and good, which fosters an appreciation rather than a
- mistrust of diversity. This, combined with its "intuitive" credibility,
- makes personality typing very popular.
-
- For those who take a more scientific approach to personality, let me make
- four final comments (and if you quickly get bored by the following deeper
- discussion you can skip to the next section).
-
- First of all, many researchers in personality typing believe that other
- independent scales could be added to the four to more accurately model human
- personality, and they are probably correct. However, this is an area that
- has not been well researched. To many, the four Myers-Briggs scales appear
- to be adequate for most practical purposes.
-
- The second comment concerns the scientific validity of personality typing
- and its associated metrics, which is of great interest to scientific
- psychologists and others who generally take a rigorous scientific approach
- to matters (and personality typing can identify those people!). Though there
- is no universal agreement, partly for the reasons cited above, it is my
- belief that over 30 years of data gathering has essentially confirmed the
- usefulness and accuracy of personality typing. For further discussion about
- its reliability, validity, and overall quality, which to psychometric
- specialists have very specific meanings, consult the review article by DeVito
- in the 9th Mental Measurements Yearbook (MMY) as referenced in the Resource
- Materials section of this Summary. Overall, this review article is quite
- comprehensive and objective, showing both the strengths and weaknesses of
- personality typing and its most often used metric, the MBTI. It essentially
- supports the viewpoint that personality typing is useful and accurate.
-
- The third comment deals with how we are to view the four preference scales.
- Some view them as strictly dichotomous (some relax that a bit and assume a
- third choice, no preference, is equally valid). Others view the scales as
- continuous scales, which can be measured by the appropriate metric. This
- Summary, by default, takes the pure dichotomous approach, but the continuous
- approach has some interesting possibilities in fine tuning the model. The
- continuous scales approach, however, makes the interpretation much more
- complex, putting it out of the reach of the average lay person to quickly
- comprehend. It is also unclear whether an accurate measurement along the
- continuous scale is even possible, since it is highly dependent on the choice,
- number, and quality of the questions used in the measuring metric - no metric
- can possibly cover all the life situations that a person could experience.
-
- The fourth comment concerns whether personality types are genetically
- determined, or develop during childhood and adolescence from cultural and
- family influences (better known as the "Nature" vs. "Nurture" debate). This
- is a very controversial area which has become quite politicized because of the
- obvious social/political ramifications with accepting either extreme. The
- general consensus seems to be that personality type is determined by both in
- a fairly complex way, though which one dominates has not been established.
-
- To complicate matters even further, there are theories as well as observations
- that personality type can change or shift as a person ages. Some view this
- shift as a natural progression towards the "true" or "innate" personality, due
- in part to the stripping away of the personality masks that many put on in
- early life in response to strongly incompatible type-influences, such as from
- family and the surrounding culture. Others, who believe that "Nurture" plays
- the dominant role in human personality, view the personality type change as
- more of a random process due to the integral effect of outside influences.
- Further discussion on the "Nature" vs. "Nurture" debate is beyond the scope of
- this Summary.
-
- I personally take the view that human personality is at least 50% genetic -
- this is mentioned so the reader is aware of my bias in the event I elsewhere
- make or imply such a viewpoint in this Summary. There are many personality
- type experts/proponents who do not share my views in this regard. Personality
- typing is just as valid for the "Nurture" school of thought - it just has
- different interpretations and ramifications.
-
- ============================================================================
-
- V. DESCRIPTION OF THE FOUR PREFERENCE SCALES
-
- For each of the following four preference scales which underlie personality
- typing, every person usually has a preference for one of the two opposite,
- and equally good, choices (designated by a letter as shown). This does not
- mean that they do one at the exclusion of the other - most people will go
- either way depending on circumstances outside their control. But most people
- usually do have an overall, clear-cut *preference* for circumstances where
- they do have control.
-
- How these scales are put together to form a personality "picture" or type for
- an individual will be dealt with later.*
-
- -----
- *When a person does not perceive of a clear and resounding preference for a
- particular scale, the letter 'X' is used to designate this "I don't know"
- condition. There are differences of opinion as to the meaning and
- significance of this inbetween/no preference, which is briefly commented upon
- in the previous section. The 'X' preference will not be discussed any
- further in this Summary.
- -----
-
- The four scales are:
-
- Energizing - How a person is energized
- Attending - What a person pays attention to
- Deciding - How a person decides
- Living - Lifestyle a person prefers
-
-
- Following are the preferences for each of the four scales:
-
- 1. Energizing - How a person is energized:
-
- Extroversion (E)- Preference for drawing energy from the outside
- world of people, activities or things.
-
- Introversion (I)- Preference for drawing energy from one's internal
- world of ideas, emotions, or impressions.
-
- [Note: In a deeper sense, energizing is only one facet of this
- scale -- it's really a measure of a person's whole orientation
- towards either the inner world (I) or the external world (E).]
-
-
- 2. Attending - What a person pays attention to:
-
- Sensing (S)- Preference for using the senses to notice what is real.
-
- Intuition (N)- Preference for using the imagination to envision what
- is possible - to look beyond the five senses. Jung
- calls this "unconscious perceiving".
-
- 3. Deciding - How a person decides:
-
- Thinking (T)- Preference for organizing and structuring information
- to decide in a logical, objective way.
-
- Feeling (F)- Preference for organizing and structuring information
- to decide in a personal, value-oriented way.
-
- 4. Living - Life style a person prefers:
-
- Judgement (J)- Preference for living a planned and organized life.
-
- Perception (P)- Preference for living a spontaneous and flexible life.
-
- [Note: An alternative definition of this scale is "Closure - whether
- or not a person prefers an open-ended lifestyle."]
-
-
- It is interesting to observe the distribution of these preferences in the
- actual population. Keirsey and Bates give the following distribution from
- a 1964 study:
-
- E (75%), I (25%)
- S (75%), N (25%)
- T (50%), F (50%)
- J (50%), P (50%)
-
- It is obvious that these percentages are only approximate, and more recent
- studies appear to give somewhat different percentages. The general trend,
- however, of the 'I' and 'N' preferences significantly being in the minority
- seems to hold true from all studies of general populations.
-
- Once statistics are gathered, it is possible to test the original Myers-Briggs
- theory that these four preference scales are orthogonal (independent) of
- one another. Some studies indicate they are indeed orthogonal, while other
- studies seem to indicate that they are orthogonal with the exception of some
- observed minor correlation between the S-N and the J-P scales.
-
- There is also a small gender shift in the T-F scale, with approximately 60%
- of all females being 'F', and 60% of the males being 'T'.
-
- =============================================================================
-
- VI. VOCABULARY FOR EACH PREFERENCE SCALE
-
- There are several approaches to determine a person's preference for each of
- the four preference scales. One approach is to take a test such as the MBTI
- or the Keirsey-Bates (which is found in their book "Please Understand Me").
- Another excellent approach is to study the preferred vocabulary for the four
- scales.
-
- Summarized below are word lists associated with each preference for the four
- scales. By reading and comparing the two word lists for each scale, and
- determining which list you better relate and/or prefer, will be a very
- strong indicator of your preference for that scale. Consider these word
- lists to comprise a mini-test on personality typing!
-
- The preferred vocabulary lists also further explain what the four scales
- actually measure or denote.
-
-
- EXTROVERSION-INTROVERSION PREFERRED VOCABULARY
-
- Extroversion, E Introversion, I
- ================ ================
- sociability territoriality
- breadth depth
- external internal
- extensive intensive
- interaction concentration
- expenditure of energy conservation of energy
- interest in external events interest in internal reaction
- multiplicity of relationships limited relationships
-
-
- SENSING-INTUITION PREFERRED VOCABULARY
-
- Sensing, S Intuition, N
- ================ ================
- experience hunches
- past future
- realistic speculative
- perspiration inspiration
- actual possible
- down-to-earth head-in-clouds
- utility fantasy
- fact fiction
- practicality ingenuity
- sensible imaginative
-
-
- THINKING-FEELING PREFERRED VOCABULARY
-
- Thinking, T Feeling, F
- ================ ================
- objective subjective
- principles values
- policy social values
- laws extenuating circumstances
- criterion intimacy
- firmness persuasion
- impersonal personal
- justice humane
- categories harmony
- standards good or bad
- critique appreciate
- analysis sympathy
- allocation devotion
-
-
- JUDGEMENT-PERCEPTION PREFERRED VOCABULARY
-
- Judgement, J Perception, P
- ================ ================
- settled pending
- decided gather more data
- fixed flexible
- plan ahead adapt as you go
- run one's life let life happen
- closure open options
- decision-making treasure hunting
- planned open ended
- completed emergent
- decisive tentative
- wrap it up something will turn up
- urgency there's plenty of time
- deadline! what deadline?
- get show on the road let's wait and see...
-
-
- =============================================================================
-
- VII. THE SIXTEEN PERSONALITY TYPES
-
- The two preferences for each of the four independent scales give 16 unique
- combinations (2x2x2x2), each combination being designated a personality type.
- The commonly accepted order for describing each combination is given as:
-
- Energizing:Attending:Deciding:Living .
-
- For each of the these 16 types, quite detailed personality profiles have been
- assembled from many years of application and analysis on large populations of
- normal people, as well as theoretical analysis of how the preference scales
- interact with each other. It is VERY important to realize that these
- personality profile descriptions (which could also be referred to as
- archetypes) are derived from large populations, and some variation from the
- archetype is expected to occur from individual to individual. One major
- source of variation, but not the only one, is the possible presence of mental
- illness/trauma (most often low self-image), which is not measured nor even
- considered by the personality typing model. It is plausible that the
- observable behavior from some forms of mental illness may be strongly
- influenced by innate personality type (assuming there is such a thing as an
- innate personality type).
-
- There seems to be widespread agreement among those who study personality
- typing that these personality profiles closely describe the real personality
- of MOST people once their four-scale preferences have been determined, either
- by taking a test such as the MBTI and/or by a qualitative assessment such as
- studying the previous sections of this Summary and the materials listed in
- the Resource Materials section at the end of this Summary.
-
- Anecdotal statements such as "the description was so right on the money that
- I fell out of my chair", and "the profile was so much like me it was eerie!",
- and similar anecdotes, are commonly expressed by many people after reading
- their personality profile for the first time. I myself had a similar reaction
- when I first read the profile for the INFJ personality type; subsequent
- study of the other 15 types confirmed that indeed the personality described in
- the INFJ profile fits me much, much better than any of the others.
-
- Though anecdotes do not form proper scientific "proof", nor should they, the
- sheer number of such anecdotes have alone led many personality typing
- researchers to privately conclude that personality typing is a sufficiently
- accurate and useful model of normal human personality.
-
- Following is a very brief overview of the summary profiles for each of the 16
- types. Included for each type is the approximate percentage of the general
- population being that type, using the 1964 Keirsey-Bates percentages and
- assuming scale orthogonality. In addition, as mentioned above, more
- comprehensive and accurate profiles exist (again, see the Resource Materials
- section at the end of this Summary; the anonymous ftp archive also contains
- more comprehensive profiles.)
-
-
- ENFJ: "Pedagogue". Outstanding leader of groups. Can be aggressive at
- "helping others to be the best that they can be". 5% of the total
- population.
-
- ENFP: "Journalist". Uncanny sense of the motivations of others. Life is an
- exciting drama; emotionally warm; empathic. 5% of the total
- population.
-
- ENTJ: "Field Marshall". The basic driving force and need is to lead. Tends
- to seek a position of responsibility and enjoys being an executive.
- 5% of the total population.
-
- ENTP: "Inventor". Enthusiastic interest in everything and always sensitive
- to possibilities. Non-conformist and innovative. 5% of the total
- population.
-
- ESFJ: "Seller". Most sociable of all types. Nurturer of harmony.
- Outstanding host or hostesses. 13% of the total population.
-
- ESFP: "Entertainer". Radiates attractive warmth and optimism. Smooth, witty,
- charming, clever. Fun to be with. Very generous. 13% of the total
- population.
-
- ESTJ: "Administrator". Much in touch with the external environment. Very
- responsible. Pillar of strength. 13% of the total population.
-
- ESTP: "Promotor". Action! When present, things begin to happen. Fiercely
- competitive. Entrepreneur. Often uses shock effect to get attention.
- Negotiator par excellence. 13% of the total population.
-
- INFJ: "Author". Motivated and fulfilled by helping others. Complex
- personality. 1% of the total population.
-
- INFP: "Questor". High capacity for caring. Calm and pleasant face to the
- world. High sense of honor derived from internal values. 1% of the
- total population.
-
- INTJ: "Scientist". Most self-confident and pragmatic of all the types.
- Decisions come very easily. A builder of systems and the applier of
- theoretical models. 1% of the total population.
-
- INTP: "Architect". Greatest precision in thought and language. Can readily
- discern contradictions and inconsistencies. The world exists
- primarily to be understood. 1% of the total population.
-
- ISFJ: "Conservator". Desires to be of service and to minister to individual
- needs - very loyal. 6% of the total population.
-
- ISFP: "Artist". Interested in the fine arts. Expression primarily through
- action or art form. The senses are keener than in other types. 5% of
- the total population.
-
- ISTJ: "Trustee". Decisiveness in practical affairs. Guardian of time-
- honored institutions. Dependable. 6% of the total population.
-
- ISTP: "Artisan". Impulsive action. Life should be of impulse rather than
- of purpose. Action is an end to itself. Fearless, craves excitement,
- master of tools. 5% of the total population.
-
- =============================================================================
-
- VIII. THE FOUR KEIRSEY-BATES TEMPERAMENTS
-
- There are other systems that have been developed to model human personality.
- The most well-known and oft-used ones are those that divide human personality
- into four major groups or temperaments. Hippocrates in ancient Greece
- described the first four temperament system, also known as the "Four Humors":
- Sanguine, Melancholic, Choleric, and Phlegmatic.
-
- More recently, Keirsey and Bates took the sixteen personality types and
- categorized them into four recognizable temperaments based on certain
- combinations of three of the four scales: SJ, SP, NT, and NF. In addition,
- they named each temperament after the Greek mythological figure who best
- exemplifies the world-view attributes of that temperament:
-
- NF Apollo ("Reach for the Sky").
- NT Prometheus ("Foresight")
- SJ Epimetheus ("Hindsight")
- SP Dionysius ("Let's Drink Wine")
-
- The four Keirsey-Bates temperaments appear to represent a person's "Key Focus
- and/or Fundamental Emotional Need", while the 16 types appear to represent a
- person's complete, day-to-day personality. The Keirsey-Bates temperaments
- could also be described as the "bottom line", the "motivation", or the
- "world-view" of one's personality.
-
- There is some correlation and overlap between the Hippocratic Humors and the
- Keirsey-Bates temperaments, but the fit is nowhere near perfect. The main
- differences lie mostly in focus: the Hippocratic Humors focus more on the
- neurotic aspects seen in some people, and so have an overall negative
- connotation, while the Keirsey-Bates temperaments focus strictly on normal,
- healthy personality and so are much more universal and positive.
-
- The four Keirsey-Bates temperaments are summarized as follows: (Note: The
- lists of focus/needs/beliefs/behaviors for each temperament is an aggregate
- list, meaning any one person of that temperament will probably exhibit or
- have only some of these attributes. The other two preference scales play a
- role in this variation.)
-
-
-
- NF: SPIRIT/ETHICS (Apollo)
-
- Key Focus/Emotional Need: Search for Self, and/or Peace and Harmony
-
- Beliefs/behaviors
- -- "How do I become the person I really am?"
- -- Value relationships
- -- Harmony with others - can be very amiable
- -- Desire to inspire and persuade
- -- Need to live a life of significance
- -- Search for unique identity
- -- Tend to focus on the good in others
- -- Especially abhors "evil", which is anything that violates cherished values
- -- Management Style: Catalyst, Spokesperson, Energizer
- -- Spiritual Style: St. Augustine
-
-
-
- NT: SCIENCE/THEORETICAL (Prometheus)
-
- Key Focus/Emotional Need: Competence, Knowledge, and/or To Lead and Control
-
- Beliefs/behaviors
- -- Tries to understand "whys" of the universe (especially if a 'P')
- -- Very demanding of selves and others
- -- Goal setter
- -- A driver (especially if a 'J')
- -- "Should have known" and "Should have done better" (especially if a 'P')**
- -- Cooly objective; straightforward and logical in dealing with others
- -- Reluctance to state obvious; little redundancy in communications
- -- Work is for improvement, perfection, proof of skills
- -- Love of knowledge
- -- Management Style: Visionary, Architect of Systems, Builder
- -- Spiritual Style: St. Thomas Aquinas
-
-
-
- SJ: DUTY/COMMERCE/ECONOMIC (Epimetheus)
-
- Key Focus/Emotional Need: Responsibility, Tradition and/or To Maintain Order
-
- Beliefs/behaviors
- -- Conserves heritage and tradition, or establishes new ones
- -- Very attentive to details
- -- Belief in hierarchy: subordination and superordination
- -- Rules: compelled to be bound and obligated
- -- My duty is to serve, give, care, save, share
- -- "Shoulds" & "oughts"; "be prepared" (see footnote below)**
- -- Fosters and creates social units: clubs, church groups
- -- Management Style: Traditionalist, Stabilizer, Consolidator
- -- Spiritual Style: St. Ignatius
-
-
-
- SP: JOY/ARTISTRY/AESTHETIC (Dionysus)
-
- Key Focus/Emotional Need: Freedom, Independence, Spontaneity and/or
- To Have Fun
-
- Beliefs/behaviors
- -- Impulsive
- -- Can be very expressive (esp. if an 'E')
- -- To do what I want, when I want
- -- Action to fulfill my current needs, impulses, not as investment for longer
- term need
- -- Works dramatically and quickly in crisis
- -- Hungers for action without constraints
- -- Tremendous stamina
- -- Management Style: Troubleshooter, Negotiator, Fire Fighter
- -- Spiritual Style: St. Francis of Assisi
-
-
-
- ------
- **Both the SJ and NT temperaments list similar beliefs. However, there is a
- major difference between the two: to an SJ, a person "should" and "ought"
- because that is the most "responsible" thing to do, while to an NT, a person
- "should" and "ought" because that is the most "competent" way to be. The
- fundamental motivations between the two temperaments are quite dissimilar,
- despite leading to a similar belief.
- ------
-
-
-
- =============================================================================
-
- IX. RESOURCE MATERIALS ON PERSONALITY TYPING
-
-
- BOOKS
-
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- _Please Understand Me, An Essay on Temperament Styles_, by David Keirsey and
- Marilyn Bates. Prometheus Nemesis Book Company, P.O. Box 2748, Del Mar,
- CA 92014, phone (619) 632-1575.
-
- One of the more widely known books describing the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator.
- It includes a self-test (many do not consider it to be as good as the MBTI
- test).
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- _Portraits of Temperament_, David Keirsey. Prometheus Nemesis Book Company,
- P.O. Box 2748, Del Mar, CA 92014, phone (619) 632-1575, 1987.
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- _Gifts Differing_, Isabel Briggs-Myers (with Peter Myers). Consulting
- Psychologists Press, 1980 ISBN 0-89106-011-1 (pb) 0-89106-015-4 (hb).
-
- The real _Please Understand Me_, from the horse's mouth (i.e., the daughter
- in the original mother/daughter pair). A good bridge between Jung and PUM,
- but no self-test included.
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- _Manual: A Guide to the Development and Use of the Myers Briggs Type
- Indicator_, by Isabel Briggs-Myers and Mary H. McCaulley. Consulting
- Psychologists Press, 1985.
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- _LifeTypes_, by Sandra Hirsh and Jean Kummerow, ISBN 0-446-38823-8 USA and
- ISBN 0-446-38824-6 Canada. Warner Books, Inc., 1989.
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- _Facing Your Type_, George J. Schemel and James A. Borbely. Published by
- Typofile Press, Church Road, Box 223, Wernersville, PA 19565.
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- _Type Talk_. Otto Kroeger and Janet M. Thuesen. Bantam Doubleday Dell
- Publishing Group, Inc. (Tilden Press also mentioned.) ISBN 0-385-29828-59.
-
- An easy-to-read book that gives profiles for all sixteen personality types.
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- _Type Talk at Work_. Otto Kroeger and Janet M. Thuesen. ISBN 0-385-30174-X.
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- _Type Watch_. Otto Kroeger and Janet M. Thuesen.
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- _The Leadership Equation_. Lee Barr and Norma Barr.
- Eaking Press, Austin, Texas. 1989.
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- _Using the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator in Organizations_. Sandra Krebs Hirsh.
- Consulting Psychological Press, Inc., Palo Alto, CA. 1985.
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- _People Types and Tiger Stripes_. Gordon Lawrence. Available from Center
- for Application of Psychological Type, Gainesville, Florida.
- ISBN 0-935652-08-6.
-
- This book is written primarily to help teachers counsel students, but it
- applicable for other related uses.
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- _Working Together_. Olaf Isachsen and Linda Berens.
- New World Management Press, Coronado, CA. 1988.
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- _From Image to Likeness -- A Jungian Path in the Gospel Journey_, W. Harold
- Grant, Magdala Thompson and Thomas E. Clarke. Paulist Press, 545 Island
- Road, Ramsey, NJ 07446. ISBN: 0-8091-2552-8, 1983. This book deals with
- people's spiritual growth vis-a-vis personality types.
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- _Prayer and Temperament_, by Michael and Norrisey. Other bibliographic
- information not known at present.
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- _Personality Types and Religious Leadership_, by Oswald and Kroeger.
- Available from the Alban Institute, 4125 Nebraska Ave NW, Washington, D.C.,
- 20016. Phone (800) 457-2674. Other bibliographic information not known
- at present.
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- _Psychological Types_, C.G. Jung, H.G. Baynes (translator). Bollingen Series,
- Princeton U.P., 1971 ISBN 0-691-01813-8 (pb) 0-691-09770-4 (hb).
-
- This book (originally written in the early 1920's) inspired Myers and Briggs to
- create the MBTI test. If you've only read _Please Understand Me_, then you'll
- have some trouble making the correlation.
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- _An Introduction To Theories of Personality_, B.R. Hergenhahn. Prentice-Hall,
- New Jersey, 1990.
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- "An Empirical Investigation of the Jungian Typology", by Leon Gorlow, Norman R.
- Simonson, and Herbert Krauss. In _Theories of Personality, Primary Sources
- and Research_, editors: Gardner Lindzey, Calvin S. Hall, Martin Manosevitz,
- Robert E. Krieger Publishing Company, Florida, 1988.
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- _The Measurement of Learning Style: A Critique of Four Assessment Tools_,
- Timothy J. Sewall, University of Wisconsin, 1986.
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- _Dichotomies of the Mind: A System Science Model of the Mind and Personality_,
- Walter Lowen (with Lawrence Miike). John Wiley, 1982 ISBN 0-471-08331-3.
-
- A bizarre, but intriguing attempt to "correct" the MBTI's inherently 'F' focus
- to a 'hyper-T' perspective.
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-
-
-
- PERIODICAL LITERATURE
-
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- _The Type Reporter_. Susan Scanlon, Editor. For Subscription information,
- mail to: 524 North Paxton Street, Alexandria, VA 22304. Phone (703) 823-3730.
-
- It comes out roughly 8 times a year, and costs $16 for a year's subscription;
- I've found it worth the money. Recent topics include "Mistakes When Teaching
- Type", "Spending and Saving", and "Making Love".
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- _Journal of Psychological Type_. The official research journal of the
- Association for Psychological Type, 9140 Ward Parkway, Kansas City, MO 64114.
-
- One of the few outlets for research on the MBTI as most 'real' personality
- psychologists usually do not publish on it.
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- _Mental Measurements Yearbook_ (MMY). Has lists of references to articles in
- peer-reviewed journals in which the MBTI test is used. An excellent review of
- MBTI is given by Anthony DeVito in the 9th MMY, and two additional reviews
- in the 10th MMY. The recently published 11th MMY does not include these.
- The MMY are available in the reference section of most college and university
- libraries.
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-
-
-
- OTHER
-
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- Consulting Psychologists Press is the publishing arm of the Center for
- Applications of Psychological Type (CAPT). It distributes the official MBTI
- tests and official interpretation guides, a thick _Atlas of Types_ which gives
- empirical type distributions for a wide range of population categories
- (e.g., policemen, system analysts, high-school students), and many studies.
- CAPT puts out a catalog of available resources. CAPT can be reached at:
-
- CAPT
- 2815 NW 13th Street
- Suite 401
- Gainesville, FL 32609
- (800) 777-CAPT
-
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- "Madness and Temperament: A Systems View of Psychopathology and Treatment"
-
- An audiocassette package consisting of verbatim, unedited presentations from a
- seminar at the Holiday Inn, March 4&5, 1989, by Dr. Eve Delunas. Ordering
- information: InfoMedix, Garden Grove, CA 92643, phone (714) 530-3454.
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-
-
- --
-
- If you are an INFJ, then join the INFJ mailing list - ask me for more details.
- If you don't know what INFJ means, ask me, and I'll send more info (46Kb file).
- =============================================================================
- | Jon Noring | noring@netcom.com | "Fanny Hill" and other |
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