The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator®,the Keirsey Temperament Sorter, the Hermann Brain Dominance Indicator, and a host of others, are psychologic profilers. They are designed to categorise people and are based on the observations of people's behaviour. It has been discovered that the similarities in the forms of categorisation come from the method of categorisation - dichotomous analysis - which seems to be inherent in all humans (and perhaps, to varying degrees, in all 'lifeforms'. For a full introduction go to this site's home page)
The first known psychologic profilers were probably the ancient astrologers. Their system created four fundamental (elemental?) types:- Air, Fire, Water, and Earth. From these were derived the zodiacal signs (or associations made with existing ones) and people born 'under' these signs were supposed to inherit the sign's qualities together with any attributes from planets being in the same sign. Of note is that the elemental types were paired into the dichotomies of air/earth, fire/water, and the systems are to be taken as metaphors rather than literally.
The early Greeks, through Hippocrates(450BC)/Galen, created a typology also based on four:- Choleric(angry), Melancholic (sad), Phlegmatic (neutral), and Sanguine (cheerful). Associations can be formed between these and the four elements and numerous other ancient categorisation systems have stemmed from the elemental four, the most well known being the Qabalah and the Tarot.
In the specific realm of individual typing we have the four world views as outlined by Adickes in 1907; in 1920 we have Adler's four mistaken 'goals'; in 1925 we have Kretschmer's four temperaments; in 1928 we have Spranger's four human values system.
All these typologies have a quadratic base which still exists in modern typologies such as the MBTI. An example of the MBTI base is Keirsey's Quadrative Matrix:
Intuitive Sensible
Cooperative NF SJ
Pragmatic NT SP
(adapted from Keirsey(1984) p11 N = intuitive, S = sensing, F = feeling, T = thinking, J = judging, and P = perceiving).)
Of note here is that the MBTI is derived from Jungian typology (see below) and Jung was known for his interest in ancient archetype images.
An analysis of the types together with analysis of the trigrams of the I Ching also shows associative meanings. In fact, all quadratic based typologies can be placed at row 2 of a template. From these, more detailed information emerges which, when compared with the I Ching trigrams and hexagrams suggest a common background. This background, the shared template, comes from the 'fact' that these categorisation systems are all metaphors for the categorising of wholes and their aspects; and thus 'meaning' emerges from the underlaying template rather than the 'thing' categorised. (for an example of this, try an I Ching consultation that does not generate lines randomly.)
Using Keirsey's Quadrative Matrix as a guide, the row 2 sequence for the MBTI (from the bottom) is:
NF SJ NT SP
At row 3 these have been extended in that we add the JP axis to Ns
and the TF axis to Ss and at row 4 we find that the perceive/judge within SJ and SP are
distributed evenly within NFs and NTs (2 of each), and that the
feeling/thinking within all NFs and NTs is distributed evenly within
SJs and SPs (2 of each) as well as the addition of introvert/extrovert
to all.
Using I Ching symbolism we develop hierarchically where each row
is considered as a refinement within the context of the previous:
Row 1 Social - yin Pragmatic - yang
Row 2 Intuitive - yin Sensing - yang
Row 3 Perceive - yin Judge - yang
Row 4 Introvert - yin Extrovert - yang
The other lines together with Line 1 suggests that line 1 is actually the F/T axis. Feelers are more social than thinkers; to share an idea does not require social contact, sharing a feel does, or else it requires enough experience to transcribe feeling such that a reader experiences it - poetry for example, but this is rare and so social contact takes precedence. The template/MBTI map shows a 3/1 bias to feelers over thinkers on the left and a 3/1 bias to thinkers over feelers on the right. However, terms social / pragmatic have a natural bias to group/individual which feel/think does not explicitly portray. (We can also use the dichotomy of values(feel)/facts(think)).
Comparing the text of the I Ching to the MBTI types we can intuitively generate match-ups such that we get a whole map that is not quiet logical in order (it is logical in using the binary order of the I Ching) but is definitely logical in meanings. I can get consistent patterns only if I use BOTH the opposites form and the variations form. These patterns have emerged, and I favour emergence over rule imposition since the former suggests an unconscious pattern whereas the latter is more of a conscious imposition ("it MUST be this way" - logical etc).
The swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung derived his model of categorisation based on his observation of his patients. He derived behavioural sets to which were added others, all used in his methodology, Analytical Psychology :-
Types of Attitude : Introverted / Extraverted.
Types of Orientation :-
Sensing/Intuiting (presence/possibles)
Thinking/Feeling (identity/value)
Introverted/Extraverted primarily deals with energy. Introverted people do things in such a way as to conserve energy. Extroverts use a lot of energy. Implied is a balance point.
"Introversion," writes Jung, "is normally characterized by a hesitant, reflective, retiring nature that keeps itself to itself, shrinks from objects [and] is always slightly defensive."." p14 Sharp, D.(1987)" Personality Types"Inner City.
"..extroversion "is normally characterized by an outgoing, candid, and accommodating nature that adapts easily to a given situation, quickly forms attachments, and, setting aside any possible misgivings, will often venture forth with careless confidence into unknown situations."." ibid (quotes from Jung's "Two Essays on Analytical Psychology").
Sensing people were those whose concerns were the here and now and using the five senses. Intuiting people were those whose concerns were the future and unconscious ('sixth sense').
Thinking people have a bias to logic/objectivity/the outside/The Universe. Feeling to subjectivity/the inside/The Culture.
"The function of thinking refers to the process of cognitive thought, sensation is perception by means of the physical sense organs, feeling is the function of subjective judgment or valuation, and intuition refers to perceptions by way if the unconscious (e.g. receptivity to unconscious contents)". p14 ibid.
Within the whole individual, all sets exist, but the individual's life history leads to biases; in favour, or against.
The intention of the system is to be able to help individuals, by enhancing those areas where the individual was poorly developed. The typology is a tool for psychological expansion. Within the system is the emphasis on primary-auxiliary-inferior functions (think-sense-feel-intuite).
Jung recognized that in the individual one of the four functions is more developed than the others. This is labeled the primary function. This is common to Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) where we find individuals favour one type of representational system (visual - auditory - kinesthetic - gustatory/olfactory ) over the others and expresses this bias in language and mannerisms.
The secondary function, the auxiliary function ".. is always one whose nature, rational[T/F] or irrational[S/N], is different from the primary function." p19 ibid. The secondary function "..is therefore always one whose nature differs from, but is not antagonistic to, the primary function: either of the irrational functions can be auxiliary to one of the rational functions and vice versa" p20 ibid. Possible pairings are TN or TS but not TF.
The inferior function is that function "..which particularly resists integration into consciousness."p21 ibid. "Jung writes "The essence of the inferior function is autonomy : it is independent, it attacks, it fascinates and so spins us about that we are no longer masters of ourselves and can no longer rightly distinguish between ourselves and others"."p 21 ibid. Furthermore "..one of the great problems of the inferior function is that it is generally slow, in contrast with the primary function."pp21-22 ibid.
Primary (FAST)
Aux1 Aux2 (MEDIUM)
Inferior (SLOW)
One finds in NLP that there is a representational system that is complementary to the primary one and is often used when the individual is under stress or expressing something in which they lack confidence. (A generally positive visual bias is complemented by a negative kinesthetic bias).
In Jung's typology the Inferior function is the complement of the primary within the rational/irrational context (T/F or S/N). The above diagram symbolizes levels of balance (aux) and imbalance (prim/inf) where "..the processing of assimilating the inferior function, "raising" it into consciousness, is invariably accompanied by a "lowering" of the superior or primary function."[i.e. effects balance] p24. ibid. We have, therefore the 'map' :
Primary (bias (over)))
Aux1 Aux2 (no bias - balance)
Inferior (bias (under)))
This balance map is identical to the balance map I have found in
the I Ching.:
Hexagram A
HexB HexC
Hexagram D
This map, based on trigram relationships within hexagrams, shows that the opposites of A and D are balanced by the opposites of B and C. D is always the opposite/complement of A. In the I Ching context, when using the movement concept, the primary(A) is moving towards an auxiliary(C) and the inferior moves(D) towards the other auxiliary(B). (I have not see this applied to Jung's typology explicitly but it is known that the best approach from the primary to the inferior is via an auxiliary rather than direct.). The primary function is equivalent to Jung's concept of the persona, whereas the inferior concept is the shadow. Energy is taken from the shadow to 'prop up' the persona. Thus the expression 'the brighter the persona the darker the shadow'. (In the I Ching there are sets of hexagrams that deal specifically with the adoption of facades as well as possible confusion between the facade and the 'real' person.)
The emphasis on balance goes slightly against the 'creative' in that it is through the use of imbalance that distinctions are made. What makes a psychological type are points of excess, the maximized of the persona versus the minimized shadow. To become a 'balanced' individual would suggest the adoption of a distinct (!) middle grey colour, with what would be happening inside the individual unknown. However, an individual approaching balance suggests approaching the whole and to spiritually go 'back' to becoming boundless, to blend back into that from which we came.
This raises the question of is this a form of 'death wish'? Although to blend back into that from which we came, in a consciousness sense (i.e. spiritual) is not quite true, since the amount of information stored is greater than when we started. Or would this 'personal' library be extinguished with the blending?
Continues.....