Eric B
ⒺⓉⒷ
- Joined
- Mar 29, 2008
- Messages
- 3,621
- MBTI Type
- INTP
- Enneagram
- 548
- Instinctual Variant
- sp/sx
Hot on the heels of The 16 Personality Types: Profiles, Theory, & Type Development and The INTP: Personality, Careers, Relationships, & the Quest for Truth and Meaning comes My True Type: Clarifying Your Personality Type, Preferences & Functions
My True Type Book
It sounded pretty exciting, advertizing a new personality inventory composed of two parts, for preferences (E, I, S, N, T, F, J, P), and for functions (Se, Ne, Si, Ni, Te, Fe, Ti, Fi); which receive in-depth analyses; discussions of common “mistypingsâ€, the role of gender, and even neuroscientific research regarding the brain activity associated with each personality function (Are some types ⦅or functions⦆ more “right-brained†or “left-brained?â€).
He gives a brief history, and then lays out the different levels of type: the “preferences†(four dichotomies making up the type code), the functions (two of the dichotomies, and the function-attitudes with the i/e “directionâ€), the “functional stackâ€, which are the four primary function-attitudes.
He clarifies the “j/p†problem with introverts (that IP’s are actually dominant judgers, and IJ’s are dominant perceviers). People in the last review voiced being confused by this.
The focus is on the dominant function “typesâ€: Si = SJ types, Se = SP types, Ni = NJ types, Ne = NP type, Ti = TP types, Te = TJ types, Fi = FP types, Fe = FJ types
Part I is “Effective Typing: Barriers & Strategiesâ€
He discusses Nature vs Nurture; “the cumulative effects of past and present circumstances—culture, family, childhood, etc.—on our personality.â€
He reviews the three levels of development from the previous book (Early childhood, late childhood, and adulthood) and the influence of the inferior function.
He also talks about the shortcomings of assessments.
•In “Strategies for Accurate Typingâ€, he tells us to look at childhood patterns (To prevent our self-appraisals from being skewed by current circumstances), and also says to look at “Which Type(s) are You Least Like?â€
As an example, “an INTP was confident in his status as an NT type. However, he was unsure whether he was an INTP, ENTP, or INTJ. From this, it was clear that, of the four NT types, he was least like the ENTJ. This indirectly suggested that he was both an introvert and a perceiver, which ultimately helped him clarify his status as an INTP.â€
(Using Berens’ theory, we could do this by Interaction Style, where INTP’s “Behind the Scenes ⦅introverted, informing⦆ is the diametric opposite of ENTJ’s “In Charge†⦅extraverted, directive⦆. Also, having the same function order: T-N-S-F, but with the attitudes reversed).
•He also discusses the “ongoing tug-of-war between its dominant and inferior functionsâ€, or enantiodromia.
Other points:
•If you are an ISFP and Extraverted Sensing (Se) is your auxiliary function, your Se may be tempered by your overall status as an introvert. Hence, you may fail to identify with the more pronounced Se characteristics displayed by ESPs.
This is part of a problem ISFP’s I have seen, had in verifying their type.
•He suggests INJs are probably the types best suited for apprehending these sorts of deep patterns. Hence, consulting with an INJ, especially an INFJ, may prove
helpful for synthesizing and making sense of the various elements of your personality, thereby clarifying your true type.
In Part II: Clarifying Your Preferences, he does descriptions of each dichotomy. For I/E he goes into Jung’s theory of introversion and extraversion.
He also comes up with sorts of “subscales†(a là MBTI Step II) for most of the dichotomies.
He mentions Jerome Kagan’s Galen’s Prophecy, which is the premier book on mainstream temperament theory, and mentions one of them: [high/low] reactivity, in addition to a similar factor from later research: inhibition/unihibition.
So Drenth connects these to I/E.
So it seems reactivity then (which seems to closely correspond to “sensitivity†or “sensory threshholdâ€), as I/E would correspond to Galen’s “hot/coldâ€.
Drenth acknowledges that many of us look more like a mixed bag of E and I. He also mentions how the opposite attitude auxiliary and inferior affect this.
So,
•â€The drive for personal growth can also lead to a mixing of E and I tendencies. Namely, for introverts, personal growth involves ‘taking the inside (I) out (E),’ which may inspire them to direct more of their attention and energy outwardly. For extraverts, personal growth entails ‘bringing the outside (E) in (I),†which may contribute to an increasingly inward focus.â€
•â€E, N, and J preferences can be associated with higher levels of talkativeness, as can the function, Extraverted Feeling (Fe). It would therefore not be unusual, for instance, to find an INFJ more loquacious than an ESTP.â€
Not sure about this one in general. I guess when it comes to explaining concepts.
•â€E-I mistypings can also stem from J-P issues. Namely, because perceivers are more impulsive and less careful than judgers, IPs may mistake themselves for extraverts. Similarly, since judging types tend to be more careful, cautious, and deliberative, EJs may mistype as introverts.â€
Of course, in my theory, while E/I is “expressivenessâ€, J/P is apart of “responsivenessâ€, which is essentially “responding as an introvert or extrovertâ€), So this fits well!
•â€Another common mistyping involves ENPs misclassifying as INPs. Since ENPs are strong intuitives, they may confuse being intuitive with being introverted, since both I and N can be associated with reflectiveness. ENPs may also be less physically active than other extraverts, since it is really their mind that is most actively engaging with the world. So while their attention is still outwardly directed, the predominantly mental nature of their extraversion may serve as a point of confusion.â€
This leads to the common “introverted extraverts†claim you often hear for ENP’s (and sometimes all EN’s). I think it’s sometimes overrrated, and that ENP’s in practice are often as expressive as other E’s. But, “nurture†is what will shape these traits.
•â€Our final E-I mistyping involves ISPs, who may misclassify as extraverts because of their tendency to function as “busy bodies.†They may mistakenly
assume that, because extraverts lead an active lifestyle, their penchant for being busy and active suggests they are extraverts. This mistyping represents the flip side of what we saw with ENPs, who are prone to conflating higher levels of mental activity with introversion.â€
Yes, ISP’s are occasionally presented as “extroverted introvertsâ€. Which is funny, since many of them often think the more active SP traits are too “extroverted†for them. It seems the mix of introversion with the highly active “Sanguine†SP causes a lot of confusion.
He gives a good breakdown of S/N. He mentions the concept of the “idea†of a table (which I will use in my ongoing thread on the functions).
Mistyping:
•IS types misidentifying as intuitives. This relates to the fact that both introversion and intuition contribute an element of reflectiveness.
•Associating intuition with open-mindedness or certain types of intelligence may inspire sensors to mistype as intuitives. This seems especially likely for sensors with higher IQs.
My True Type Book
It sounded pretty exciting, advertizing a new personality inventory composed of two parts, for preferences (E, I, S, N, T, F, J, P), and for functions (Se, Ne, Si, Ni, Te, Fe, Ti, Fi); which receive in-depth analyses; discussions of common “mistypingsâ€, the role of gender, and even neuroscientific research regarding the brain activity associated with each personality function (Are some types ⦅or functions⦆ more “right-brained†or “left-brained?â€).
He gives a brief history, and then lays out the different levels of type: the “preferences†(four dichotomies making up the type code), the functions (two of the dichotomies, and the function-attitudes with the i/e “directionâ€), the “functional stackâ€, which are the four primary function-attitudes.
He clarifies the “j/p†problem with introverts (that IP’s are actually dominant judgers, and IJ’s are dominant perceviers). People in the last review voiced being confused by this.
The focus is on the dominant function “typesâ€: Si = SJ types, Se = SP types, Ni = NJ types, Ne = NP type, Ti = TP types, Te = TJ types, Fi = FP types, Fe = FJ types
Part I is “Effective Typing: Barriers & Strategiesâ€
He discusses Nature vs Nurture; “the cumulative effects of past and present circumstances—culture, family, childhood, etc.—on our personality.â€
He reviews the three levels of development from the previous book (Early childhood, late childhood, and adulthood) and the influence of the inferior function.
He also talks about the shortcomings of assessments.
•In “Strategies for Accurate Typingâ€, he tells us to look at childhood patterns (To prevent our self-appraisals from being skewed by current circumstances), and also says to look at “Which Type(s) are You Least Like?â€
As an example, “an INTP was confident in his status as an NT type. However, he was unsure whether he was an INTP, ENTP, or INTJ. From this, it was clear that, of the four NT types, he was least like the ENTJ. This indirectly suggested that he was both an introvert and a perceiver, which ultimately helped him clarify his status as an INTP.â€
(Using Berens’ theory, we could do this by Interaction Style, where INTP’s “Behind the Scenes ⦅introverted, informing⦆ is the diametric opposite of ENTJ’s “In Charge†⦅extraverted, directive⦆. Also, having the same function order: T-N-S-F, but with the attitudes reversed).
•He also discusses the “ongoing tug-of-war between its dominant and inferior functionsâ€, or enantiodromia.
Other points:
•If you are an ISFP and Extraverted Sensing (Se) is your auxiliary function, your Se may be tempered by your overall status as an introvert. Hence, you may fail to identify with the more pronounced Se characteristics displayed by ESPs.
This is part of a problem ISFP’s I have seen, had in verifying their type.
•He suggests INJs are probably the types best suited for apprehending these sorts of deep patterns. Hence, consulting with an INJ, especially an INFJ, may prove
helpful for synthesizing and making sense of the various elements of your personality, thereby clarifying your true type.
In Part II: Clarifying Your Preferences, he does descriptions of each dichotomy. For I/E he goes into Jung’s theory of introversion and extraversion.
He also comes up with sorts of “subscales†(a là MBTI Step II) for most of the dichotomies.
He mentions Jerome Kagan’s Galen’s Prophecy, which is the premier book on mainstream temperament theory, and mentions one of them: [high/low] reactivity, in addition to a similar factor from later research: inhibition/unihibition.
So Drenth connects these to I/E.
So it seems reactivity then (which seems to closely correspond to “sensitivity†or “sensory threshholdâ€), as I/E would correspond to Galen’s “hot/coldâ€.
Drenth acknowledges that many of us look more like a mixed bag of E and I. He also mentions how the opposite attitude auxiliary and inferior affect this.
So,
•â€The drive for personal growth can also lead to a mixing of E and I tendencies. Namely, for introverts, personal growth involves ‘taking the inside (I) out (E),’ which may inspire them to direct more of their attention and energy outwardly. For extraverts, personal growth entails ‘bringing the outside (E) in (I),†which may contribute to an increasingly inward focus.â€
•â€E, N, and J preferences can be associated with higher levels of talkativeness, as can the function, Extraverted Feeling (Fe). It would therefore not be unusual, for instance, to find an INFJ more loquacious than an ESTP.â€
Not sure about this one in general. I guess when it comes to explaining concepts.
•â€E-I mistypings can also stem from J-P issues. Namely, because perceivers are more impulsive and less careful than judgers, IPs may mistake themselves for extraverts. Similarly, since judging types tend to be more careful, cautious, and deliberative, EJs may mistype as introverts.â€
Of course, in my theory, while E/I is “expressivenessâ€, J/P is apart of “responsivenessâ€, which is essentially “responding as an introvert or extrovertâ€), So this fits well!
•â€Another common mistyping involves ENPs misclassifying as INPs. Since ENPs are strong intuitives, they may confuse being intuitive with being introverted, since both I and N can be associated with reflectiveness. ENPs may also be less physically active than other extraverts, since it is really their mind that is most actively engaging with the world. So while their attention is still outwardly directed, the predominantly mental nature of their extraversion may serve as a point of confusion.â€
This leads to the common “introverted extraverts†claim you often hear for ENP’s (and sometimes all EN’s). I think it’s sometimes overrrated, and that ENP’s in practice are often as expressive as other E’s. But, “nurture†is what will shape these traits.
•â€Our final E-I mistyping involves ISPs, who may misclassify as extraverts because of their tendency to function as “busy bodies.†They may mistakenly
assume that, because extraverts lead an active lifestyle, their penchant for being busy and active suggests they are extraverts. This mistyping represents the flip side of what we saw with ENPs, who are prone to conflating higher levels of mental activity with introversion.â€
Yes, ISP’s are occasionally presented as “extroverted introvertsâ€. Which is funny, since many of them often think the more active SP traits are too “extroverted†for them. It seems the mix of introversion with the highly active “Sanguine†SP causes a lot of confusion.
He gives a good breakdown of S/N. He mentions the concept of the “idea†of a table (which I will use in my ongoing thread on the functions).
Mistyping:
•IS types misidentifying as intuitives. This relates to the fact that both introversion and intuition contribute an element of reflectiveness.
•Associating intuition with open-mindedness or certain types of intelligence may inspire sensors to mistype as intuitives. This seems especially likely for sensors with higher IQs.