Squeezing Four Dimensions From Three

[Psychdigg]

FOUR FROM THREE

It may seem strange to start out with a strong emphasis on patterns of four and then focus on a method of classification that is clearly based on three dimensions. But there is a hidden fourth factor in Sheldon’s schema. If you look closely at an equilateral triangle, you’ll notice that it consists not only of three points equidistant from each other, but it also has a middle, which is equi-distant from all three points. It may sound contradictory, but what about the “extreme” middle? Perhaps there is something about the middle that we should explore?

If the middle, in fact constitutes a fourth system, it shouldn’t be hard to figure out which one it would be. The only system remaining unaccounted for is the orientational system. If this is the case, we need to find out what is so special about the middle that it could be considered orientational system dominance. What is there about the middle that would allow the organism to go into the orientational, exploratory or searching mode?

The middle suggests balance. What situation results from balance? In a tug-o-war type of struggle for dominance, an equality of forces will cancel each other out. If the strength of the participants is close to equal, the situation becomes extremely sensitive to factors in the environment, such as wind direction and speed, or the condition of the playing field. Could it be that the orientational system is allowed to dominate only when the other systems are out of the way? A scale that is balanced can be affected by the slightest input of information. A mere pin is often enough to push the whole system into motion even though the total mass of the system is thousands of time greater. Clearly, influences outside of a balanced system become very important.

How does this idea fit into the dynamics of an organism? Experiments on the exploratory behavior of animals seem to indicate that food and water deprivation decreases explorative behavior of rats, suggesting that satisfaction of the primary drives is a prerequisite for strong exploratory behavior. This concept holds even with smarter animals. H.F. Harlow noticed this tendency in his experiments with primates. “Mice, Monkeys, Men and Motives” Psychological Review Vol. 60,23-32,1953


The famous developmental psychologist Jean Piaget describes something similar:

“Hunger for stimuli, then is essentially an expressionof the fact that at a time when no other particular schema is exerting any controlling action (or, in other words, when
none is making itself felt by means of any actual and compelling need), the animal is not passive but remains in a constantly seeking state for functional stimuli such as may put one or other of these schemata into action.”

Biology and Knowledge Jean Piaget: University of Chicago Press 1971

Zoologist, Hans Hass (1970) joins this chorus about the exploratory drive:

“It is characteristic of the inquisitive urge that it makes itself felt with particular force when no other instictive pressure exists, in other words, when other impulses have waned. As Schiller put it: ‘The animal works when a
deficiency is the mainspring of its activity and plays when the mainspring is an abundance of strength.’ As long as his actions are governed, say by fear, hunger, or sexual desire, man is not inquisitive either.

Only when he is without appetencies does he become venturesome and willful. It is then that he feels an urge to abandon the normal pattern of existence, whatever the alternative. It is then that the Dionysiac, the daring and truly human element in man, come to the fore.” The Human Animal Hans Hass New York: Putnam 1970

Although Sheldon had no name for the middle “extreme” and simply referred to it as a 4,4,4 he certainly had some interesting things to say about it. Consider his description of the middle.

“4,4,4 is probably about as close as human flesh gets to God. In this pattern all three primary components of temperament are as strongly represented as they can usually be tolerated, one by another. To call a man a 4,4,4 may be tantamount to crediting him with humor. Whatever else humor may be, it certainly is characterized by two qualities: (1) An inclination toward detachment - the quality of regarding life and self lightly: (2) An inclination to tolerate and to enjoy incompatibilities at a high level of awareness.”

The Varieties Of Delinquent Youths. New York: Harper, 1949

What Sheldon has essentially said is that a 4,4,4 is a creative person. Consider Solomon Diamond’s explanation of humor and you will start to see the tie-in with creativity.

‘The humorous attitude does not merely tolerate instability, but actively seeks it and delights in mastering it. It constitutes an intellectual adventurism, which gains
satisfaction from simultaneously experiencing the same field as structured in two, even three or more, different ways.”

Personality and Temperament New York: Harper, 1957

Abraham Maslow, in his description of the self-actualizing person and their “creative” nature, gives us further insight to the significance of the 4,4,4’s “Inclination to regard life and self lightly.”

“I think that our understanding of perception and therefore of the perceived world will be much changed and enlarged if we study carefully the distinction between need-interested and need-disinterested or desire-less perception. Because the latter is much more concrete and less abstracted and
selective, it is possible for such a person to see more easily the intrinsic nature of the percept. Also, he can perceive simultaneously the opposites, the dichotomies, the polarities, the contradictions and the incompatibles.”

Toward A Psychology of Being New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold Co. 1968

Many articles on creativity have discussed the so-called “blocks” to creative development. These blocks are nothing more than the attitudes that would be characteristic of a person as he moved away from the center toward one of the extremes. The ectomorph’s overly critical, sensitive and judgemental attitude would hinder his approach to a problem. The mesomorph’s desire to get the show on the road, along with his desire to control and dominate, would make him too impatient for the ideal solution. Too much concern with pleasing people would make the aloneness of exploration and innovation unbearable for the endomorph. Only the middle provides a haven free from these blocks to creativity.

If you study the descriptions of the Sanguine temperament you will find a strong connection with the middle region of Sheldon’s system. These quotes are not to be considered “hard” proof of the middle type, but they should illustrate an insight that has been shared by many skilled observers with differing perspectives over a long period of time.

 

[FDG]

That's a nice insight