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Sunday, July 11, 2021

Psychological Types by Carl Jung - summary

Psychological Types (in German Psychologische Typen ) is a work by Carl Gustav Jung originally published  in 1921. It corresponds to the sixth volume of his Complete Work .  In it he develops his ideas about the existence of two "attitudes" ( extraversion / introversion ) and four "functions" ( thought / feeling and sensation / intuition ), and refers for the first time to the self as the objective of psychic development .

 
In Psychological TypesCarl Jung classifies people into primary types of psychological functions . He proposed the existence of four main functions of consciousness, two of them perceptual functions, also called irrational: sensation and intuition , and the other two judging functions, also called rational: thought and feeling . The functions are modified by two main attitudes : introversion and extraversion .

Of the four there is a predominance of one due to natural predisposition, defined as the main or superior function , while the rest remain at the unconscious level. Two of them, called auxiliary functions , are relatively differentiated, while the third, the function of lesser or lower value , would be characterized by being totally unconscious, being able to differentiate only relatively, and becoming the opposite function to the main one. Such antagonism would include its corresponding compensation.

Eight psychological types 

From the combination of the four functions and the two proposed attitudes, eight basic psychological types emerge, each with different personality characteristics. When an individual shows a predilection for a psychological type, that preferred type is established as the predominant type, while the others coexist with the main one and generally remain less defined.

The eight psychological types are classified and could be briefly described 4 as follows:

Introverted thinking : They ask questions and try to understand their own being. Withdrawing, for this, to the realm of his ideas.
Extraverted thinking : They govern themselves and others according to fixed rules and principles. More than material facts, they are interested in reality.
Introverted feeling : Inaccessible to the rest of the people, they nevertheless give an impression of autonomy and harmony, they tend to be passionate about music and poetry.
Extraverted feeling : Conventional, well adapted to their time and environment, they are interested in personal and social success. They are fickle and accommodate fashions.
Introverted sensation : They feed on their sensory impressions and live immersed in their internal sensations. They are often modest and quiet.
Extraverted feeling : They are interested in external phenomena, they are practical, stubborn and accept the world as it is.
Introverted intuition : They are dreamers, they indulge in their inner visions. They strive to convey a unique esoteric experience.
Extraverted Intuition : Their intuition makes them have a 'nose' for anything new. They tend to settle disputes and be charismatic leaders.