UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SANTA CRUZ; ©V. Tonay
Jung acknowledged that we have the capacity for all 16 type combinations in our personality, but that we characteristically rely upon some (our "type preferences") more than others. Overreliance on one to the exclusion of the other in any oppositional pair can lead to one-sidedness of personality. All are equally adaptive, although I and N have been found to correlate somewhat with neuroticism.
Psychotherapists, in general, tend to be ENF or INF. Cognitive psychotherapists tend to be ENT or INT.
(FYI: The test which measures Jungian typoogy, the MBTI (Myers-Briggs Type Indicator) has been validated (see Portraits of Type by Avril Thorne [a UCSC faculty member] & Harrison Gough [author of the CPI], 1992), and demonstrates acceptable reliability. However, validation samples were primarily highly creative individuals studied at the Institute of Personality Assessment & Research (IPAR) from the 1960s - early 1980s (240 females, 374 males; 90% Caucasian). Several cross-cultural studies (mostly Western) have been done; many more need to be done.)
Key words associated with each type, as well as notes on implications for relationships (as well as the therapeutic relationship) follow. It behooves therapists to know their own type, and to be able to type their clients, especially if the therapist and/or the client are quite strong on one or more functions.
Attitudes: Does the individual's libido (life energy) flow outward or inward?
* Inward = Introversion (I): Primarily focuses upon inner experience, is territorial (physical environment is important), feels disconnected in crowds, values space, recovers energy in solitude. Provides depth, intimacy, wonder, and quiet times to the extravert; pulls the extravert into the extravert's Self. Introverted therapists' tendency is to go too deep, too fast for an extravert. An I client and I therapist may unconsciously avoid outside world issues in favor of too much depth.
* Outward = Extraversion (E): Primarily focuses upon outer experience (ideas, people), values sociability, receives energy from others. Provides breadth, energy, activity, and community to the introvert. Pulls the introvert back into the world. Extraverted therapists' tendency is to stay too superficial for the introverted client, who is seeking meaning. An E client and E therapist may unconsciously focus too much on the outside world and not enough on inner conflicts.
(NOTE: Unfortunately, it turns out that the MBTI actually measures the sociability component of I/E more than it measures the Jungian conception of I/E. The most successful long-term relationship is that between an I and an E of similar type strength--that is, distance from the middle.)
Functions: How does the individual take
in information and evaluate it?
How the individual takes in information (perceives the world):
* Sensation (S): Perceives with the 5 senses...Focuses on facts, the past, what is actually in the world right now, details. Values usefulness, simplicity, the physical; is practical, critical. Strives most for happiness. An N therapist working with an S must relate this value to therapy goals.
* Intuition (N): Perceives the 'atmosphere' of a situation--perceives holistically...Focuses on possibilities in the future, values imagination (N is a strong predictor of creativity), enjoys anticipation, is intellectual, complex, comfortable with uncertainty. Strives most for awareness. A S therapist will have trouble working with an N unless the therapist has done sufficient work on his/her own shadow (N).(NOTE: S and N represent the most distance between people. Relationships between strong Ss and strong Ns are difficult. If they do work out, they tend to be "parallel" relationships--living together, but each in a separate and very different inner world. A relationship between an S and N that are not too far apart can work well--they each provide the other with what is lacking. Two Ns and two Ss will feel quickly comfortable with one another, because they share the same way of experiencing the world, and find intimacy easiest to achieve.)
How the individual evaluates information (makes decisions):
--Thinking (T): Makes decisions based upon objective facts...Focuses on justice, the impersonal, logic, laws, critique, criteria, firmness. Values categories, organizing information, making the rational choice, compromise. A T client might find an F therapist too "touchy feely," may be uncomfortable with the intimacy of an F therapist.
--Feeling (F): Decides based upon deeply held principles...Values mercy, what is personal in a situation, responding to and with emotion intact. Values intimacy, harmony, and persuasion. An F client might find a T therapist too intellectual, cold, unfeeling.(Ts and Fs tend to form relationships with one another. Those most likely to last are equidistant from the middle. Two Fs and two Ts can also work, but two Ts can lack 'juice' and two Fs can create a lot of chaos.)
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