Psychological Types

28.11.24

First of all, Carl Jung never created any typological assessment, and his method has nothing to do with revealing qualities like having leadership skills and being confident, being creative and empathetic, or even a perfectionist or over-thinker. These tests are a terrible misrepresentation of Carl Jung’s work.

That’s why for this article, I prepared a deep dive into the psychological types:

• The differences between introversion and extroversion.
• The 4 functions – thinking, feeling, sensation, and intuition.
• The Inferior Function.
• What constitutes the 8 psychological types.

The Typological Method

In the previous article, we explored Carl Jung’s model of the psyche and I introduced you to psychodynamics. If you were paying attention, here’s the moment of the truth, you’ll remember that the most important concept in Jungian Psychology is conscious attitude.

This is basically how a person is wired, their basic tendencies, and patterns of behavior. It’s how one tends to interpret, filter, and react to the world. You can also add someone’s beliefs, political views, philosophy of life, habits, and individual idiosyncrasies. The sum of these different components forms someone’s conscious attitude and cosmovision.

However, behind all of these individual tendencies, Jung discovered a system that acts as a foundation for the conscious attitude and structures the psyche, namely the psychological types. Personally, I consider this method the ultimate compass for our psychological development. It can give us immense clarity about how to harmonize our strengths and weaknesses, and invaluable insights to navigate our relationships.

Before we start, I want to be clear that pure types don’t exist, we’ll be exploring basic patterns and tendencies and people will fall on a spectrum: “Naturally, they [psychological types] never occur, in reality, in their pure form, but always and only with individual variations derived from the principle that governs its appearance, similar to the crystals, which generally, are variants of the same system” (C. G. Jung – V8 – §221).

That said, you might have encountered several tests on the internet claiming to reveal your typology, but let me tell you that every time I see that I can hear Carl Jung rolling and agonizing in his grave. Since he isn’t alive to protest, I’ll try to explain why these tests are a scam. Firstly, typology isn’t static, it evolves and changes as we mature psychologically and it isn’t deterministic or characterological.

That is, it doesn’t reveal personal qualities like being empathetic, confident, well-spoken, or a perfectionist and over-thinker. This is related to someone’s psychological maturity, unique skills, and not being neurotic. Speaking of which, equating introversion to being shy and having social anxiety is just moronic. Also, the typological method doesn’t reveal our destiny, relationship patterns, or our careers.

Moreover, a test would never be able to capture the complexity of the psychodynamics involved. People seldom have an objective perspective about themselves, and more often than not, they give answers that have nothing to do with their true personalities, as the unconscious and the inferior function are constantly interjecting. As aforementioned, what’s possible is to delineate a few basic tendencies, knowing that people will express them in a plethora of ways. Honestly, 90% of the time my clients show me their results, it’s wrong. Time to explore these basic patterns.

Introversion and Extroversion

The first component of the psychological types is introversion and extroversion: “[…] A habitual attitude in which one of the mechanisms will predominate, without, however, being able to completely suppress the other, as this is a necessary part of psychic activity. That is why there cannot be a pure type in the sense of having only one of the mechanisms […] A typical attitude always and only means the relative predominance of one of the mechanisms” (C. G. Jung – V6 – §6).

The first thing we have to understand about introversion and extroversion is that this isn’t static, it’s fluid, and there isn’t someone 100% introverted or extroverted all of the time. What we have is the relative predominance of one of the mechanisms. You probably heard people saying that they’re generally introverted but extremely extroverted with people they know more intimately, that’s why.

Also, we might experience certain periods in our lives where one of the mechanisms is more prevalent than the other. This doesn’t make you an “ambivert”, as there’s no such thing. Being an introvert or extrovert is a way of relating to and understanding the world, and the biggest difference lies in the relationship with objects.

Let’s explore each one more in-depth, starting with extroversion: “Now, when orientation by the object predominates in such a way that decisions and actions are determined not by subjective views but by objective conditions, we speak of an extraverted attitude” (C. G. Jung – V6 – §563).

Extroverts have their attention directed to the external world and other people. They tend to be heavily influenced and shaped by their environment, culture, and collective opinions. To the point that if they were to be born in a different culture their personalities would easily be molded by it.

For that reason, they tend to be socially adapted and have a collective way of thinking and behaving. They see the world as something empty, so they “lend” their souls to animate external objects. They think and feel outside themselves – “in the objects”.

As they’re constantly seeking to affect and be affected, they find themselves in the changeable and tend to be more flexible and malleable. For that same reason, they lack inner conviction and have difficulty perceiving their own individuality, in extreme cases, they can completely lose their sense of self in the objects and their environment.

Most extroverts have a deep fear of being alone and there’s no solid core to sustain their convictions, as they can change their minds and emotional states at any given moment if they’re affected by something external.

In contrast, Introverts have their attention primarily directed to their inner world: “Although the introverted consciousness is naturally aware of external conditions, it selects the subjective determinants as the decisive ones” (C. G. Jung – V6 – §621).

This means that their ego and subjective opinions have a higher value than the external conditions, like their culture and environment. Introverts are constantly filtering the external reality interposed by their subjectivity, and seek to shield themselves from the external world and control it, instead of being absorbed by it like extroverts.

Moreover, Introverts seek to be constant and tend to be guided by a firm set of conscious or unconscious rules, which makes them more rigid and inflexible. This is an attempt to always control the outcome and protect themselves from affects and the influence of other people. In extreme cases, there’s a constant worry about the future and agoraphobia.

Consequently, introverts tend to be socially awkward and find socializing draining. But they tend to have a rich inner life, conviction, and a sense of separation from the collective. However, they need to be cautious to not turn this into empty individualism and ego-centrism, by disregarding the outside world and constructing a shallow antagonistic character that secretly believes in being better than everyone.

The Four Functions

The second layer of the psychological types is **the four functions: “Consciousness is primarily an organ of orientation in a world of outer and inner facts. First and foremost, it establishes the fact that something is there. I call this faculty sensation. By this I do not mean the specific activity of any one of the senses, but perception in general. Another faculty interprets what is perceived; this I call thinking. By means of this function, the object perceived is assimilated and its transformation into a psychic content proceeds much further than in mere sensation. A third faculty establishes the value of the object. This function of evaluation I call feeling. The pain-pleasure reaction of feeling marks the highest degree of subjectivation of the object. Feeling brings subject and object into such a close relationship that the subject must choose between acceptance and rejection” (C. G. Jung – V8 – §256).

Jung continues, “These three functions would be quite sufficient for orientation if the object in question were isolated in space and time. But, in space, every object is in endless connection with a multiplicity of other objects; and, in time, the object represents merely a transition from a former state to a succeeding one. Most of the spatial relationships and temporal changes are unavoidably unconscious at the moment of orientation, and yet, in order to determine the meaning of an object, space-time relationships are necessary. It is the fourth faculty of consciousness, intuition, which makes possible, at least approximately, the determination of space-time relationships. This is a function of perception which includes subliminal factors, that is, the possible relationship to objects not appearing in the field of vision, and the possible changes, past and future, about which the object gives no clue. Intuition is an immediate awareness of relationships that could not be established by the other three functions at the moment of orientation” (C. G. Jung – V8 – §257). Lastly, intuition is a form of perception via unconscious.

The four functions also make two pairs of opposites: thinking and feeling, and sensation and intuition. Consciousness tends to be guided by only one of these functions, which is called the main function. Moreover, for the main function to be adaptative, it has to suppress its counterpart, which in turn remains unconscious. Under this light, there will be thinking types, feeling types, intuitive types, and sensation types.

Now, let’s explore each function individually. First, thinking tends to be logical, rational, and processual. It tells us what a thing is and adds concepts and ideas, through a process of comparison. Thinking tends to be detached, neutral, and cold, as It sees every object with equal value.

In contrast, feeling tells us the worth and value of something and that’s why it’s contrary to thinking. It places judgments if you like or dislike something and if it’s acceptable or not. It adds “color”, nuances, and adjectives to the objects.

The feeling function is deeply personal and tends to create relationships with the objects. It gives you the ability to perceive the emotional atmosphere and understand your own feelings and those of others. That’s why it’s the primary function used in connecting with other people and establishing relationships.

Here, it’s important to make a distinction, the feeling function isn’t equal to experiencing emotions and affects. **Jung says “The differences would be this: feeling has no physical or tangible physiological manifestations, while emotion (affects) is characterized by an altered physiological condition” (C. G. Jung – V18.1 – §46). Therefore, when you experience a deep overwhelming emotion you’re not “in” your feeling function, you’re simply having an affect. The feeling function is the conscious experience of an emotion and it’s subject to the conscious will.

Now let’s discuss the second pair of opposites. Sensation **is the function of reality and provides the perception of the physical stimulus, both externally and internally. It’s the awareness of everything we can perceive with the five senses. It’s detail-oriented, grounded in reality, and in the present moment.

In contrast, intuition is the closest function to the unconscious and that’s why it often adopts a metaphorical and symbolic manifestation. It tends to present itself in images to the conscious mind or a certain hunch or gut feeling. It’s contrary to sensation because it’s future-oriented, it sees the potential of objects and what they can become. Intuition sees things as a finished whole instead of small details.

Time to apply what we’ve learned with a simple example, don’t take this too seriously. Let’s imagine you’re talking with someone, a thinking type will pay attention to the words, their logical sequence, and if things make sense from a rational standpoint. A feeling type will be able to perceive through the words and apprehend the emotional atmosphere and true intentions behind what’s being said.

Now, a sensation type will pay attention to their subtle gestures, their clothes, tone of voice, and micro-expressions, and this will give them the information they need. Lastly, an intuitive type might have a certain hunch or gut feeling about the person and immediately know if they can be good friends or not. They can also perceive images in their minds while they’re interacting that contain crucial information about the development of the conversation.

Finally, If we pair the extroverted and introverted tendencies with one of the four functions we get the eight psychological types. Each one of the four functions acquires different manifestations according to a more introverted or extroverted nature, giving each type unique traits and tendencies:

• Extroverted or Introverted Thinking Type.
• Extroverted or Introverted Feeling Type.
• Extroverted or Introverted Sensation Type.
• Extroverted or Introverted Intuitive Type.

The Inferior Function

Lastly, we’ll discuss the inferior function, one of the main secrets of the individuation process. Von Franz says the inferior function “Is the ever-bleeding wound of the conscious personality, but through it the unconscious can always come in and so enlarge consciousness and bring forth new experience. As long as you have not developed your other functions, your auxiliary functions, they too will be open doors, so in a person who has only developed one superior function, the two auxiliary functions will operate in the same way and will appear in personifications of the shadow, animus, and anima. It is only when you have succeeded in developing three functions, in locking three of your inner doors, that the problem of the fourth door still remains, for that is the one which is apparently not meant to be locked. There one has to succumb, one has to suffer defeat, in order to develop further” (Marie Von Franz – Psychotherapy  – p. 99).

The problem of the inferior function is incredibly complex. Theoretically, Carl Jung established that the development of the personality revolves around the four functions. First, we should develop our main function, then we should develop one auxiliary function from the other pair of opposites. As a third step, we should develop the counterpart of the auxiliary function, and finally touch the inferior function.

To exemplify, in my case, being an introverted intuitive type, I should develop my intuition, then thinking or feeling as an auxiliary one, in my case, it’s thinking. As a third step I should develop feeling, and finally touch on my inferior sensation. I know this is wildly abstract but this method is incredibly helpful in the therapeutic setting.

Turning things a bit more practical, let’s remember that everything that’s incompatible with our conscious attitude will form our shadow, and when we’re guided by one of the functions, its counterpart will invariably be repressed and remain unconscious, becoming our inferior function. If you’re guided by thinking, your inferior function will be feeling, and vice-versa, if you’re guided by intuition, your inferior function will be sensation, and vice-versa. The same thing is valid for introversion and extroversion.

In this light, one of the main components of our shadow is our inferior function, and its expression tends to be very slow and awkward, it’s not subject to the conscious will, and frequently emerges explosively and uncontrollably. In the book Psychotherapy, Marie Von Franz brings an interesting point saying that the inferior function is usually projected on the body and summarizes everything with one simple question: “What is hell for you?” The answer might lead you straight to your inferior function.

But as with everything in Jungian Psychology, the inferior function has a paradoxical nature, as it contains the inner gold and the seeds to enlarge our personality. It’s when we’re engaging with the inferior function that we find the most joy and sense of wholeness.

It’s the source of our creativity and inspiration and it contains the wisdom we need to solve our conflicts and further our individuation journey. Lastly, Jung says that the technical term for the animus and anima is the inferior function, however, we tend to find them personified, making the animus and anima the empirical observation of the inferior function.

In conclusion, we’ll have a main function which is the primary guide of our conscious attitude and we can also develop an auxiliary function, both introverted or extroverted, according to our tendencies. For instance, I’m an introvert with intuition as a main function and thinking as an auxiliary function. Therefore extroverted sensation is my inferior function and extroverted feeling is also felt as a weak spot.

Finally, If you can’t relate to any of this, perhaps you’re just not aware of your own tendencies or you’re a distorted type. This is very common and happens when someone can’t properly develop their main function.

For instance, picture a feeling/ intuitive type with a strong creative and artistic personality, but he was raised by a family of engineers and dry intellectuals who suppressed any display of emotion, affection, spontaneity, or creativity. As a result this person had to adapt with a function that’s their weak spot. This will generate all sorts of issues and feelings of inadequacy, and the solution lies in developing their original main function.

Rafael Krüger – Live an Audacious Life

Whenever you’re ready, there are 3 ways I can help you:

• Katabasis – The Shadow Integration Manual – My best-selling and accessible course will introduce you to all you need to know to disrupt the unconscious patterns keeping you stuck.
• Audacity University – Master Jungian Psychology in 1 year. Become your own analyst or integrate these tools into your professional practice.
• Mentorship – Catalyze your personal transformation with 1 on 1 sessions. Master your psychology, relationships, and business.