Socionics is a theory related to psychology that focuses on relationships and interactions between individuals. It was founded by a woman named Augusta Bruun. This article will explore Socionics personality type and their functions.
What is the Socionics Personality Type?
Socionics personality types are a way of categorizing people by their psychological preferences when it comes to how they interact with the world. Each type is meant to represent a sort of cognitive function, which describes how we process information and how we make decisions.
According to socionics, these functions can be ordered into a hierarchy, with some considered more important than others. The results of this hierarchy are what determines your socionics personality type.
These functions are often related to specific areas of the body, various physical activities, and specific mental processes. There are eight different categories of function:
- Information elements, which are our primary sources of information
- Decision-making processes, which help us make decisions
- Creative processes that help us create things.
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- Values, which reflect our personal morality or ethical standards
- Logic processes, which help us come up with logical arguments and understand complex ideas
- Ethical elements that influence our behavior and help us evaluate our actions.
- Intuition processes that help us solve problems or figure out things on our own
- Sensing processes that help us do things based on physical sensations.
Socionics personality types are based on a theory developed by Russian psychologist Aushra Augustinavichiute in the 1970s. The theory posits that there are 16 distinct personality types and that each type has different physical and psychological properties as well as a specific set of interpersonal needs.
The idea is that different people experience reality in significantly different ways, making it difficult for them to connect with each other. Augustinavichiute believed that if we can understand how people perceive the world differently, we could improve our ability to communicate and interact more effectively with coworkers, friends, and romantic partners.
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Practical Applications of Socionics
The practical applications of socionics are a system of typological typing, which classifies people into 16 types using a four-dimensional model that describes one’s cognitive processes and psychological functions. It is based on information processing theory, which looks at how humans process information.
The four dimensions are perception, attention, sensation, and volition. There are 16 socionics personality types, each with a four-letter code.
The first letter refers to your dominant function or the way you process information:
- E: extroverted intuition
- I: introverted intuition
- S: extroverted sensing
- N: introverted sensing
The second letter refers to your secondary function, which is how you process the information on a lower level than your dominant function:
- F: extroverted feeling
- T: introverted thinking
- J: extroverted thinking
- P: introverted feeling
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The third letter refers to the tertiary function, which affects your information processing in yet another way. This could be either extroversion or introversion of your dominant function or secondary function.
This means that the tertiary function can take on any of the following letters: E, I, S, N, F, T, J, P. The fourth letter refers to the inferior function and this is how you “use” your information once it’s been processed. An example of a type would be ENTJ: extraverted, intuitive, thinking, judging.
Is Socionics the Same as MBTI?
Socionics and the MBTI are similar, but they’re not the same thing. Both socionics and the MBTI are personality typing systems that categorize people into 16 different types based on their cognitive functions.
However, there are some important differences between the two systems that you should be aware of if you’re looking for guidance in understanding how to use your Socionic type. Socionics types are named after famous people or characters from novels or films whose personality most closely resembles the characteristics of a given type.
The names of MBTI types, by contrast, are derived from a very simple system of four letters (E/I, S/N, T/F, J/P) that describe each type’s characteristics.
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Socionics vs MBTI
Socionics is a personality theory that identifies 16 distinct types of people through four “information elements” (or IEs): extroversion/introversion, intuition/sensing, thinking/feeling, and rationality/irrationality. They both use sets of dichotomies, or pairs of traits, to describe personality types. These dichotomies are usually called “functions” or “attitudes.”
MBTI doesn’t have this IE system. It’s more focused on only four of the eight IEs extroversion/introversion, intuition/sensing, thinking/feeling, and perceiving/judging and it includes two additional components: attitudes and functions.
The main difference between the two systems is that socionics is derived from Carl Jung’s theories about personality types and the MBTI is a proprietary system created by Katherine Briggs and Isabel Myers. While both systems have many similarities and have inspired each other over time, neither is an extension of the other.
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The MBTI classifies people by preference: it’s what they tend to do or like when they’re not paying attention. This means that their type is only accurate if they’re thinking about it or paying attention to what they’re doing (especially in social situations).
The MBTI is sometimes used as a method for self-discovery and sometimes used in therapy to help people better understand themselves and others, but in practice, it’s very subjective and variable. In fact, some people can take the test twice and get two different results.
Socionics on the other hand measures personality type which is very different.
How Many Types of Socionics Are There?
Socionics personality types are divided into four sets of cognitive functions. The number of possible socionics personality types is actually infinite.
That’s because no two people are completely alike. It’s why everyone can get along, but also why people can sometimes disagree.
There are 16 total types of socionics, each one corresponding to a different personality type.
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The divisions are as follows:
- Extroverted and Introverted (E/I)
- Sensing and Intuitive (S/N)
- Thinking and Feeling (T/F)
- Judging and Perceiving (J/P)
Socionics Types
1. The Logician (INTP): is an expert problem-solver who loves to analyze complex situations in order to come up with solutions and they’re very comfortable coming up with solutions on their own.
2. The Commander (ENTJ): takes charge and knows how to inspire others. They’re good leaders because they understand what motivates people.
3. The Advocate (INFJ): is a type of person who is usually reserved and reflective. They are highly attuned to the emotions of others and tend to put the needs of other people before their own. When they make decisions, they rely on their values and tend to be very idealistic.
4. The mediator (INFP): has rich inner worlds that they don’t always share with other people. Like INFJs, they also tend to put other people’s needs first when they make decisions and they strive to be authentic and original. However, unlike an INFJ who values his or her ideals over all else, INFPs value authenticity over all else.
5. The ENTP: is the debater who loves to argue. They have sharp minds, love new ideas, and are always looking for something new to learn. They love interacting with others, especially when their interactions involve debating or solving puzzles.
6. The INTJ: is the Architect. Architects are quiet and reserved but deep thinkers. They’re curious about everything and enjoy learning and analyzing complex systems. They may be shy at first, but once they get to know someone they can be friendly and charming.
7. The Protagonist (ENFJ): ENFJs are natural-born leaders, full of passion and charisma. They are warm and friendly and have a strong sense of justice. With their ability to inspire and promote harmony, they often accomplish great things. They believe that everything happens for a reason, and they’re always thinking of ways to help others. They don’t really like conflict, but they will take action if necessary to save a relationship or defend someone from an injustice. Their strong sense of morality means that they are principled people who strive for fairness and equality. Famous ENFJs include Michelle Obama and Meryl Streep.
8. The Campaigners (ENFP): These people are imaginative and upbeat. They tend to be curious about the world around them. They love being around people and tend to become the center of attention wherever they go which suits them perfectly Famous ENFPs include Steve Jobs and Walt Disney
Socionics Functions
There are eight functions in socionics, and they represent the ways that we process information and make decisions. Let’s take a look at them:
- Extroverted Intuition (Ne): The ability to notice patterns in events and actions. This is the primary function for ENFPs, ENTPs, ESFPs, and ESTPs.
- Introverted Intuition (Ni): The ability to see the underlying meaning of events or motives behind actions. This is the primary function for INFJs, INTJs, ISFJs, and ISTJs.
- Extroverted Sensing (Se): The ability to notice physical details in a person’s surroundings or in objects. This is the primary function for ESFJs, ESTJs, ENFJs, and ENTJs.
- Introverted Sensing (Si): The ability to recall memories with great detail. This is the primary function for ISFPs, ISTPs, INFPs, and INTPs.
- Extroverted Thinking (Te): The ability to organize ideas into a logical structure or system. This is the primary function for ESTJ, ENTJ, ESFJ, and ENFJ types.
- Introverted Thinking (Ti): The ability to evaluate information using logic without relying on emotions.
- Extroverted Feeling (Fe), helps us to understand the emotions of others and is often associated with our desire to be accepted by others.
- Introverted Feeling (Fi), helps us to understand our own emotions and moral values and is often associated with using our personal beliefs as a guide for how to act.
5 Best Socionics Tests to Try
1. Personality Junkie’s Socionics Test
This is probably the best socionics test on the internet: it’s free, it’s easy to take, and it gives you a detailed breakdown of your personality type (including subcategories) and how that interacts with other types, as well as some information about what those interactions look like. The test is based on the work of Carl Jung and his theories about the different ways people interact with their environment. It also includes a bunch of links to other resources to help you understand your results better.
2. Socionic test by Vadim Kotelnikov
This test is another good one because it comes from another socionist who has done extensive research on personality types and has written multiple books on the subject (all available on Amazon). It gives detailed explanations for each type that includes their strengths and weaknesses.
3. The Myers-Briggs test
The MBTI is the granddaddy of them all when it comes to personality tests. It was developed way back in the 1940s and has since become so popular that people just call it “the test.” It’s based on Carl Jung’s theories about introversion and extraversion, and there are a lot of different versions available online, some free and some not. Most of them will give you your four-letter type, as well as an overview of what that type means.
4. Enneagram Of Personality (EOP)
This is a very interesting socionics test that will give you an idea about what kind of personality type you have. This test can help you find out if you’re a socionics introvert or an extrovert, which can help you better understand how to interact with others in social situations. It also gives insight into how much energy interacting takes for you versus how much energy alone takes.
5. Jungian 16 Personality Types (Jungian)
This is another popular socionics test that will give you an idea about what kind of personality type you have.
How to Conduct Personality Research with Formplus
Personality research helps you get a better understanding of your colleagues, customers, and even yourself. You can easily conduct personality research using Formplus.
Formplus is an online form builder that makes it easy to create forms, collect data, and manage your responses. In order to understand what types of personalities your customers have, you’ll need to conduct a survey.
Formplus offers a tool for creating surveys in no time, and you can share the link with your customers by email, on social media, or on your website. If you want to conduct personality research with some of your customers who are interested in participating in a short survey, first think about what type of questions you want to ask them. You can ask them about their interests, hobbies, their favorite foods, and drinks, or how they spend their free time.
You can also ask them about how they would handle certain situations in order to get an idea of their personality type. For example, you might want to know if they would prefer to take an early morning flight, or if they’d rather leave the night before and stay at a hotel near the airport. You can also ask them about how they would handle certain situations in order to get an idea of their personality
Here are a few steps to take when conducting personality research with Formplus:
First, you’ll need to log into your account and click on “New Form.”
Next, you’ll need to choose a form template or start from scratch.
Once you’ve chosen a form template, you’ll need to customize it.
The best way to do this is by clicking the “Edit” button in the top right corner of each field and changing its label, description, validation rules, and more. You can also add new fields by dragging them out of the left-hand menu and into your form builder.
Once you’ve finished customizing your form and adding all the fields you want, click “Save” in the top right corner and then share your form using any of the share options available.
Other things you can do are:
- Use Formplus builder to create a survey that tests for Socionics personality types.
- Add Questions to your Personality Research Form and customize it
- Get your respondents to take the test through social media or email.
- Analyze the results and group them into categories based on their personality types.
- Use this information to create specialized campaigns and messaging for each category of the customer.
Conclusion
Conducting personality research can help you understand what makes people tick, how they respond to different stimuli, and how they make decisions.
Whether you’re a marketer, psychologist or HR manager, understanding personality types will help you improve your marketing efforts, better understand your clients/patients, and optimize your performance management processes.