Socionics description of personality types. We study internal reality by psychotype

It is known that many people who (due to certain beliefs) do not turn to the services of practicing typists are interested in the algorithm that must be followed in order to independently determine your socionic type . Among those interested in socionics, such an algorithm is usually referred to as a “typing technique” and it’s no secret that this moment There are a lot of these techniques, and, what is noteworthy, different “professional” typists, using their techniques, can different types up to conflictors and duals (not to mention the ineffectiveness of socionic tests).

In this article, I will not focus on how to understand which socionicist’s arguments are correct and whose conclusions should be followed, but I will try to outline an algorithm that must be followed by those who want to independently determine their socionic type. Naturally, in order to apply it, you must have understanding. If you are not yet familiar with us, I assure you: taking the first steps in studying it with the help of our website will not be at all difficult and all the information necessary for this is freely available.

To begin with, I recommend that you familiarize yourself with how the socionic type is determined in our center. To do this, I suggest you look at the followingvideo on our youtube channel.

In order to learn, just as in the video, to distinguish where in the answers of the person you are typing certain qualities of his socionic type are present, it is necessary that you easily understand the following theoretical points:

What is information, what are there, information.
What is and how the socionic type perceives, processes and assimilates information.
What is a socionic type and with the help of which each type of information metabolism is described.

After this, you can proceed to direct typing. Let's look at our recommended algorithm and explanations for it:

In order for the typing process to be as effective as possible, typing must be done directly during communication with the person whose socionic type you want to know (not to mention self-typing). So you can ask everything important questions, which affect the characteristics of perception, processing and assimilation of information by this person. Typing by quotes, statements, speeches provides too little information and does not allow you to fully test the hypotheses you put forward.

To take the first step in typing, it is necessary to determine which feature of information is voiced by the person being typed: sensory, intuition, logic or ethics. Next, you need to highlight the properties of this feature (static/dynamic or introversion/extroversion) and from this deduce what aspect of information it is. For example, information was voiced about the properties of objects (sensory), or more precisely about how objects with some properties influence objects with others (extroversion), which brings us to the aspect of black sensory.

Next, based on what the person being typed says, it is necessary to determine through which IM property he perceives, processes or assimilates information on this aspect. For example, we see that the person being typed talks a lot about the aspect of black sensory, touches on issues that were not relevant at the time of the conversation, and shows that he spends a lot of his time processing information on this aspect. This speaks of her inertia.

After determining the inert black sensory, we put a plus in favor of Reinin’s “strategy” trait (inertness of sensory and contact of intuition). In the future, to verify this sign, it is necessary to find additional evidence that white and black sensory are inert, and white and black intuition are contact. If there is enough evidence, it will be possible to say with confidence that the person being typed is a “strategist.” From the following table you can see to what types the circle of your suspicions has thus been reduced:

On the other hand, the inertia of the black sensory gives a plus in favor of types with basic, pain, activation or restrictive black sensory (all inert functions). Having determined in the responses of the person being typed other properties through which he perceives, processes or assimilates information on this aspect, it will be possible to draw a conclusion about what function it is. For example, if you determine the inertia, pattern and busyness of the black sensory system, this will suggest that the person being typed has a basic black sensory system. You can also see what properties each of the functions has from the following table:

The final step in typing is to summarize all the arguments in favor of various signs and functions. Ideally, it should be so that there is no contradictory friends other arguments, for example, that a person by all indications looks like Balzac, but for some reason he has expressed inert sensory (although there should be contact). In this case, you should reconsider your ideas about sensory inertia and try to understand why you defined it. For example, it may be that you confused sensory with psychosophical physics, and inertia with its principled nature (which is typical for 1F or 3F people).

Let's look at how to build your conclusions in practice. Suppose you noticed that during your typing of a certain person, most of all you talked about the topic of relationships, interaction with people, as well as feelings and what abilities your respondent and the people around him have. Judging by which information aspects are responsible for these aspects of life, from the information received you can evaluate the provisions of ethics and sensory in the model of this person’s type. So, when it came to sensory aspects of life, You noticed the properties of “inertia” and “acceptance”, and in particular, when it came to emergencies, the properties of “value” and “mentality” appeared. In turn, in the answers on black ethics you saw the manifestation of the properties of “cliché”, “weakness” and “value”. From the table of correspondence of the properties of functions to their position in model A, you can conclude that the person you are typing is a carrier of the basic emergency situation and activation emergency response, that is, his type is “Zhukov” (SLE). Naturally, in order not to make a mistake, it is advisable to determine as many properties as possible, going through all the information aspects, which will take more time.

I hope that now you have a better understanding of how, according to the methodology of “Imperative Socionics”socionic type is determined. If you would like to undergo training with us or find out your type, more detailed information You will find .

Socionics is the concept of personality types and the relationships between them.

The teaching of socionics, for which types of people are the object of study, was founded in the 1970s. Socionics was created by Aushra Augustinavichute on the basis of Jung's psychotypes.

Aushra worked at the Ministry of Finance of the Latvian Republic, while teaching political economy at higher education institutions. educational institutions. Aushru came to the Faculty of Family Studies of the Vilnius Pedagogical Institute, where she began to describe a new approach to personality typing. She began to publish her own books, where she presented all her views on the typology of human personality.

So, socionics as a science studies the laws according to which the human psyche perceives and processes information about everything around it. Having the necessary data, you can predict the behavior of other people, determine their qualities and abilities, and understand what to expect from them. Socionics is of considerable importance for self-knowledge and self-development.

Socionics is based on systems approaches and modeling. It does not belong to the fields and areas of study of psychology or sociology, but is an independent direction. The main problem of socionics is the lack of objective criteria for determining the type of person.

Since they were established speculatively, it becomes impossible to strictly and scientifically determine and verify the results of psychological typing. That is why socionics does not belong to the sciences, but is only a doctrine or direction. However, it is recognized by many leading psychologists.

As a kind of sociopractice, it helps to understand and improve human relations And joint activities. Ideas about sociotypes, psychological aspects and intertype interactions are used in the everyday life of each of us.

Personality types in socionics

Jung compiled a classification of psychotypes, identifying eight various options. When compiling Jung's descriptions, the following were taken into account: interesting features, as intuitive, sensory, extraversive, introversive, logical, ethical, rational and irrational. Based on this research, socionics has already established 16 personality types.

Let's briefly look at each type:

Logical-sensory extrovert. Incredibly hardworking social person, there is constant buzzing activity around him, he motivates everyone. Shows his feelings, loves parties, is a kind, welcoming, open person.
Logical-sensory. A pedant, with increased cleanliness and an extremely sober view of things. A logical-sensory introvert realistically assesses his strengths and evokes a comprehensive and favorable attitude in other people after several contacts.
Logical-intuitive extrovert. He clearly identifies and defines his own and others’ capabilities, loves dynamic sports and extreme sensations. Loves risk. Easily identified in the world of new technologies.
Logical-intuitive introvert. Organized, quirky independent. Such socionic types are characterized by a love of deep, calm reflection, away from noisy companies. They prefer intimate conversations. They have clear, practical logic. A logical-intuitive introvert is a calm and balanced person.
Ethical-sensory extrovert. A manipulator, he knows how to push through his opinions and judgments, an altruist, he will easily sacrifice his interests. Efficient, sociable, active.
Ethical-sensory introvert. He is prone to self-examination and analysis of his own and others’ actions. He knows how to defend his views and beliefs gently but persistently. Believes that all people are equal.
Ethical-intuitive extrovert. Too emotional, expressive, actively gesturing. They have unusual abilities, they easily sense the lies of other people, and when someone is being deceitful.
Ethical-intuitive introvert. Trust in people plays a decisive role for this type. She has a keen sense of other people, loves to study and read. Such people often become teachers, trainers, and educators.
Sensory-logical extrovert. Victory at any cost is the main principle of such a person. This is your socionic type if you love to lead, win, and analyze any situation with benefit and gain for yourself. By drawing up a specific plan of action, you follow it without retreating from anything.
Sensory-logical introvert. If the word sensory comes first, it means sensory, that is, through sensations, the path of cognition is the main one for understanding the world around us. Such people love to work with their hands; they are engineers, builders, masons, carpenters. The mindset is rational and technical.
Sensory-ethical extrovert. Melancholic by nature, or rather likes to seem like one, but not to be. Prefers to lead rather than be led. He chooses weaker friends in order to appear more interesting and original compared to them. They say about such people that it is not clear what is on his mind. Even in the family, among close people, he prefers to maintain a respectful distance.
Sensory-ethical introvert or so-called Dumas, named after the writer. A simple and easy-to-communicate person, he never conflicts, and at the same time knows how to joke and have fun to the fullest. He often becomes a member of volunteer organizations, feels the need to be needed, to help grandmothers cross the road.
Intuitive-logical extrovert. You belong to this type if you are distinguished by your breadth of views and interests, and are able and easily adapt to changed conditions and a new place of work. If you are a walking generator of ideas, do not like routine, and know how to explain any complex tasks.
Intuitive-logical introvert. The intuitive-logical introvert, or Balzac, a magnificent, well-read philosopher. If you like to analyze everything, measure seven times before cutting - then this is yours. Such people are careful, neat, love homeliness and comfort in everyday life. Balzac cares about other people and values family.
Intuitive-ethical extrovert. Socionic types of such people are born with imagination and talents. They have a fine mental organization; such people become artists, writers, and adore any creative activity. This is your type if you hate routine and boredom, you easily interact with people, getting along with them mutual language at a glance.
Intuitive-ethical introvert. Sophisticated dreamers. This is your type if you write poetry, love poetry, indulge in long hours of daydreaming. In addition, the socionic type has a great understanding of people, meets people by their clothes, gives great value appearance, a spender and a spendthrift, but people like him, he is loved by people of the opposite sex, he actively uses his gift of liking for his own purposes.

How is a person’s sociotype determined?

They exist for this, but some people can determine their sociotype, given certain experience, by their appearance, as well as their manner of communicating, dressing, and reacting to the situation.

Pass the test quickly, but not very reliably. As a rule, online tests ask several questions, after which they determine whether you are, for example, an intuitive-logical introvert or whether your type is a logical-sensory introvert.

Having learned to identify 16 personality types of the people around you, you can understand what dictates their actions, what are the behavioral differences, and why their abilities, interests and habits differ.

Knowledge in the field of socionics will allow you to easily determine your compatibility with people of the opposite sex, imagine how future relationships with them will develop, what qualities in a partner, boyfriend or girlfriend should be perceived and which to ignore.

Typing by appearance is the most controversial option in socionics. There are supporters and opponents of this method. Signs may either not be visible, or formal signs may simply be absent.

Another method is self-typing, when you yourself try to determine from descriptions whether you are an intuitive-ethical introvert, for example, or a logical-intuitive introvert, etc. Some people believe that it is impossible to determine your sociotype. However, this is not entirely true.

It is quite possible to determine who you are, for example, an intuitive-ethical introvert or a logical-sensory introvert, etc. But before you define it, you should begin to adequately perceive yourself, approach each trait of your character, not as bad, good, harmful or positive, but useful from the point of view of socionics. And, of course, it is necessary to understand in detail the typology of science according to Jung.

The influence of personality type on a person’s character

First of all, it is necessary to clarify that the psychotype does not completely determine a person’s character.

And if you have established as a result of tests that you are an intuitive-logical introvert, this does not mean that an intuitive-ethical introvert or a logical-intuitive introvert or other types do not manifest themselves in your character.

A psychotype is rather a way of perceiving information, reflecting how you react to a particular event in life, and how stable you are.

But each of us is unique, original. And 16 personality types are not able to fully describe any character and its individual parameters. The science of psychology, socionics or any other science about personality will never reach this point. We are too unique and diverse to drive ourselves into a certain framework of classification and typing.

Surprisingly, 16 personality types can be combined with each other, be harmonious and disharmonious. An intuitive-logical introvert can combine the features of a logical-intuitive introvert and a logical-sensory introvert.

Areas of application and benefits of the science of sociotypes

Generally speaking, a sociotype is, in some way, the internal horoscope of each of us. Is it worth knowing your horoscope, how to apply this knowledge in life - it’s up to you to decide.

Whether you are a logical-sensory introvert or an intuitive-logical introvert or a completely different type - it matters, essentially, only when you know how to use and apply this knowledge in a practical aspect. People tend to categorize and define everything, that's our nature.

The application of typing concepts is widely used in practice in personnel management. Here they help during the selection of personnel, for the formation close-knit team and for more efficient functioning of management in the company.

Another area of application of socionics is organizing dating. There are entire dating services where dating is based on socionic typing. Also, with the help of socionic methods and practices, groups are selected to organize training, for education and training.

Knowledge in the field of socionics gives a significant advantage. It involves working with innate personality structures. The approach allows us to understand people’s behavior, predict their reactions, and reveal the characteristics of relationships with parents and children.

One of the main aspects of human existence is his self-realization in various fields activities, among which successful adaptation and productive interaction with other people are of key importance. Since time immemorial, philosophers, and then psychologists, have tried to establish certain patterns in human behavior and attitude in order to make relationships between people more understandable and mature.

Thus, even at the dawn of psychology, the Austrian psychiatrist S. Freud formulated a theory about the structure of the psyche, and the Swiss psychiatrist K.G. Jung, relying on this knowledge and his own many years of work experience, created the first concept about psychological personality types. This teaching today has become the basis for many competent socio-psychological theories and even entire areas of modern psychotherapy.

One of these modern theories Socionics is the doctrine of the interaction between a person and the outside world, depending on the personal characteristics of a particular person, which classify him as one of 16 socionic personality types.

Socionics as a science was created in the seventies of the last century by the Lithuanian scientist Ausra Augustinaviciute on the basis of computer science, sociology and psychology. In the scientific community, socionics is rather not a science, but one of the famous personality typologies, which serves as a diagnostic method in psychological counseling.

K.G. Jung - the forefather of socionics

In the 19th century, K.G. Jung created his famous theory about personality types, the definition of which is based on ideas about attitudes and basic functions of the psyche. He identified two main personal attitudes: introversion, when a person’s interest is directed into the depths of his own inner world, and extraversion, when a person is directed towards the outside world. At the same time, there is a concept about a person’s inclination towards a specific attitude, but not about its complete predominance.

Jung considered thinking, sensation, intuition and feeling to be the main functions of the psyche. Sensation means interaction with the world based on the senses, thinking and feeling help to understand these sensations at the level of comprehension and emotional experience, and intuition answers the question of the origin of these phenomena at the subconscious level.

For each person, one of these functions is dominant, and the rest complement it.

These functions have been divided into two groups:

rational, to which thinking and feeling belong;
irrational (sensation and intuition).

In this case, rationality implies an orientation towards the objective norms of society. Based on these aspects, Jung created a classification consisting of 8 main personality types, which in socionics expanded to 16 psychotypes.

The birth of socionics

To create a new full-fledged typology and highlight more specific personality types, A. Augustinaviciute combined Jung’s concept with the theory of information metabolism of the Polish psychiatrist A. Kempinski. This theory is based on the concept of information exchange between a person and outside world in comparison with metabolism in the body, when information is food for human psyche, therefore, mental health is directly related to the quality of incoming information. Thus, socionics calls personality types types of information metabolism. The presence of dominant characteristics should not be confused with.

Socionic personality types are not a constant, “frozen” characteristic of a person; their definition reflects only the path of information exchange, without affecting individual characteristics person (education, culture, experience and character), which are studied by individual psychology. Accentuation is a pointed character trait of a person, which should be paid attention to as bordering on pathology, but accentuation is not the goal of research in socionics.

Formation of names

How did socionics get its name from specific personality types? The name of the type comes from dominant attitude(extraversion or introversion), and the two most powerful functions of the four, while the names of the functions underwent some changes: thinking and feeling became logic and ethics, respectively, and sensation was called sensory.

Rationality and irrationality are determined by the location of functions in the names of psychotypes. If we talk about rational personality types, then the first word in the name will be logic or ethics, and for irrational personality types – sensory or intuition.

The names of the 16 types were added over time by various scientists to provide a clearer accessible description of a person. The most popular names of these types are: formulaic names based on Jung's theory, pseudonyms of famous historical figures– carriers of the designated characteristics, pseudonyms-characteristics of a person’s professional predisposition.

Basic socionic types

Jung owns a classification of 8 main psychotypes, on the basis of which socionics proposed a more detailed classification consisting of 16 psychotypes.

Logical-intuitive extrovert(LIE), "Jack London", "Entrepreneur". He is able to clearly identify his own capabilities and abilities, is easily inspired and starts new things, and is interested in dynamic sports that give extreme sensations. Feels new trends, takes risks, relying on intuition. Confidently uses new technologies in his work, deeply analyzes himself and the world. Tends to communicate closely with people.
Logical-sensory extrovert(LSE), “Stirlitz”, “Administrator”. A very efficient, socially adapted type, he always feels the need to bring the work he has started to completion. Plans activities and treats surrounding things practically. Tends to show love and care for loved ones, loves noisy fun and company. He is good-natured, but harsh, can be hot-tempered and stubborn.
Ethical-intuitive extrovert(EIE), “Hamlet”, “Mentor”. A very emotional person, prone to empathy and displaying a wide range of emotions. He has expressive facial expressions and eloquence. Able to anticipate various events and prepare for them in advance. Picks up inconsistencies in other people's words and emotions. Often unsure of a partner's love and prone to jealousy.
Ethical-sensory extrovert(ESE), “Hugo”, “Enthusiast”. Able to influence people using emotional pressure, he gets along well with them, can cheer up, is inclined to sacrifice his own interests for the sake of another person and show love and care for loved ones. In his work he achieves everything on his own, loves when other people emphasize his merits.
Logical-intuitive introvert(LII), “Robespierre”, “Analyst. He knows how to distinguish the important from the secondary, does not like empty talk, and is prone to clear, practical thinking. At work, this type likes to use unusual ideas while demonstrating their independence. Uses intuition where he does not know the exact answers. Does not like noisy companies, finds it difficult to establish relationships with other people.
Logical-sensory introvert(LSI), “Maxim Gorky”, “Inspector”. Loves order and rigor, delves deeply into work, analyzing information with different sides. It is distinguished by a certain pedantry. He looks at things realistically and takes on a task only if he knows for sure that he can complete it. Inspires trust, but prefers short business contacts with other people.
Ethical-intuitive introvert(EII), “Dostoevsky”, “Humanist”. He subtly senses the nature of relationships between people, attaches great importance to trust, and does not forgive betrayal. Able to identify hidden abilities others, endowed with the talent of an educator. He is passionate about self-education, people often turn to him for advice. We are very vulnerable, it is difficult to tolerate aggression and lack of love.
Ethical-sensory introvert(ESI), “Dreiser”, “Keeper”. Recognizes pretense and falsehood in relationships, divides people into friends and strangers, managing psychological distance. He defends his views and principles. He knows how to stand up for himself and his loved ones, and cannot tolerate the moral superiority of other people. Able to deeply analyze himself and others.
Intuitive-logical extrovert(ILE), “Don Quixote”, “The Seeker”. He has a wide range of interests, knows how to adapt to new conditions and easily switches to new methods of work. He is a generator of ideas and does not like traditions and routine. Knows how to explain complex ideas, being a pioneer in them. More prone to synthesis in thinking, creates new idea from ready-made ingredients.
Sensory-logical extrovert(SLE), "Zhukov", "Marshal". Tend to apply physical strength with the goal of achieving victory at any cost. Obstacles only increase his desire to win. Likes to lead and cannot stand being subordinated. Analyzing the situation, he likes to draw up a specific plan of action and strictly follows it.
Intuitive-ethical extrovert(IEE), “Huxley”, “Adviser”. He is able to subtly feel other people and has a developed imagination. Loves creative work, cannot stand monotony and routine. Sociable, likes to give practical advice in the field of interaction with people.
Sensory-ethical extrovert(SEE), “Napoleon”, “Politician”. Able to see the capabilities of others, using this knowledge for the purpose of manipulation. Leads over
weak, clearly identifying their weak points. He likes to keep his distance; in communication he is more likely to be guided by his own interests. In the eyes of others he tries to look like an outstanding, original person, but often he is not.
Intuitive-logical introvert(OR), "Balzac", "Critic". This type is an erudite with a philosophical mindset. He is careful, makes a decision only with confidence in its correctness, analyzing the vulgar in its connection with the future. Does not like violent manifestations of emotions, appreciates coziness and comfort.
Sensory-logical introvert(SLI), "Gaben", "Master". Sensations are for him the main source of knowledge of the world. Shows empathy, subtly feels and loves other people, rejects artificiality and falsehood. He is distinguished by a technical mindset, loves to work with his hands, while always meeting the required deadlines.
Intuitive-ethical introvert(IEI), “Lyric”, “Yesenin”. A dreamy and lyrical person, he knows how to intuitively predict events, has a good understanding of people, loves and “feels” them. He has a good sense of humor and wins the affection of other people. Great importance this type gives appearance. He doesn’t know how to save money, and while working he likes to rest for a long time.
Sensory-ethical introvert(SEI), “Dumas”, “Mediator”. Knows how to enjoy ordinary life, calmly enduring monotony and routine. Gets along easily with people, respecting their personal space, while demanding the same attitude from them. Likes to joke, entertain, avoids conflict situations. He is often a helper and loves to feel needed and significant in the eyes of other people.

Nowadays, developed technologies make it possible for everyone, without exception, to undergo testing and find out their socionic types, but we should not forget that a person’s personality is very multifaceted and ambiguous, therefore only a professional psychologist can qualitatively compose and describe a socio-psychological portrait of a personality during multi-level psychological diagnostics , where socionics is one of the methods.

They are divided into 4 dichotomies, which are now used to characterize people:

logic/ethics
sensory / intuition
rationality / irrationality
extroversion / introversion

Also for this definition There are other names: “Socionic type”, “type of information metabolism (IMT)” or “sociotype”, the essence is the same - a description of the perception and processing of information received by a person and how he interacts with the environment.

Characteristics of 16 sociotypes

Dostoevsky - those who belong to this type They are very well-mannered and tactful, polite and know how to sympathize (empathy), they feel people on an intuitive level and see the intricacies of relationships in detail.
Yesenin’s basic function is intuition of time; this type perfectly senses the “right moment”, and is also able to see in detail the development of any situation thanks to his predictive abilities.
Don Quixote is an irrational type who does not burden himself with stereotyped thinking. He sees several options for solving a particular problem at once and realizes the potential hidden in each object.
Jack London - business logic. Those who belong to this type perceive everything around them as a certain resource - informational, human, time.
Stirlitz is an extroverted type, capable of acting both independently and by organizing the work of other people. The presence of creative sensory skills allows him to make his work not only effective, but also comfortable.
Hamlet - this type lives mostly by emotions and, like no one else, feels the energy and emotional atmosphere, which he manipulates very skillfully. He knows a lot about art and the intricacies of aesthetic life.
Robespierre - those who belong to this type are unlikely to pursue selfish interest or fame. Such people love quality and punctuality, integrity and fairness, they are very responsible.
Balzac has an excellent ability to see various shortcomings in a certain situation, which makes him a constructive critic. Often such a person is perceived as pessimistic, and his value judgments are defined as cynicism.
Gaben - for this type, comfort is most valuable; they highly value harmony and tranquility in everything. Such people would prefer to peacefully enjoy existence than to conquer new heights.
Huxley - he perfectly sees hidden possibilities, be it an object or a situation. People of this type are, by their nature, more ethical than logical; it is for this reason that they are not alien to fantastic ideas that at first glance seem impossible. They are extremely curious and have a phenomenal memory.
Maxim Gorky is a type of logician for whom cause-and-effect relationships are obvious. Such people live according to a clear schedule, their thinking is rational.
Dreiser - ethics of relationships. Inside them there are very clear moral principles and if they see an external discrepancy with them, they criticize it very harshly.

I was faced with the question of how to determine my personality types in these typologies. Unfortunately, 100% reliable methods currently do not exist. But if you use several in various ways, you can get a result that is quite acceptable from the point of view of reliability.

Before getting typed, you need to know a few important points.

The most common misconception is that the socionic type completely determines a person’s character, his habits and behavior. This is not so, in fact, a sociotype is the characteristics of the perception of information, a kind of filter that allows certain types of information to pass through. Since a person’s behavior depends on the information he receives, the sociotype, of course, influences, but we should not forget about other factors: previous experience, upbringing, values, which can also have no less influence.
Psychosophical and socionic types can be combined with each other in any way. Moreover, some of the combinations are harmonious, while others are contradictory. As a rule, harmonious combinations are easily typed, while contradictory ones give a wide range of versions in both socionics and psychosophy. More details about how such combinations affect the person himself are described in the article “The relationship between socionics and psychosophy.”
According to the descriptions, certain types may be liked or disliked, which may affect the desire to “get into/not get into this type.” To prevent this from happening, it is advisable to read type descriptions only at the final stage of typing, after the typer has named his version (or several versions).
Descriptions of types are written with harmonious combinations, so those with contradictory combinations may have difficulty recognizing themselves. But even among harmonious types, complete agreement with the description is rare. Normal for socionics is a 70-80% match of the description. In addition, almost all currently existing descriptions of socionic types include a lot of things that actually have nothing to do with socionics as a study of information metabolism (so-called “behavioral descriptions”). The most free from this are the functional descriptions posted on the Wikipedia website in the article “Socionic type”, as well as the descriptions of Yulia Kolesnichenko posted on our website SOCTYPE.RU.
In psychosophy, it is advisable to read descriptions not of types as a whole, but functional ones by Afanasyev himself or Alexandra Vasilenko aka Spyke. Descriptions of psychosophical types in general from Afanasyev show well the connection between the type and the worldview of a person, but it is quite difficult to recognize oneself from them.

Tests. Where does typing begin? Most people start by taking tests, since this is the most quick way get a result, but at the same time the most unreliable one. Therefore, it is advisable to take all available tests several times in different states: in the morning, after waking up, in the evening (at night), when you begin to want to sleep, and during the day, at the peak of activity.

If you have a harmonious combination of TIM and PI type, then the spread will be small: 2-3 types maximum, which will differ from each other by one or two dichotomies. (You can see the table of correspondence between types and characteristics in the article “How a socionic type is formed.”) And those characteristics that coincide can be considered reliably defined. If the spread of types is significantly larger (more than 4 types), then most likely you have a contradictory combination of TIM and PI type, and you need to resort to more reliable methods.

Questionnaire typing. Questionnaire typing has an optimal balance between time and reliability of results. The main difficulty in determining a type using a questionnaire is the inability to verify the accuracy of the answers of the person being typed. There are several reasons for this: the desire to be better (or worse) than one actually is, a switch from basic to role, and a distortion of quadral values.

Therefore, it is recommended to fill out the form in a calm environment, removing all irritants (radio, telephone, TV, third-party sites in the browser). After filling it out, it is advisable to show the questionnaire to a person who knows you well and whom you trust. If he decides that this questionnaire is not about you at all, then the typing reliability will be low and it would be advisable to refill the questionnaire.

It is advisable to type using questionnaires where typists type according to both typologies: socionics and psychosophy. An example of such a site is TIPIRUEM.RU. It is advisable to start defining the type with the psychosophical type, and only then move on to the socionic type, since the psychosophical type is less susceptible to distortion.

Typing according to the questionnaire in simple cases goes to a specific type, in more complex ones - the two most probable versions are given (or two possible combinations of TIM + PY-type). After these versions are named by the typers, you should read the type descriptions, tell the typers about the inconsistencies found, and also report the versions obtained as a result of the tests. This will give Additional information, based on which the version can be adjusted (or vice versa, the typists will explain to you why these inconsistencies are not significant). Don't be afraid to ask additional questions or even argue with the typists! Don’t forget that you have known yourself all your life, and they only know about you what you wrote about yourself in the questionnaire.

If, as a result of all this, it was not possible to come to an unambiguous version or you still have doubts, it makes sense to try typing using other methods.

Typing by appearance. Typing by appearance is one of the most controversial issues, especially in socionics. There are both opponents and supporters of this method. From the point of view of the Unified Typological Project, typing by appearance is possible if the type is immediately visible, and such typing cannot be described using formal characteristics (although such attempts have been made in some social schools), it can only be learned through experience.

Therefore, when typing, it is still advisable to attach several photographs to the questionnaire: perhaps this will provide additional information that helps to make a decision in difficult cases, especially when the results of the questionnaire typing result in two TIMs that are dissimilar to each other.

Alternative typing techniques. This includes projective typing and handwriting typing. With projective typing, you will be asked to draw a picture on a given topic (for example, a house, a tree and a person), which will be used to determine the type. When typing by handwriting, you will be asked to send a scan of any text you wrote. Both approaches are good in that they allow us to minimize the influence of type distortions as a result of accumulated (or, conversely, insufficiently developed) experience and the influence of the environment. However, at the moment these techniques are rather in an experimental state, in addition, a fairly small number of typists know these techniques.

Typing in the form of an interview. Can be carried out either in person or using remote means of communication (Skype, Mail.Agent) and, as a rule, is paid service. There is a widespread belief that such typing “by professionals” or “in socionic schools” is the most reliable. This statement is only true for individual consultations lasting at least 30 minutes. Various group express typings, when a group of a dozen or more people are typed in an hour by asking each person 3-4 questions, are comparable in reliability only to typing using tests and photos. In addition, you should be typed by professional typists, that is, those who have articles, books, speeches at conferences and a holistic, complete view of socionics.

Self-typing. In socionic circles, there is an opinion that it is impossible to independently determine your TIM (in some communities it even goes so far as to discriminate against those who are self-typed). This is not true. It is quite possible to determine your personality type both in socionics and psychosophy, but to do this you need to adequately perceive yourself, not divide types into “bad” and “good” and have a sufficiently deep understanding of the corresponding typology.

In particular, in socionics it is necessary to study not only the dichotomies of Jung’s basis, but also to have a good understanding of the semantics of aspects described in aspectonics, to study the properties of the functions of Model A, to determine quadratic values and at least 2 or 3 Reinin characteristics. If the results obtained using all of the above are consistent, we can talk about a reliable determination of TIM.

In psychosophy, to determine the type, one should study not only the features of the manifestation of a function in a particular position, but also additional features: processivity/effectiveness, consistency/inconsistency (also adjusting/dominant), high/low, as well as the characteristics of the influence of Will on others functions.

And once again I would like to emphasize: under no circumstances should you self-type based on descriptions!

In conclusion, it remains to be noted that you should not perceive your personality type as a verdict. There are no good or bad types (although there are more or less in demand by society at a certain stage of its development). Socionic TIM is just an indicator of development potential in certain areas of activity, and the psychosophical type is an indicator of the subjective significance of these areas. The decision of what to do with this: whether to develop weak functions in order to be no worse than others in any matter, or to focus on achieving results in strong functions, entrusting the cover of weak ones to your dual, is up to you.