We're about to leave on the bus, so I have to be quick. Here's the first post in a blog series on personality types.
- Terra
The Fundamentals of Personality - Part 1
According to David Keirsey’s esteemed book, Please Understand Me II, there are four basic temperaments that summarize, in a broad way, all of our observable personality traits. For someone not gifted with natural empathy, understanding these temperaments have greatly improved the development of my characters. So I thought I’d relay what I know here, for anyone else who is having troubles defining the personalities of their own characters.
Underlying these temperaments are two even broader dimensions of human behavior: What we say and what we do. How we think and how we act.
This is the first of a seven part series. Hold onto your hats.
Concrete vs. Abstract
Communication makes up a huge part of our lives. It is the only way to get anywhere in the world. And the number of topics that can and are being discussed is impossible to count. All, however, will inevitably fall in to one of two distinct categories.
The first category is that of concrete reality. The subject of life. Family, work, play, politics, family, weather and sports, anything of the here and now. Basically the what, who, and the when.
The second is the abstract things of the mind. The ideas that spark our imagination. Theories, philosophy, religion and theology, anything conceived of the mind. Essentially
the what if and the what could be.
Although everyone will at some point address both these subjects, every individual is given to a preference of which he usually likes to communicate.
Utilitarian vs. Cooperative
Even the most hard-core procrastinators must at some point do something, and when someone is doing something, he is always trying to accomplish a goal. And every person has his own set of ways of reaching these goals, and every person will lean towards one of two opposite ends of the extreme.
The utilitarian individual operates in a pragmatic way of doing things. In other words, they do what gets results in the most efficient and effective way possible. Rules and social protocol are considered secondary, and will be compromised if the need arouses.
Cooperative people operate in a socially acceptable manner. They play by the book, and obey the rules. They do their best to stay within the agreed social boundaries. Effectiveness and efficiency will be compromised for the sake of custom.
Utilitarians, of course, have no complete disregard for rules or morality, just as cooperators have nothing against efficiency and progress. But for simplicity’s sake, utilitarians do what works, while cooperatives do what’s right.
The combination of these four fundamentals ultimately make up the four temperaments: The Artisans, the Guardians, the Idealists, and the Rationals, the subjects for next week's part, The Four Temperaments.
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