Introverted
Thinking with
Extraverted Sensing
STRENGTHS
Inclined to focus on their inner thoughts
and ideas, ISTPs often prefer to work on their own, free from the distraction
of other people. Focusing on observable facts and hard data, they view life
from an objective, pragmatic, and quietly intellectual point of view. Quietly
curious, and introspective, they use their Sensing function directly to perceive
the world 'as it is'. Approaching tasks in a realistic, factual and down-to-earth
way, they have little interest in abstract theoretical ideas, unless these have
clear practical applications. Logical, analytical and critical, they enjoy finding
practical solutions to real-world problems. Enjoying variety and change, they
are not inclined to be rule bound, rigid or dogmatic, and may actively resist
rules that 'do not make sense'. Open to new ideas, they do not needlessly cling
to traditional, tried-and-tested methods. Being solution focused realists, they
are likely to enjoy trouble-shooting, focusing on achieving tangible results,
rather than being overly concerned to meet colleagues' personal needs.
INTERPERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS
Being orientated towards the Introverted
domain of thoughts and ideas, ISTPs may sometimes need to be drawn out
when in the company of others. Deep and thoughtful, they may resist being
the first to put forward their own ideas, preferring instead to sit back
and reflect on what others are saying before contributing to a debate
or discussion. Flexible and free-thinking, they will be open to alternative
points of view, which they will critically examine in a logical, objective
manner. Goal directed, and solution focused, they will wish to achieve
results with a minimum of discussion and fuss. Given their Introverted
focus of attention, they are likely to feel most at ease when working
with known facts and hard data, rather than when managing interpersonal
relationships. Private, self-sufficient individuals, who tend to keep
their inner-most thoughts and feelings to themselves, others may take
a while to warm to them. Thus ISTPs may be more comfortable communicating
in writing, rather than participating in group discussions or debates.
THINKING STYLE
Logical and analytical, ISTPs are
known for their realistic, pragmatic approach to solving problems. Not
inclined to engage in abstract debate, or flights of fancy, they tend
to reject the purely theoretical in favour of concentrating on the known
facts in a given situation. Solution focused and goal directed, they
are more interested in directly perceiving how things work, rather than
understanding why they work. However, their pragmatic realism does not
cause them to be closed minded or dogmatic, with them being open to new
methods and ideas particularly when they can see the practical advantages
of adopting new approaches. Focusing on the 'broader picture', they may
not always see the point of closely adhering to set procedures and systems.
Similarly, attending to the detailed requirements of a task may not come
naturally to them. They will generally prefer to learn about a subject
by reading, or through private study, rather than by engaging in lively
informed debate or discussion.
HOW OTHERS MAY SEE YOU
Colleagues will value their objective,
down-to-earth realism. Moreover, they will be known for always giving
others a 'fair hearing', with ISTPs listening to othersı arguments and
using their Thinking function to evaluate them in a critical but objective
manner. Thus they will be viewed as fair-minded, impartial and objective.
However, people who are, on the surface, more emotional than them may
sometimes have difficulty understanding their tendency to evaluate situations
in a cool, logical and analytical manner. Being quiet observers of life
they will be seen as deepı, and others may sometimes have difficulty
perceiving what ISTPs really feel about other people, events or situations.
Avoiding dogmatism, they will be seen as independent and self-reliant,
yet open to new ideas. While some colleagues may see them as being a
little shy, reserved or even somewhat aloof, this is to misunderstand
their private, inner-directed nature, and resultant tendency to focus
on their own thoughts and ideass.
After publishing his seminal work on psychological types in 1921, Jung did little further work in this area. However the importance of his work was recognised by the mother and daughter team, Elizabeth Myers and Catherine Briggs. Realising that if Jung's ideas were to have any practical application it would be necessary to develop an easy method for assessing a person's psychological type, Myers and Briggs published the first type indicator in 1949. Moreover, they developed the now famous four-letter type code as a short hand way of describing a person's type.In addition to providing a short-cut route for describing a person's psychological type, the four-letter code also reveals a set of complex personality dynamics which provide insights into the order in which the preferred psychological processes are likely to manifest themselves in the person's daily life.
The way to discover the dynamic relationship between these psychological processes is by examining the middle two preferences; SN for perceiving, and TF for judging, types. These are referred to as functions. For any type, one of these functions is dominant and this dominant function is used in the preferred world (external or internal as indicated by the EI preference), with Extraverts using their dominant function in the external world and Introverts using their dominant function in the internal world. Moreover, the function which the type code indicates is not preferred is called the auxiliary function. Thus, if either the S or N function were indicated as being the preferred function, then either the T or F function would be the auxiliary function.
So, introverts are more likely to exhibit their auxiliary function when relating to the outer world, whereas their dominant function will be used mainly when relating to the inner world, and will thus not be readily accessible for others to see. In contrast, because Extraverts use their dominant function in the outer world, it will be available for all to see.
