Socionics: A “New” (to Me) Approach to Jungian Typology
In my search for greater understanding of myself, I discovered that the Myers-Briggs understanding of typology was not the only-–or even necessarily the best–-approach. “Type Twitter” introduced me to Socionics, a Russian take on Jung’s psychological types. I learned that there is not a one-to-one correspondence of MBTI type to Socionics type, because the cognitive functions, or information metabolism (IM) elements as they are called in Socionics, are not defined the same way in both.
I began to read about Socionics on several websites and found some online quizzes. Unfortunately, the results were inconsistent: am I an IEI or an EII? Or maybe something else entirely?
Potential Solution: A Live Interview
One of the helpful “type” people on Twitter recommended that I arrange an interview with Jack Oliver Aaron of the World Socionics Society and ask him to identify my type. I watched several public interviews Jack did and was impressed, so I decided to follow that advice. My interview was last night, and the time sped quickly by. At the close of the interview, I anticipated the results of Jack’s analysis with bated breath…only to learn that I will have to wait a week or so for his findings. I feel like a child waiting for Santa Claus to come.