The best use you've ever made of socionics theory

[Rocket]

I've read a lot here about how pointless, useless, unreal etc. socionics is but what about where people have been able to make use of the theory for their own benefit or the real benefit of others?

In my case the single most effective use i've ever made of socionics was in 2 instances where i deliberately positioned my ISFP duals in a way to improve my working relationship with ISTJ's. This is an option that was never available to me in the past.

[krieger]

Approached Alpha SFs with far more confidence than I would otherwise have.

[Galen]

Discovered the kind of person that is best for me.

[Jarno]

Discovered the kind of person that is best for me.

dito


socionics can be a solution to your relationship problems.

[Jarno]

I've read a lot here about how pointless, useless, unreal etc. socionics

often these are the people that don't know their type, or are married to a non dual. They just say it as an excuse.

[Brentano]

gettin laid; w/ butsecks.

[munenori2]

Bertrand Russell, ever the pragmatist.

[Trevor]

The best use you've ever made of socionics theory

I've labeled some stuff. Neat. However, it leaves some voids.

[ArchonAlarion]

I am now into psychology/more knowledgable about terminology.

I know more celebrities than before.

I understand more about myself.

It is now clearer to me what my prefered social environment is like and what kind of girl I am most compatible with.

[xyz]

I've read a lot here about how pointless, useless, unreal etc. socionics is but what about where people have been able to make use of the theory for their own benefit or the real benefit of others?

I'll give you a ring if it ever happens.

[The Greeter]

Found out my strengths, made me realize my weaknesses and motivated me to improve both.

Knowing my weaknesses was of particular help because I always knew it was there, but I couldn't really pinpoint it precisely (this applies to my strengths to some extent).

[crazedrat]

the biggest improvement for me has been with my use of words.

[Marie84]

General self-understanding is why I even got involved in personality theories, in which I've found Socionics to answer a lot of the aspects of myself that have been troubling me for years.
The other benefit is understanding other people better and why their persona/values come into conflict with my own. Battles that I used to fight, because of this, have subsequently been easier to avoid

[JohnDo]

Understood that there are some people I will never ever get along with.

Understood how to get along with the rest...

[Simon Ssmall]

Discovered the kind of person that is best for me.

+1

[silverchris9]

I dunno. It's given me a bit of insight into how I think, although it's impossible to determine how much of that is me molding my thinking into socionics or me molding socionics onto my thinking, regardless of how well the two actually line up. I also have a slightly better eye for what sort of person I'm likely to be close friends with (who are therefore worth spending more emotional-make-friends-energy on), although it's still not really great.

EDIT: also, socionics has helped me really recognize the whole "not good, not bad, just different" thing to a greater degree than I might have otherwise. I'm learning to translate my sentiments into language that my audience can hear and understand better despite their differences from me, and I hope this spills over to differences that are not just socionics-related.

[krieger]

I've begun thinking about ways to describe personalities more since I learned about socionics. Even if all of socionics turns out to be mostly wrong (definitely anticipating this) at least I can describe personalities in terms of normal adjectives better than I did before.

[tcaudilllg]

Few people realize that socionics can bring about world peace.

Even fewer realize how boring that would be.

[Jarno]

Few people realize that socionics can bring about world peace.

or 4 groups combatting for the rest of the time.

[tcaudilllg]

or 4 groups combatting for the rest of the time.

That quadra shit is nothing less than a new form of intolerance.

That said, there already are 4 groups battling each other and they can be found in every national capitol in the world.

In my experience, teens make great use of socionics. Adults don\'t really need it, because they have their politics to help them find friends.

[Nexus]

reducing the frequency of misunderstandings between myself and others, sleeping and dreaming better, more energy and motivation and inspiration, and improving my relationships in general

[krieger]

Few people realize that socionics can bring about world peace.

That's what they said about communism. It brought about the cold war, gave rise to several totalitarian regimes, robbed billions of people of the most elementary freedoms and caused a greater number of undue deaths than any ideology ever did, making national socialism look harmless in comparison.

[jewels]

I can get along w/ people who are bad types for me because I can avoid stepping on their toes irl. I have conflicting friends and understand why they annoy me and don't annoy them back (which my ENFp friends who don't know socionics aren't able to do as they just react).

I've also typed job interviewers right away, which helped me present the info in a way that they preferred (and got the job 2 hours later).

Basically, just lets me know what people probably prefer so I can cater to that and not piss them off whenever possible.

Also, helped me find my SLI boyfriend. I had a pretty good idea he was ISTp, which is why I wanted to be friends w/ him (though I didn't set out to date him at first and wanted to just be friends until later).

And I introduce friends of compatible types.

And also to understand why anyone would be friends w/ people who I don't understand. I now see things from their perspective.

[greed]

I can get along w/ people who are bad types for me because I can avoid stepping on their toes irl. I have conflicting friends and understand why they annoy me and don't annoy them back (which my ENFp friends who don't know socionics aren't able to do as they just react).

this, yeah

My dad's my identical ILE, and my mom's my conflictor ESI (for those keeping track at home, this makes my parents conflictors, too.. imagine how well that goes).

It's probably only through a base understanding of psychology that I'm able to (at least partially) correct for any potential conflicts that arise between my mom and me. My dad never had this luxury.

[Jarno]

this, yeah

My dad's my identical ILE, and my mom's my conflictor ESI (for those keeping track at home, this makes my parents conflictors, too.. imagine how well that goes).

It's probably only through a base understanding of psychology that I'm able to (at least partially) correct for any potential conflicts that arise between my mom and me. My dad never had this luxury.

have you told your mom and dad that you know the cause of their misunderstandings?

[greed]

have you told your mom and dad that you know the cause of their misunderstandings?

Sort of, in that I step in and tell each of them what the other's perspective is in a given misunderstanding. I "translate" something my dad says into something that my mom can understand. I tell him to stop using pronouns so that people know what he's talking about. I tell her that he's probably not being specific and exactly accurate in some particular instance--so, for example, who cares if he says that a piece of paper was on the counter when it was really on the table, if what he was trying to express was what was on that piece of paper? Hell, I can tell them outright that their personalities conflict due to information elements according some psychological theory that they could care less about.

But this doesn't exactly reverse 30 years of conflict, resentment, inertia, and futility.

[Jarno]

Hell, I can tell them outright that their personalities conflict due to information elements according some psychological theory that they could care less about.

But this doesn't exactly reverse 30 years of conflict, resentment, inertia, and futility.

no but it gives people some rest that it's not them who are the fault, rather incompatibility of personalities. Some people respond well to that.

phew, 30 years... how do the do it... Ah yes one is a loyal ESI... I'm not sure why the ILE kept in the relationship, but I guess they are loyal too.

[greed]

no but it gives people some rest that it's not them who are the fault, rather incompatibility of personalities. Some people respond well to that.

Ah. Yeah, okay, that makes sense. I think they both just realize that they're incompatible as a couple, but it's a good sentiment.

phew, 30 years... how do the do it... Ah yes one is a loyal ESI... I'm not sure why the ILE kept in the relationship, but I guess they are loyal too.

I think they had some misguided notion that they should remain together for us kids while we were growing up, which just led to inertia and a feeling of losing assets in a divorce later on. Something like that.

[Waddlesworth]

I've read a lot here about how pointless, useless, unreal etc. socionics is but what about where people have been able to make use of the theory for their own benefit or the real benefit of others?

In my case the single most effective use i've ever made of socionics was in 2 instances where i deliberately positioned my ISFP duals in a way to improve my working relationship with ISTJ's. This is an option that was never available to me in the past.

From my experiences relationships, good and bad, happen naturally. Avoiding people because you BELIEVE them to be a specific type can be harmful. Changing your behavior around someone, or assuming what their motives are based on what you THINK that their type is and what you THINK that the THEORY suggests, is also harmful.

Socionics proponents in Russia often even claim duals find one another naturally and marry, so what is the point then?

We need to learn how to tolerate others either way, so why break unique people up into specific groups and label them as 'identical' or whatever, when they clearly are not?

I suppose if Socionics turned out to be true/real it could be used to organize groups of people if it cannot happen naturally, like with a company or the military... but that is still theory. Also, that would inevitably lead to discrimination and many other problems.

Also, Socionics can encourage us to be lazy about who we are as unique people. It encourages us to become slaves to 'type programming'. YOU=THIS so you must act THAT way. It seems to me like subconscious poison and robs from truly learning about ourselves and others.

If Socionics taught me anything it was to THINK FOR MYSELF. And from doing that I was rewarded in discovering for myself the laws underlying type theory.

[tcaudilllg]

That's what they said about communism. It brought about the cold war, gave rise to several totalitarian regimes, robbed billions of people of the most elementary freedoms and caused a greater number of undue deaths than any ideology ever did, making national socialism look harmless in comparison.

No actually I think that progress can absolutely be explained in terms of socionics, though I think the "ring of progress" theories are a little abstract for practical use.

I see the danger though. People taking those dangerous theories of quadra violence to heart, people could lose their humanity.

It took me a while, but I think I see what you are saying now about the danger of socionics. It's not dangerous in and of itself... what is dangerous is the total inattention it pays to Alpha Fe, the function of politics.

[Mediator Kam]

I have been able to talk to people more effectively. I know what they want, so I give it to them. I am a better psychologist, I can get my SEI friends to be like "holy god, you know how I feel about stuff." YEAH CUZ WE'RE TWINS.

[Suz]

From my experiences relationships, good and bad, happen naturally. Avoiding people because you BELIEVE them to be a specific type can be harmful. Changing your behavior around someone, or assuming what their motives are based on what you THINK that their type is and what you THINK that the THEORY suggests, is also harmful.

Socionics proponents in Russia often even claim duals find one another naturally and marry, so what is the point then?

We need to learn how to tolerate others either way, so why break unique people up into specific groups and label them as 'identical' or whatever, when they clearly are not?

I suppose if Socionics turned out to be true/real it could be used to organize groups of people if it cannot happen naturally, like with a company or the military... but that is still theory. Also, that would inevitably lead to discrimination and many other problems.

Also, Socionics can encourage us to be lazy about who we are as unique people. It encourages us to become slaves to 'type programming'. YOU=THIS so you must act THAT way. It seems to me like subconscious poison and robs from truly learning about ourselves and others.

If Socionics taught me anything it was to THINK FOR MYSELF. And from doing that I was rewarded in discovering for myself the laws underlying type theory.

I think this is very well said. to an extent. . .

Dont you think it makes it easier for duals to find each other if they know what they're looking for? I.e. how many of one's duals does one pass by before finally getting to know a dual well enough to click? And many people don't end up finding their dual, some people even end up marrying their conflictor! And then have to divorce, or live unhappily.

I think it's a rosy view to say that duals find each other naturally and marry. That's looking at just the dual couples which are not all the couples out there. And it would help to deal with all the bad relationships (not avoiding the relationships per se, since you need to get to know the person before applying socionics) before the dual couple does meet and the wondering, why didn't it work out? what's so bad about me? when it's really just a personality clash.

Furthermore, for some types of dual pairs, the dualization process can be very complicated as each person is filled with doubt and fear of rejection (SLE-IEI for example), so if each one knew socionics that could perhaps shorten their dualization and have a higher chance of success. But good point, i am not completely sure that knowledge of socionics would change each one's perception of each other and the consequent feelings.

I know for me knowing socionics didn't change anything other than understanding our interactions. All i know is it's possible my dual enjoyed my company or at least wasn't bothered by me, but i have no idea where along the dualization process he was, nor whether there was any physical attraction whatsoever, nor whether he had any opportunity to experience ease from my ego functions. I recognized his strengths and felt what socionics describes before i even discovered socionics.

[Waddlesworth]

I think this is very well said. to an extent. . .

Dont you think it makes it easier for duals to find each other if they know what they're looking for? I.e. how many of one's duals does one pass by before finally getting to know a dual well enough to click? And many people don't end up finding their dual, some people even end up marrying their conflictor! And then have to divorce, or live unhappily.

I think it's a rosy view to say that duals find each other naturally and marry. That's looking at just the dual couples which are not all the couples out there. And it would help to deal with all the bad relationships (not avoiding the relationships per se, since you need to get to know the person before applying socionics) before the dual couple does meet and the wondering, why didn't it work out? what's so bad about me? when it's really just a personality clash.

Furthermore, for some types of dual pairs, the dualization process can be very complicated as each person is filled with doubt and fear of rejection (SLE-IEI for example), so if each one knew socionics that could perhaps shorten their dualization and have a higher chance of success. But good point, i am not completely sure that knowledge of socionics would change each one's perception of each other and the consequent feelings.

I know for me knowing socionics didn't change anything other than understanding our interactions. All i know is it's possible my dual enjoyed my company or at least wasn't bothered by me, but i have no idea where along the dualization process he was, nor whether there was any physical attraction whatsoever, nor whether he had any opportunity to experience ease from my ego functions. I recognized his strengths and felt what socionics describes before i even discovered socionics.

My problem is that I am still not convinced that there really are 16 types and that there are 16 possible relations between types.

Sure, two people can test as the same type and be generally similar, but socionics only allows a specific number of types to exist, so significant differences can be ignored. Because of this it should be no surprise how many subtype theories are out there in order to 'make the system work' and to reconcile instances where the theory doesn't apply to reality.

I admit there is something about socionics that is very alluring, and often convincing, but many times, if not most, I second guess the system for the simple fact that everyone is unique and there is no clear, undeniable way to type people.

If you think it works for you, awesome. But for me I am just not convinced of its value and by my own experience it has caused me to misjudge people and myself.

On the plus-side, perhaps socionics has encouraged me to take more notice of differences between people, but I don't need to try to apply it in order to read or handle interpersonal situations. Mostly that just ends up in problems.

In summary: socionics is just too intellectual for reality.

Of course that is all my opinion and by no means is my final say on the matter.

[Logos]

I was once addicted to crack cocaine, but then I found Socionics and I learned how to change my car battery.

[Rocket]

For those who question socionics theory you might want to take into consideration the fact that in physics and engineering "quantum theory" has been far and away the most successful (and useful) theory of all time despite the fact that no one can actually understand its workings. At face value the theory seems bizarre ... much more so than socionics.

Socionics doesn't "create" anything new. It's simply a theory outlining why people (and relations) tend to be the way they are. A bit like the theory of natural selection and its description of the the workings of living organisms - another profoundly successful theory, but again with no 'proof'.

It should be no surprise after becoming aware of socionics theory to see an already existing over representation of dual relations in successful marriages and business partnerships. Should be no surprise to see many of the top sports people are SLI and many of the top generals of history SLE. I guess what i'm saying is that a lot of the latent potential of socionics is already fulfilled .... natural forces and competitive tendencies see to that - but not perfectly.

In my view what's great about understanding socionics theory is its potential for quickly identifying arbitrage.

[Jarno]

For those who question socionics theory you might want to take into consideration the fact that in physics and engineering "quantum theory" has been far and away the most successful (and useful) theory of all time despite the fact that no one can actually understand its workings. At face value the theory seems bizarre ... much more so than socionics.

Socionics doesn't "create" anything new. It's simply a theory outlining why people (and relations) tend to be the way they are. A bit like the theory of natural selection and its description of the the workings of living organisms - another profoundly successful theory, but again with no 'proof'.

It should be no surprise after becoming aware of socionics theory to see an already existing over representation of dual relations in successful marriages and business partnerships. Should be no surprise to see many of the top sports people are SLI and many of the top generals of history SLE. I guess what i'm saying is that a lot of the latent potential of socionics is already fulfilled .... natural forces and competitive tendencies see to that - but not perfectly.

In my view what's great about understanding socionics theory is its potential for quickly identifying arbitrage.

Excellent post! I wish more people knew this...

[717495]

I have no problem subscribing to the idea of four quadras, but FTR, I get along with Alphas pretty well. Better than I do with Betas and Deltas.

It's because of intuition paired with logic, and ethics paired with sensing (because alphas and gammas still both make use of the exact same function combinations, just in different levels). Getting along well with ethics paired with intuition can be so difficult, and logic with sensing is tedious.

[Jarno]

I think you hit the nail on the head. I totally agree with this.

yep.

I once say a diagram on machinetrucs page that gave results for those combinations.

I remember that NT and SF (or any other opposite clubs) get the feeling of 'hospitality' towards eachother.

That's probably why conflictors feel attraction in the beginning.

[JuJu]

Discovered the kind of person that is best for me.

Same.

Other good uses =

* I've had difficult relations with certain family members... Now I know what IM elements they expect manifested, and can tailor my behavior to those. (e.g. my Dad is ISFj... I tone down the Fe and we get along better than ever before.)

* on job interviews, I've been able to present myself better to interviewers b/c I knew what sort of IM elements they wanted manifested.


I should say that the job interview thing only worked b/c I've become fairly proficient at typing ppl accurately and quickly. (This is due to typing thousands of other people, and keeping lists of them... This enables quick memory recall.)

[krieger]

For those who question socionics theory you might want to take into consideration the fact that in physics and engineering "quantum theory" has been far and away the most successful (and useful) theory of all time despite the fact that no one can actually understand its workings. At face value the theory seems bizarre ... much more so than socionics.

Socionics doesn't "create" anything new. It's simply a theory outlining why people (and relations) tend to be the way they are. A bit like the theory of natural selection and its description of the the workings of living organisms - another profoundly successful theory, but again with no 'proof'.

It should be no surprise after becoming aware of socionics theory to see an already existing over representation of dual relations in successful marriages and business partnerships. Should be no surprise to see many of the top sports people are SLI and many of the top generals of history SLE. I guess what i'm saying is that a lot of the latent potential of socionics is already fulfilled .... natural forces and competitive tendencies see to that - but not perfectly.

In my view what's great about understanding socionics theory is its potential for quickly identifying arbitrage.

Excellent post! I wish more people knew this...

Quantum theory can predict experimental results with extreme accuracy. Show me how socionics can do the same and I'll accept the analogy.