Jung's Descriptions of Model A: A Updated Summary

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Jung hadn't proposed the 8-function model. So of course we are unable to find his formal descriptions on all 8 ones. He only identified the Leading, Creative, Activating, and Suggestive. However, my previous post has showed that actually, it's possible to find some clues on the subdued functions. The most typical one is the Demonstrative. Jung wrote several descriptions of his No.2 personality which match the discoveries of the Demonstrative in early Socionics literature pretty well. (In that post, I mistakenly assigned Suggestive to Anima, which is wrong and has been pointed out by Tallmo)

However, in the past, I haven't got any clue about PoLR in Jung's literature. Recently, I found one interesting paragraph.

The fourth, inferior function proves on the other hand to be inaccessible to our will. It appears now as a teasing and distracting imp, now as a deus ex machina. But always it comes and goes of its own volition. From this it is clear that even the differentiated functions have only partially freed themselves from the unconscious; for the rest they are still rooted in it and to that extent they operate under its rule. Hence the three “differentiated” functions at the disposal of the ego have three corresponding unconscious components that have not yet broken loose from the unconscious. And just as the three conscious and differentiated parts of these functions are confronted by a fourth, undifferentiated function which acts as a painfully disturbing factor, so also the superior function seems to have its worst enemy in the unconscious. Nor should we omit to mention one final turn of the screw: like the devil who delights in disguising himself as an angel of light, the inferior function secretly and mischievously influences the superior function most of all, just as the latter represses the former most strongly.

This paragraph is from The Phenomenology of The Spirit in Fairytales, which is originally published under the title Zur Phänomenologie des Geistes im Märchen in 1948. This article describes archetypes in fairytales and especially focuses on the wise old man. This paragraph is extraordinarily interesting because it feels logically inconsistent. The bold sentence describes a phenomenon that a fourth function is a painfully disturbing factor that supervises the three differentiated parts. Then, it concludes that the superior function (1-Leading) has its "worst enemy" in the unconscious analogically.

The "enemy in the unconscious" which supervises the manipulates the Leading function secretly is supposed to be the Suggestive function. Then, how should we understand the "painfully disturbing factor"? According to this sentence, it should be a conscious weak function such that Jung use it to compare it with the unconscious Suggestive function. The fact that it acts as a "painfully disturbing factor" also feels a bit similar to PoLR. In Model A, PoLR is identified as the weakest conscious function such that it supervises our ego block.

In conclusion, I'm not very sure that it corresponds to the PoLR but when I read through this paragraph it somewhat reminds me of the PoLR. Combining this paragraph, I conclude an updated summary on Jung's descriptions of Model A. In this list I only selected only one quotation for each function.


Jung's Descriptions of Model A: A Updated Summary


1-Leading (Jung: main function / principal function / superior function): It's the same as the Leading function in Model A.

This is true when, for instance, thinking is not a mere afterthought, or rumination, and when its conclusions possess an absolute validity, so that the logical result holds good both as a motive and as a guarantee of practical action without the backing of any further evidence. This absolute sovereignty always belongs, empirically, to one function alone, and can belong only to one function, because the equally independent intervention of another function would necessarily produce a different orientation which, partially at least, would contradict the first.

2-Creative (Jung: auxiliary function / secondary function): The following description in Psychological Types resembles the Model A description of the Creative function.

The resulting combinations present the familiar picture of, for instance, practical thinking allied with sensation, speculative thinking forging ahead with intuition, artistic intuition selecting and presenting its images with the help of feeling-values, philosophical intuition systematizing its vision into comprehensible thought by means of a powerful intellect, and so on.

3-Role: Jung hinted at it in the 8th volume of The Collected Works of C.G. Jung. It's the same as the Role in Model A.

For example, a feeling-attitude that seeks to fulfil the demands of reality by means of empathy may easily encounter a situation that can only be solved through thinking. In this case the feeling-attitude breaks down and the progression of libido also ceases. The vital feeling that was present before disappears, and in its place the psychic value of certain conscious contents increases in an unpleasant way;

4-PoLR: When Jung was describing the inferior function in The Phenomenology of The Spirit in Fairytales, he characterized a painfully disturbing factor that supervises other conscious functions as "a fourth function" in analogy with the inferior function ("the fourth function") in the unconscious. He may have mildly observed the PoLR but didn't make a clear distinction since he only introduced a 4-function model.

the three conscious and differentiated parts of these functions are confronted by a fourth, undifferentiated function which acts as a painfully disturbing factor

5-Suggestive (Jung: the inferior function): Jung mentioned it frequently in the name of the inferior function. However, the Anima archetype is not the same as this function. Jung emphasized the manipulative nature of this function and he identified this function as the gateway to the unconscious. These descriptions highly correspond to the Model A descriptions.

I do not believe that it is humanly possible to differentiate all four functions alike, otherwise we would be perfect like God, and that surely will not happen. There will always be a flaw in the crystal. We can never reach perfection. Moreover, if we could differentiate the four functions equally we should only make them into consciously disposable functions. Then we would lose the most precious connection with the unconscious through the inferior function, which is invariably the weakest; only through our feebleness and incapacity are we linked up with the unconscious, with the lower world of the instincts and with our fellow beings.

6-Activating (Jung: the auxiliary of the inferior function): Jung has mentioned the existence of this function in both Psychological Types and Introduction to the Religious and Psychological Problems of Alchemy such that the inferior function is also attached to an auxiliary function. However, I haven't found any of Jung's texts that describe how Activating function works and how it acts as the hidden agenda.

The “inferior” function, on the other hand, is unconscious and for that reason is projected into a non-ego. It too has an auxiliary function.

7-Ignoring: Jung described how it works in Psychological Types. His description perfectly corresponds to the concept of the Ignoring function in Model A.

The too-low is raised a little, the too-high is made a little lower; the enthusiastic is damped, the extravagant restrained; and the unusual brought within the ‘correct’ formula: all this in order to keep the influence of the object within the necessary bounds.

8-Demonstrative (Jung: No.2 personality): Jung discussed his own Demonstrative Ni in Memories, Dreams, Reflections.

Although at that time I doubtless saw no difference as yet between personalities No. 1 and No. 2, and still claimed the world of No. 2 as my own personal world, there was always, deep in the background, the feeling that something other than myself was involved. It was as though a breath of the great world of stars and endless space had touched me, or as if a spirit had invisibly entered the room—the spirit of one who had long been dead and yet was perpetually present in timelessness until far into the future. Denouements of this sort were wreathed with the halo of a numen.

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By the above summary, we can see that although Jung only proposed a 4-function model, he has noticed most of the functions of model A. His description of most of these functions is consistent with the description of Model A. In Jung's original text, I did not capture a very ideal description of PoLR for the moment. Beyond that, he makes a description that is very close to the early literature on Socionics although he does not suggest the existence of Role, Ignoring and Demonstrative. This further convinces me that Model A is the closest of the 8-function models to the ideas of Jung's original, although it introduces the idea of information metabolism from Poland.

[Sol]

> He only identified the Leading, Creative, Activating, and Suggestive.

He described 4 functions. Each in 2 variants of the attitude (E/I).

His model is a sorting of 4 functions by their strenght. He also assigned the attitude to 1st and for 3 others. He supposed this as enough for his practical needs.
The similar reduction exists with types descriptions. He said that for every of 1st function variants may exist 2 (!) variants of 2nd function - he defined existence of 16 types, but gave descriptions only for 8 types by 1st function. As in his therapy practice was accented on 1 and least conscious/weakest 4th function (where most of problems are expected).
Same as Jung could to give descriptions for 16 types he could to describe model with 8 variants of functions, as could to notice that consciousness may operate by all 8 functions variants.

> Jung wrote several descriptions of his No.2 personality which match the discoveries of the Demonstrative in early Socionics literature pretty well.

The only interesting "discovery" of Augustinavichiute included in her model is valued functions (pairs of supplementing and opposing functions). The other mainly is baseless fantasy, which partly contradicts to more basic theory of Jung where should be wrong (completely or partly).
Jung had mistake about own type, thinking it as LII while having ILI. His and anyone else "No.2 personality" could relate mainly to unconscious functions. While so called "demonstrative" is strong and hence good conscious (by Jung approach and noticable reality, not strange Augustinavichiute fantasies).

> I mistakenly assigned Suggestive to Anima

Jung's 4th is the main part of anima, to which may be related 2 unconscious functions (in valued variants, secondary in other). This matches with duality sympathy and attraction (to opposite sex) as most among 16 types.

By rejecting this, - you reject basics of Socionics and Jung. No sense to read further.

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"As regards the character of the soul, my experience confirms the validity of the general principle that it maintains, on the whole, a complementary relation to the outer character. Experience teaches us that the soul is wont to contain all those general human qualities the conscious attitude lacks. The tyrant tormented by bad dreams, gloomy forebodings, and inner fears, is a typical figure. Outwardly inconsiderate, harsh,. and unapproachable, he is inwardly susceptible to every shadow, and subject to every fancy, as Chough he were the least independent, and the most impressionable, of men. Thus his soul contains those general human qualities of suggestibility and weakness which are wholly lacking in his outer attitude, or persona. Where the persona is intellectual, the soul is quite certainly sentimental."
("Psychological Types", chap 11, def. 15, anima section)

Anima (by Jung) relates to unconscious processes in Jung's sense - info of lesser conscious (weaker) functions. As directly said example, of intellectual (T) vs sentimental (F). Not just different and non-separatable sides of same info, as facts (Te) and interpretation (Ti), or as emotional tonus (Fe) and subjective sympathy (Fi).
So "suggestive" function relates to anima. Relates the most, being from the point of persona as most opposite to it by the function kind and the attitude.

[Tallmo]

Interesting stuff

About the Ignoring function:

You mentioned Se ignoring from his Si-type description. It can be useful to go through his descriptions of all the types to get the bigger picture. Jung seems to have similar themes in all of his type descriptions. For example in his description of Fi-type.

The bolded parts are, in my opinion, not Fi, but ignoring Fe.

It is principally among women that I have found the priority of introverted feeling. The proverb 'Still waters run deep' is very true of such women. They are mostly silent, inaccessible, and hard to understand; often they hide behind a childish or banal mask, and not infrequently their temperament is melancholic. They neither shine nor reveal themselves. Since they submit the control of their lives to their subjectively orientated feeling, their true motives generally remain concealed. Their outward demeanour is harmonious and inconspicuous; they reveal a delightful repose, a sympathetic parallelism, which has no desire to affect others, either to impress, influence, or change them in any way. Should this outer side be somewhat emphasized, a suspicion of neglectfulness and coldness may easily obtrude itself, which not seldom increases to a real indifference for the comfort and well-being of others. One distinctly feels the movement of feeling away from the object. With the normal type, however, such an event only occurs when the object has in some way too strong an effect. The harmonious feeling atmosphere rules only so long as the object moves upon its own way with a moderate feeling intensity, and makes no attempt to cross the other's path. There is little effort to accompany the real emotions of the object, which tend to be damped and rebuffed, or to put it more aptly, are 'cooled off' by a negative feeling-judgment. Although one may find a constant readiness for a peaceful and harmonious companionship, the unfamiliar object is shown no touch of amiability, no gleam of responding warmth, but is met by a manner of apparent indifference or repelling coldness. [p. 493]


One may even be made to feel the superfluousness of one's own existence. In the presence of something that might carry one away or arouse enthusiasm, this type observes a benevolent neutrality, tempered with an occasional trace of superiority and criticism that soon takes the wind out of the sails of a sensitive object. But a stormy emotion will be brusquely rejected with murderous coldness, unless it happens to catch the subject from the side of the unconscious, i.e. unless, through the animation of some primordial image, feeling is, as it were, taken captive. In which event such a woman simply feels a momentary laming, invariably producing, in due course, a still more violent resistance, which reaches the object in his most vulnerable spot. The relation to the object is, as far as possible, kept in a secure and tranquil middle state of feeling, where passion and its intemperateness are resolutely proscribed. Expression of feeling, therefore, remains niggardly and, when once aware of it at all, the object has a permanent sense of his undervaluation. Such, however, is not always the case, since very often the deficit remains unconscious; whereupon the unconscious feeling-claims gradually produce symptoms which compel a more serious attention.

So, for example The relation to the object is, as far as possible, kept in a secure and tranquil middle state of feeling,

this is obviously not Fi, since Fi is not about "middle state of feeling", but goes deep and with intensity.

This is very useful in understanding Fi, because sometimes these two are confused (Fi base / Fe ignoring)

[CR400AF]

Interesting stuff

About the Ignoring function:

You mentioned Se ignoring from his Si-type description. It can be useful to go through his descriptions of all the types to get the bigger picture. Jung seems to have similar themes in all of his type descriptions. For example in his description of Fi-type.

The bolded parts are, in my opinion, not Fi, but ignoring Fe.


So, for example The relation to the object is, as far as possible, kept in a secure and tranquil middle state of feeling,

this is obviously not Fi, since Fi is not about "middle state of feeling", but goes deep and with intensity.

This is very useful in understanding Fi, because sometimes these two are confused (Fi base / Fe ignoring)

In my previous post in 2021, I also identified a Fe-ignoring instance. But I haven't identified so many sentences. I should definitely read PT carefully for a second time. It seems that Jung has written a lot about the ignoring function and the suggestive function when describing X-leading types. I just skimmed the extraverted type descriptions by Jung trying to find his description of the Ignoring function. I also found out that he described the Fi-PoLR of the ILE type. Hence this further supports the discovery that Jung actually have described all the 8 functions although he only proposed a 4-function model.


Te-type: It seems that Jung was focusing on the extraversion of this type and the Fi-suggestive. Also, as a Te-Ignoring type, Jung wrote a lot to criticize Te in this chapter. However, I attribute the following sentence to Ti-Ignoring.

There are extraverted idealists so consumed by their desire for the salvation of mankind that they will not shrink from any lie or trickery in pursuit of their ideal. In science, there are not a few painful examples of highly respected investigators who are so convinced of the truth and general validity of their formula that they have not scrupled to falsify evidence in its favor.

Fe-type:

This is seen nowhere more clearly than in her love choice: the "suitable" man is loved, and no one else; he is suitable not because he appeals to her hidden subjective nature - about which she usually knows nothing...

On the contrary, they at once give one an inkling of a resistance that is being overcompensated, and one begins to wonder whether such a feeling-judgment might not just as well be entirely different. In fact, in a very short time, it actually is different. Only a very slight alteration in the situation is needed to provoke forthwith an entirely contrary estimation of the selfsame object.

This paragraph reveals the dynamic nature of Fe. Although Jung intended to describe a morbid situation of Fe-Leading types, I think the bold sentence could also be attributed to Fi-Ignoring.


Se-Type: The following sentence not only describes Si-Ignoring but also clearly supports the Socionics' interpretation of sensing functions.

This need not be in any way a pleasurable reinforcement, since this type is not a common voluptuary; he merely desires the strongest sensation, and this, by his very nature, he can receive only from without. What comes from within seems to him morbid and objectionable.

Ne-Type: I actually haven't found any clearly Ni-Ignoring descriptions here. Though the following sentence seems to be Ni-Ignoring-related.

As long as a possibility exists, the intuitive is bound to it with thongs of fate. It is as though his whole life went out into the new situation.

This sentence describes an extreme situation such that the probability is little but the Ne-Leading type is still hoping for it. The Ni prediction is fully ignored.


The Fi-PoLR of ILE: Jung described both male Ne-types and female Ne-types. It should be appropriate that the male Ne-type described by Jung resembles ILE. Jung wrote:

The morality of the intuitive is governed neither by intellect nor by feeling; he has his own characteristic morality, which consists in a loyalty to his intuitive view of things and a voluntary submission to its authority, Consideration for the welfare of his neighbours is weak. No solid argument hinges upon their well-being any more than upon his own. Neither can we detect in him any great respect for his neighbour's convictions and customs; in fact, he is not infrequently put down as an immoral and ruthless adventurer.

[Tallmo]

In my previous post in 2021, I also identified a Fe-ignoring instance. But I haven't identified so many sentences. I should definitely read PT carefully for a second time. It seems that Jung has written a lot about the ignoring function and the suggestive function when describing X-leading types. I just skimmed the extraverted type descriptions by Jung trying to find his description of the Ignoring function. I also found out that he described the Fi-PoLR of the ILE type. Hence this further supports the discovery that Jung actually have described all the 8 functions although he only proposed a 4-function model.

The Fi and Si descriptions are definitely the interesting ones when it comes to describing the ignoring function. But I think overall the most important thing after the base function is the inferior function. All the problems related to the inferior function are not dealt with in Socionics. There are still important things to learn.

Originally Posted by Jung
On the contrary, they at once give one an inkling of a resistance that is being overcompensated, and one begins to wonder whether such a feeling-judgment might not just as well be entirely different. In fact, in a very short time, it actually is different. Only a very slight alteration in the situation is needed to provoke forthwith an entirely contrary estimation of the selfsame object.


This paragraph reveals the dynamic nature of Fe. Although Jung intended to describe a morbid situation of Fe-Leading types, I think the bold sentence could also be attributed to Fi-Ignoring.

I understood it as the Fe being too pronounced and being poorly integrated in the personality. There are situations were the real personality becomes hidden and all you see is the base function on autopilot. Indeed a morbid situation. (Jung talks about this same behaviour for every function, the Se type becoming too dependent on the object etc.)

The Fi-PoLR of ILE: Jung described both male Ne-types and female Ne-types. It should be appropriate that the male Ne-type described by Jung resembles ILE. Jung wrote:

Originally Posted by Jung
The morality of the intuitive is governed neither by intellect nor by feeling; he has his own characteristic morality, which consists in a loyalty to his intuitive view of things and a voluntary submission to its authority, Consideration for the welfare of his neighbours is weak. No solid argument hinges upon their well-being any more than upon his own. Neither can we detect in him any great respect for his neighbour's convictions and customs; in fact, he is not infrequently put down as an immoral and ruthless adventurer.

I think it could refer to both ILE and IEE if we are talking about pure types. I've seen something like this in some IEEs too. Although it could of course be seen as Fi polr also.

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But I think overall the most important thing after the base function is the inferior function. All the problems related to the inferior function are not dealt with in Socionics. There are still important things to learn.

Interesting ideas. I have only partially noticed how my Fe influenced me after learning Jung and Socionics. I'm very impressed by Fe.