Personality Traits Associated with the Merry-Serious Dichotomy
Based on the available data (45 questions, of which 24 have a dominant contribution from this dichotomy), we managed to identify seven semantic clusters clearly gravitating toward this Reinin trait. However, none of these clusters can be called central, containing within itself the core meaning of the dichotomy. This is what distinguishes “merry-serious” both from the five strong dichotomies considered earlier and from a number of weaker ones.
List of the discovered clusters, in descending order of projection onto the trait axis (properties of the “merry” pole):
- Love of strong emotions.
In addition to attraction as such to strong, vivid emotions in other people, in reality, in art and cinema, this also includes properties related to the strength of the person’s own emotional reaction to what is happening around him. Obviously, all these properties are amplified both by increased trust in the authenticity of what is happening around him (if you see falseness in something, it will evoke neither sympathy nor your own emotional response), and by the desire to enter into emotional resonance with the surrounding people, to feel one’s synchrony with them and belonging to one group.
Both trustfulness and hypersociality fully characterize the ESE type, and it leads here; on the other side, also quite predictably, is the distrustful loner ILI.
Overall, the love of strong emotions is connected with the strength of the Fe function itself, as well as with its opposition to Te. But the contribution of Ti here is near-zero, because of which LII and LSI strongly sink on this property, while SEE and IEE, which have relatively strong background Fe, on the contrary, stand out among the other “serious” types.
Since in socionics “merriness” was originally associated primarily with the meanings of this cluster, it is unsurprising that in the first tests this feature literally jumped out — program Ti types turned out “serious”, while holders of Ti in the vulnerable position turned out “merry”. - Military-patriotic pathos.
As it turns out, confrontation with “outsiders” not only promotes the consolidation of “one’s own” into an integral group (aristocracy + declatimity, Di), not only intensifies intergroup competition (decisiveness, Se), but is also one of the most important motivating factors in the development of a global structure for managing society (Ti). In addition, war is perhaps one of the strongest factors provoking masses of people into emotions, and genuine and sincere emotions at that (Fe), since they are connected with an existential threat to collective survival.
In the socion, the military-patriotic theme is most often touched upon and developed by logicians of the second quadra, while their main companions here are ethicists of both the second and first quadras. In the denial of the pathos of war and the defense of ancestral values, ILE here more often joins the descending quadras, while LII ends up in the neutral zone. - Ideologization — is interested in the global goals and tasks facing humanity, looks at the world through the prism of ideology, sees meaning in self-sacrifice for the sake of a global future good.
The cluster is identical to the opposition of Ti, Fe and Ne on one side with Te, Si and De on the other. Namely, Ti sets the logical framework of any ideology, Fe supports the feeling of emotional unity with close and distant like-minded people, while Ne gives global unity an idealistic-fantasy shade. Te, by contrast, is interested in economics rather than ideology, while Si and De generally dislike complex topics that force one to think.
At the poles of the property are intuitives of the first quadra, EIE and the EII who has joined the “merry” types against business logicians of the third and fourth quadras. In addition to merriness, the most important contributions to the cluster are made by statics (because this concerns eternal values) and intuition (which allows one to look at the world globally and as a whole); rationality also has an effect (as social responsibility before the future). - Idealism, antipragmatism — looks in the surrounding world for that which has eternal value, universal beauty, rather than what can be applied in practice here and now; creates more for the soul and at the command of the heart, rather than for sale.
As with the previous group of properties, the tone here is set by the opposition of Fe and Ne (with the contribution of Ne being even higher than in the previous cluster) against Te (above all) and partly Se. At the poles of the property are IEI and ILE against LIE and LSE; ethical-intuitive types of the fourth quadra are here on the side of the “merry”, while logical-sensory types of the second quadra mirroringly come closer to the “serious”. In addition to intuition and ethics, which are more inclined toward artistic expressiveness and less concerned with the practical application of their creations, a certain contribution to idealism is also made by judiciousness — as readiness to create without mandatory return for oneself. - Intolerance toward an alternative way of thinking and life, tendency toward fanaticism of views, and in extreme variants — the desire to perform the role of an inquisitor, destroying dissent.
In its meanings, the cluster comes close to the second; however, here the matter is less about global confrontation between large groups of people and more about personalized confrontation with concrete people whose way of thinking and behavior diverge from what the subject considers normal. Therefore, the contribution of ethics is strengthened here — in its rational, program, “guardian” form.
The “decisive” motif also manifests here more vividly (there is much more egoism and self-interest in the desire to destroy personal enemies than in the striving to join in the destruction of a collective enemy — in the second case, the motivation is still partly explained by the desire to protect, to preserve “one’s own”).
Functionally, fanatical intolerance toward dissent is primarily the responsibility of Fe (it is precisely this that evokes fanatical frenzy); the contribution of Ti and Se here is secondary, while the most tolerant toward alternatives are Ne (which is natural, since precisely this function loves diversity) and Te (why eradicate something if it can be used).
Among types, the second quadra is most inclined toward fanaticism in the struggle against dissent; it is usually its rational dyad that acts as the instigator in matters of searching for the internal enemy. Its initiatives are usually readily supported by both rational socials — ESI (despite “seriousness”, the irritable intolerance of the different inherent to vulnerable Ne makes itself felt) and ESE (despite “judiciousness”, the declatim-black-ethical suggestibility to the opinion of the collective inherent to ethicists of the first quadra has an influence). The sociotypes most tolerant toward an alternative way of thinking and life are IEE, LSE, ILI, ILE. - “Passionarity” — radicalism, pushing society toward revolutionary changes and civil confrontation.
In this cluster, merriness combines with extraversion, forming a clearly expressed choleric temperament with its inherent irritable intolerance. The four psychotypes in which this temperament most often manifests — SLE, ILE, EIE and SEE — end up among the leaders in destabilizing public peace and order, while introverts of the “serious” quadras are more engaged than others in pacifying the situation. Among functions, the Fe+Se bundle comes to the foreground here, opposed by the peace-loving-conformist Fi, Si, Di and Te, which dislikes abrupt changes (because they destroy established businesses). - Follows generally known, “written” rules, has no talent for “under-the-carpet” diplomacy and intrigue.
The only cluster in which the contribution of structural logic to the “merry” properties comes to the foreground, while the role of Fe remains neutral. Ti (relying on universal standards) is here opposed by Fi (which, on the contrary, is inclined to solve problems on a case-by-case basis). The opposition of Si (simple-heartedness and directness) and Ni (intrigues and omissions) is also visible.
Among psychotypes, all representatives of the first quadra (due to their orientation toward the global common good) and most logical-sensory types (due to the concreteness of their thinking and therefore their low capacity for subtle intrigue) prefer to play by generally accepted rules. The remaining types are more often inclined to solve problems on a case-by-case basis, bypassing generally accepted rules, but especially creative Fi types SEE and IEE.
So, what unites all these disparate properties into a single whole? Does such a property exist, and if so, why is it so difficult to detect?