Semantic clusters of 'Yielding-Obstinate'

We remind you that, according to the original definition, “YIELDING” are extraverted logical types and introverted ethical types, while “OBSTINATE” are introverted logical types and extraverted ethical types. However, when we begin measuring the poles of yielding–obstinate using questionnaires, based on the substantive content of these traits (initially identified through respondents’ self-reported psychotypes), inevitable deviations from the original definition begin to occur. The trait begins to largely “live its own life,” partially detaching from the meanings prescribed by the intersection of extraversion with logic. And this is true for all socionic traits.

Let us examine 16 semantic clusters that characterize the marker properties of the poles of this trait. They were identified by analyzing the responses of 40,000 respondents who, at various times, answered V. Talanov’s socionic questionnaires. Since the trait is quite weak, in order to avoid P-hacking, the clusters include not only questions that are directly marker-related to the trait (i.e., showing the maximal absolute correlation specifically with the trait “yielding–obstinate”), but also all other questions from the questionnaire database that are closely related in content to the cluster’s marker questions. Thus, the impact of P-hacking is sharply reduced - since the results considered are the socionic profiles of the entire semantic cluster rather than individual items. The probability of random correlations for the considered clusters is significantly reduced, because the questions in the cluster (except for the last “MISCELLANEOUS” cluster) were selected not solely on the basis of their high correlations with the trait, but - based on their semantic relationship - from the full database of 9,000 questionnaire statements with known socionic profiles (already independent of correlations with the trait).

Along this path, for example, the cluster allegedly linking “yielding” with mirror-neuron activity was discarded - for three individual items this relationship was indeed found, and at a high level of correlation - however, across the full set of questionnaire items assessing mirror-neuron activation, it almost disappeared, dropping nearly to zero. Therefore, this cluster and others like it are not included in our list.

The socionic profiles of questionnaire items were averaged over samples ranging from 300 to 20,000 respondents per item; on average, the profiles of each questionnaire statement in the presented clusters were averaged over responses from 1,650 respondents.

THE NUMBER AFTER EACH QUESTIONNAIRE STATEMENT IN THE CLUSTERS shows the share of total socionic variance of that statement that is exclusively linked with the trait “yielding–obstinate.” A minus sign before the number indicates that the statement tends toward the “obstinate” pole; the minus sign has no other meaning.

Tables

Cluster 1. LOW ABSOLUTE AUDITORY SENSITIVITY OF THE “YIELDING” (weaker development of temporal auditory cortical areas compared to the “obstinate”?)

1. If people speak quietly, sometimes I can’t make out what they’re saying. 0,32
2. I prefer the TV volume louder than many others do. 0,23
3. I’ve noticed that in noisy conditions (e.g., in the subway, at a club, etc.) I can’t make out some words spoken to me. 0,17

4. I easily hear and understand people’s voices even when they speak far away from me. -0,11
5. I have sensitive, discerning hearing - I easily hear what’s being said even at a considerable distance and even in noise. -0,11
6. I often hear faint sounds (e.g., a phone ringing inside someone’s coat on a distant hanger) when others in the room hear nothing and notice nothing. -0,13
7. I can easily imagine “with inner hearing” how some familiar person pronounces a long meaningful phrase in their characteristic voice. -0,26
8. I hear even very faint sounds that others do not hear or notice. -0,28
9. I hear those “fine” and high-pitched sounds, on the edge of ultrasound, that others don’t hear. -0,30
10. Unlike many, I hear the quietest sounds, the quietest whisper. -0,30
11. I usually try to turn the TV volume down when others turn it up. -0,32
12. When I’m worried or nervous, my hearing seems to sharpen - I start to distinguish even quiet conversations far away. -0,35
13. I easily make out the words and phrases of people talking even through a wall in another apartment. -0,36
14. I hear very low vibrating sounds well - even when others don’t notice them. -0,39

Cluster 2. WEAKER MUSICAL EAR OF THE “YIELDING” (weaker development of temporal auditory cortical areas of the right hemisphere compared to the “obstinate”)

1. I remember melodies poorly. 0,24
2. I poorly distinguish between different musical chords or different combinations of sounds. 0,17
3. It’s hard for me to accurately repeat (sing) a melody I’ve heard - my musical ear is worse than many others’. 0,09
4. My musical ear is clearly worse than other people’s. 0,08

5. It’s true that I almost never mistake the pitch of a musical note, I easily reproduce the needed note by voice or mental imagination. 0,00
6. I have good memory for any complex musical melodies. -0,05
7. I instantly hear dissonances and “slipping of tonality” in others’ singing. -0,11
8. I can easily repeat with finger taps any fast rhythm, even very complex ones. -0,25
9. I remember many different melodies. -0,28
10. I can precisely reproduce by voice or tapping a complex rhythm I just heard - various rhythms often even sound in my head, or quietly “tap out” with my tongue or teeth when I’m busy. -0,34
11. I have a good musical ear. -0,38
12. If a sound differs even slightly in its frequency (i.e., pitch) from the reference tone (e.g., tuning fork), I notice immediately. -0,44

Cluster 3. LOWER DIFFERENTIAL AUDITORY SENSITIVITY OF THE “YIELDING” COMPARED TO THE “OBSTINATE”

1. I remember people’s faces better than their voices. 0,32
2. It’s true that I’m not very picky about the timbre and quality of sound from a TV or computer speakers - as long as the speech is intelligible and there’s no obvious distortion, it’s fine. 0,15
3. Usually I need more than five seconds to recognize who’s calling me by their voice on the phone. 0,06
4. I poorly remember people’s voices, poorly recognize them by phone. 0,01

5. I recognize a person’s voice on the phone by its characteristic timbre literally within two or three seconds, no more. -0,01
6. Once I hear a person’s voice, I remember its timbre and intonations well; later I recognize it over the phone from two or three words. -0,02

Cluster 4. STRONGER RIGHTWARD HANDWRITING SLANT OF THE “YIELDING”

1. The letters in my handwriting are strongly slanted to the right, sometimes almost lying on the line (rate the degree of rightward slant from 1 to 5; “5” - very strong rightward slant, “1” - vertical or left-leaning letters). 0,16

2. The letters in my handwriting are almost vertical or even slightly slanted left. -0,32
3. My handwriting is almost upright, with very little letter slant. -0,56

Cluster 5. “YIELDING” ARE MORE OFTEN “LARKS,” AND “OBSTINATE” ARE “OWLS”

1. I am a “lark” and like to go to bed early, right after dark, and also get up early - with the first rays of the sun. 0,25

2. I feel more comfortable in the evening than in the morning. -0,40
3. I am an “owl” and like staying up far past midnight and getting up late. -0,54

Cluster 6. SENSITIVITY OF THE YIELDING, THEIR DEPENDENCE ON OTHERS’ EVALUATIONS

1. It’s extremely important to me that I am loved - therefore I easily fall for any good feelings (and often they turn out insincere). 0,32
2. My mood lifts when someone passes along a warm sincere greeting to me. 0,31
3. I am deeply hurt by others’ negative attitude toward me. 0,29
4. It’s easy to hurt me with an incautious word. 0,26
5. Failures make a strong impression on me. 0,24
6. Sometimes hurt and irritation from words I hear arise instantly, ahead of a thoughtful understanding of the meaning of the phrase itself. 0,24
7. I can be like a boiler of overheated steam - some people and situations can build up this pressure and lead me to loss of self-control and composure. 0,23
8. I have a very vulnerable pride - I have always been very afraid of being rejected. 0,22
9. I’m easy to offend. 0,19
10. I am sensitive to awkward moments in communication; afterwards I worry for a long time - who said what. 0,17
11. I always feel hurt if, judging by people’s reactions, I do something wrong in public. 0,09

12. I alone am a judge of my beliefs and words. -0,09
13. Even if the atmosphere around is “so tense you could cut it with a knife,” I will maintain impenetrable independence and act like “it’s none of my business.” -0,18
14. I am indifferent to what others think of me and my behavior. -0,20
15. In any situation, not succumbing to pressure, I formulate my own ideas of what is good and what is bad. -0,20
16. I really dislike and usually avoid interlocutors who start telling me how to act properly. -0,25
17. I usually avoid and am definitely not quick to agree that I am wrong about something. -0,27
18. I am generally indifferent to people who behave provocatively in public transport - I just ignore them. -0,29
19. I am indifferent to remarks and criticism addressed to me - seriously they rarely touch me, and in any case they neither excite nor motivate me. -0,31
20. If I myself don’t like the result, then I absolutely don’t care whether others like it or not. -0,31
21. There are no people near me from whom I would prefer to receive information rather than money. -0,31

Cluster 7. TENDENCY OF THE YIELDING TO EXPERIENCE GUILT

1. I experience guilt heavily. 0,31
2. I am often bothered by prolonged feelings of guilt. 0,29
3. I am haunted by guilt over some of my actions. 0,25
4. I often feel guilt. 0,23
5. Sometimes I experience prolonged guilt with self-reproach and pangs of conscience. 0,19

6. I easily detach from old emotions, from the experiences of past emotional shocks. -0,20
7. In general, I am not the kind of person who admits being wrong and, even more so, apologizes for my words. -0,23

Cluster 8. THE YIELDING ARE MORE AGGRESSIVE IN REAL LIFE, AND THE OBSTINATE - IN THEIR FANTASY

1. In my fantasies I am calmer, kinder and more peace-loving than in my real behavior. 0,35

2. In my fantasies I am more aggressive than in my real behavior. -0,41

Cluster 9. THE YIELDING ARE STATISTICALLY SLIGHTLY MORE RIGHT-HANDED THAN THE OBSTINATE - LEFT-HANDEDNESS IS MORE COMMON AMONG THE OBSTINATE (and also among intuitives and positivists)

1. I always automatically catch a thrown object with my right hand. 0,25
2. When drawing I almost always hold the brush or chalk in my right hand. 0,22
3. With my right hand I throw objects much farther and more accurately than with my left. 0,14
4. When stirring water in a pot I almost always do it with my right hand. 0,07
5. Which hand do you gesture with more often when you speak or tell something? If left, put “1”. If right, put “5”. If you don’t know - put “3”. 0,07

6. I can write fairly neatly with my left hand. 0,08
7. When handed a pencil, clip or notebook, I often automatically take it with my left hand. -0,37
8. Dealing out playing cards is more convenient for me with my left hand rather than my right (recall or test). -0,31
9. A thrown object I more often automatically catch with my left hand. -0,17
10. With my left hand I can draw as neat a circle or square as with my right hand, or even better (test). -0,16
11. I usually open doors with my left hand. -0,13
12. When I shuffle a deck of cards, I support it underneath with my right palm, and shuffle with my left hand (recall or test). -0,03
13. I am left-handed or was left-handed for some time in childhood. -0,02
14. I more often hold a paintbrush in my left hand. -0,01

Cluster 10. ALTRUISM OF THE YIELDING COMPARED TO THE RELATIVELY GREATER EGOISM OF THE OBSTINATE

3. I am very generous toward close people. 0.32
4. My problem is that I never refuse when asked for something. 0.32
5. At the successes of a close family member I always experience a strong feeling of joy and inspiration. 0.31
6. To improve society, one must start with remaking society itself, and not with changing the people who make it up. 0.30
7. I am very fond of my children; I sometimes go along with them, often even contrary to the needs of bringing them up properly. 0.30
8. I am always ready to help. 0.30
9. I almost always feel the pain of a close family member as my own. 0.29
10. In the country, the authority of the ordinary working person who works directly in the field, on the building site, or at the machine must be sharply raised. 0.29
11. I experience genuine suffering if my home team loses or if a family member comes home depressed after failing an exam. 0.28
12. I have often gotten into trouble because I overestimated people’s good attitude toward me. 0.27
13. I allow close people to use most of my small belongings without asking. 0.27
14. I love long get-togethers with people loyal to me, in whom I see grateful listeners and next to whom I can indulge in memories and abstract reflections on the experiences of my life and the past. 0.27
15. In my youth I was very indulgent and sympathetically attentive to others, and at the same time very critical of myself. 0.26
16. In moral terms I am more demanding of myself than of others. 0.26
17. I will always rush to help a person whose life is in danger. 0.25
18. I easily take on the feelings that those around me are experiencing. 0.25
19. I am deeply concerned about the fate of the country. 0.25
20. I often anxiously think about someone’s attitude toward me. 0.25
21. The changed mood of a close person immediately changes my mood as well. 0.25
22. I am usually inclined to trust another person’s honest word and oaths, even if I am dealing with someone I barely know. 0.24
23. It is better to live as a bum than as a crook. 0.23
24. It is difficult for me to free myself from obligations to someone and from harmful, “sucking” emotional contacts; I often get bogged down in them. 0.23
25. I feel uncomfortable if I accidentally cause someone significant discomfort (by being late, an awkward word, etc.). 0.23
26. I always treat others, on average, with the same respect and goodwill that I would like to see toward myself. 0.23
27. If a close person cries, tears come to my own eyes as well. 0.22
28. I often sacrifice my time or comfort in order to give another person an irrevocable favor. 0.21
29. I sometimes experience injustice toward others more acutely than injustice toward myself. 0.21
30. I often act quite differently from how I initially wanted to because I easily yield to other people’s requests. 0.21
31. I am more inclined than others to sacrifice my interests for other people or for the common good. 0.21
32. I believe in the kind and initially honest nature of the human being. 0.21
33. In this life I work for others, and that suits me. 0.20
34. Kindness, loyalty, and diligence are my constant, most prominent qualities in any situation. 0.20
35. I have often, on my own initiative, sacrificed personal interests for the sake of common ones. 0.20
36. I am rather an altruist than an egoist. 0.20
37. I can easily flare up when I encounter someone’s meanness and injustice toward naive and weak people. 0.19
38. I am very trusting in communication. 0.19
39. I am scrupulous in matters of decency, unobtrusive, but I will always come to the aid of those who need it. 0.19
40. By my character I am a kinder and less selfish person than others. 0.18
41. I try to ensure that no one feels hurt by my actions. 0.17
42. I very much loved, or still love, the fairy tales of Hans Christian Andersen. 0.14
43. The interests of other, not closest people are often just as close to me as my own. 0.10
44. I can easily imagine my self-sacrifice in the name of some sacred idea. 0.10
45. I easily feel sympathy for people; I often perceive the problems of even an unfamiliar person almost as my own. 0.06
46. In my free time my imagination is always altruistic; it very rarely deals with personal interests and problems, much more often with those of others or of the world. 0.04
47. I always want to pull others, people lagging behind me, up to my level. 0.04
48. I think more about other people’s mood than about my own. 0.04
49. To feel comfortable, I absolutely need to know that my activity is needed by society. 0.02
50. I love recognizing and supporting people’s talents. 0.02

51. I love and respect snakes for their habits. -0.43
52. I often have to fight back against those who want to “ride at my expense”. -0.43
53. People will definitely use against you everything they can learn about you. -0.36
54. Stories about heroism and self-sacrifice usually make me feel sick. -0.35
55. Doing something for someone, forgetting about myself in the process - well, that is definitely not about me. -0.35
56. I like reading detective stories about evil killers. -0.33
57. Universal broad education is rather harmful than useful for society. -0.33
58. I would make a good nit-picking lawyer: I can manipulate people, and I would enjoy playing on little facts and clauses of regulations like on the keys of a grand piano. -0.30
59. I would like to be the director of a grand night festival on the day of the ceremonial death of all humanity. -0.29
60. I primarily divide all people into two main groups: smart and stupid. -0.29
61. I am more than many prone to “healthy egocentrism”: everyone should first of all care about themselves, and only then about others, and if asked. -0.29
62. First it must be comfortable and cozy for me; caring about others comes after that. -0.28
63. I am very particular that I am not disturbed when I eat or sleep. -0.27
64. In conversation I often “pick on” small sloppiness in others’ arguments, imprecise words, etc. -0.27
65. I often enjoy teasing my friends, getting them worked up. -0.27
66. Among my acquaintances there are no people for whom I would be ready to risk my life. -0.27
67. The misfortunes of my friends do not make me feel anything special. -0.26
68. Compared to the average human level, I have no less egoism (and sometimes more). -0.26
69. I always feel well the boundary between my own personality and other people. -0.26
70. If I go to a café with friends, I always estimate how much money each of us should have with them. -0.24
71. If some property ends up in my hands, then it is mine forever. -0.24
72. Close ones often accuse me of egoism (whether fairly or not - it doesn’t matter). -0.24
73. I admit that my interests may often diverge from public interests. -0.24
74. My interlocutor’s anger usually does not affect me and does not change my mood. -0.23
75. The joy of my friends is their personal joy; as a rule it does not touch me and cannot “infect” me. -0.23
76. If it is worth writing books, then about myself, not about someone else. -0.23
77. More than anything I want people not to bother me with things I might find repulsive, not to impose on me someone else’s alien, unpleasant code of conduct. -0.23
78. Sometimes I enjoy mocking someone a bit. -0.23
79. Sometimes I can refuse or even mock a person without reason when they ask me to lend them something for a few minutes. -0.22
80. I often play with people and my relationships with them without thinking about the feelings of those who get hurt. -0.22
81. A sucker doesn’t deserve pity or advice; let him punish himself with his own sucker-ness. -0.21
82. I know how and like to shame and verbally mock a person aloud if they have annoyed me or behave not as I would like. -0.20
83. When I say “thank you” to someone, it is almost always just out of simple politeness or so as not to spoil relations with that person in the future; I do not feel indebted. -0.19
84. In response to some personal success and joy of a close person, I can politely say that I am happy too, but inside I usually remain calm and unmoved. -0.19
85. It is true that I do not like most people. -0.18
86. I live by the principle: I owe nothing to anyone, and no one owes anything to me. -0.18
87. First I think about myself, then about others. -0.15
88. It would be nice to take everything I own with me to the grave. -0.13
89. I can be egocentric in the focus of my practical reasoning, sometimes, due to simple inattentiveness, paying little attention to the business interests of people connected with me. -0.08
90. I take to heart only what concerns my personal needs and interests. -0.08
91. One should support the one who is stronger, not the one who is wronged. -0.04
92. My emotions and feelings are often egocentric. -0.03
93. If someone is being restricted in some freedom and it does not directly affect me, then I don’t care. -0.02
94. Abstract justice is a harmful stupidity. -0.01

Cluster 11. IN SOME OF THE YIELDING, THE FACE MORE OFTEN FLUSHES RED IN EXCITEMENT (SYMPATHICOTONIA), WHILE IN THE OBSTINATE IT MORE OFTEN TURNS PALE.

1. People say that my face sometimes turns red, giving away my excited state. 0.38
2. When irritated, my face sometimes turns red. 0.18
3. I easily blush from anxiety or embarrassment. 0.02

4. It is true that I never have a blush on my cheeks at normal air temperature. -0.06
5. In some situations I often turn pale, as if the blood drains from my face. -0.12
6. It is true that my face never turns red or hot from excitement; the blood practically never rushes to my cheeks and face. -0.45
7. From anger I turn pale rather than red. -0.14

Cluster 12. THE YIELDING – MUSCLE ACTIVATION IN A STATE OF EXCITEMENT (noradrenaline surges, sympathicotonia)

1. Excitement almost inevitably leads to muscle activation in me; I involuntarily begin to move and twitch. 0.39
2. When talking with a friend, I have the habit of slapping him heavily on the shoulder, or taking a firm hold of his arm (while walking together). 0.28
3. I often feel impatiently restless. 0.21
4. In states when I am depressed by something, my fists are usually reflexively clenched (and my clenched fingers tense up). 0.20
5. Stressful states occur regularly with me, at least once a week. 0.16
6. In my decisions, plans and actions there is usually a “claim” and a certain excessive “swing”. 0.12
7. When I am excited by some tense moment (for example, during a computer game), I sometimes involuntarily begin to shake or jiggle my leg. 0.10

Cluster 13. IN THE YIELDING, TANNING FROM ULTRAVIOLET APPEARS MORE EASILY AND QUICKLY ON AVERAGE (melanin pigment is more easily produced in the skin)

1. After sunbathing I quickly develop an even tan. 0.18
2. Tan does not stick well to me - mainly my skin just gets inflamed, and freckles appear. -0.28
3. Even in summer my skin is pale. -0.29

Cluster 14. THE YIELDING ARE MORE GUILELESS, TRUSTING AND “STRAIGHTFORWARD” THAN THE OBSTINATE (THE LATTER ARE MUCH BETTER AT DECEIVING AND INTRIGUING).

1. As a rule, I have been very trusting of people. 0.31
2. Because of my “idealism” I have often been deceived. 0.24

3. Cunning and the ability to pretend - that is what intelligence is. -0.18
4. I consider it acceptable to deceive another person if it does not contradict the law and will bring me benefit. -0.20
5. In the mirror I usually see in myself a look with a squint, a bit of slyness and roguishness. -0.22
6. When necessary I can deceive without saying anything at all - I simply give false hints with my facial expression, pauses, movements, intonations. -0.22
7. I can insincerely but quite convincingly show indignation. -0.23
8. Sometimes I get pleasure from successfully deceiving another person. -0.25
9. When needed, I can speak in “clichés” - that is, deliberately speak or conduct a conversation so as to talk about everything only around and around, with worn-out general words like “systemic approach”, and at the same time about everything at once and about nothing concrete. -0.26
10. Laws exist in order to restrict the movements of simpletons and weaklings. -0.29
11. It is quite easy for me to pretend in my feelings, feigning agreement with my interlocutor. -0.30
12. If I have to deceive, I will never admit to the deception. -0.30

Cluster 15. THE YIELDING ARE NOT INCLINED TO JUDGE AND CRITICIZE – THE OBSTINATE ARE MUCH MORE INCLINED TO THIS

1. I do not like judging and resolving conflicts, but I know how to reconcile people. 0.04

2. I would like the job of a judge. 0.00
3. I would very much like to be a judge in civil and criminal cases. -0.01
4. The profession of sports referee would appeal to me more than that of a dog handler. -0.01
5. I take considerably more pleasure in searching for contradictions and inconsistencies than in formulating proofs. -0.19
6. I like to judge and give critical evaluations. -0.20
7. When interacting with different people, I often get irritated in advance, expecting to hear some next stubborn stupidity. -0.20
8. Periodically, in conversation with my acquaintances, I try to “bring someone down a notch” preventively so they do not get conceited. -0.21
9. It is true that I do not trust anyone’s word of honor. -0.21
10. I more often dissuade friends from their intentions than persuade them to do something. -0.21
11. I would like the job of a criminal defense lawyer or a judge. -0.22
12. Sometimes I prove to certain people who like to flaunt their alleged decency that they are not honest at all, as they claim, but also thieves and guided by vile motives. -0.22
13. I like to warn, grumble and criticize while lying in an armchair and keeping an impenetrable expression on my face. -0.22
14. I often use irony, presenting someone or something in a ridiculous and absurd light. -0.23
15. I would get great pleasure from sitting on some jury and giving scores to participants. -0.23
16. I would make a good proofreader or editor - I know how to find mistakes in texts and probably would not miss a single one. -0.24
17. I often sin with petty nitpicking of other people’s work. -0.26
18. I like the genre of mean parodies (in literature or on stage). -0.27
19. I like to catch someone in dishonesty. -0.27
20. I expect to hear a lot of stupidity from people and in advance feel contempt for those stupidities. -0.27
21. I often influence another person in order to “cool” their mood, make it more sober and less euphoric, less self-confident. -0.29
22. I would like the job of a literary critic or literary reviewer. -0.31
23. I can verbally smear another person, give them in my conversation with someone - and in their presence, as a third person - a degrading verbal characterization. -0.34

Cluster 16. MISCELLANEOUS

1. Fire fascinates me for a long time - I love watching the flickering tongues of flame. 0.58
2. A kayak trip along an endlessly long river is something that would give me enormous pleasure. 0.52
3. At the beginning of work it always seems that the task is easy and there is a wagonload of time, but in the end new difficulties appear and there is not enough time. 0.46
4. I like those trends in painting where there are few details and only the general impression is conveyed, which can be felt only by stepping back from the picture (Impressionism, watercolors). 0.41
5. I can be persuaded to work for the future without reward today.