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 Articles on MBTI theory and Carl Jung's model of psychological types

Archetypes: The Next Step After Type
Jeanne Marlowe, INFP

Although the number of participants at APT's International Conferences continues to decline (from 800 to 600 in 1997 to 425 this year), the APT XIII Proceedings reveal the wide range of quality work being done by the Type community. Divided into the seven interest areas, this collection of papers submitted by conference presenters helped me make the always difficult choice of which concurrent session to attend. It also makes it easy to follow up on sessions I missed. Experiencing the excited dedication of people from around the world renews my commitment to Type and to my own personal development. An 8-foot wall map of the world displayed where we individually came from, but where are we going?

According to Carol Pearson, the closing plenary speaker, the next step is understanding the way archetypes shape our lives. If we do not become conscious of archetypal patterns, we more easily fall under their spell and give up choices we didn't know we had. Consciously using archetypal energies, however, enables us to develop less preferred functions and prevents us from either rigidly identifying with or repressing an archetype or persona.

For example, I consistently repress the Orphan and Destroyer archetypes. Understanding my fear of them enables me to make better decisions about when to let go of projects and people who no longer nurture me and to appreciate that these decisions require me to confront my inner dragons. As I become more experienced in making these tough decisions, I can execute them more gracefully, making a friend of the dragon instead of slaying him. I had been wrestling for several months about whether to change a romantic relationship into a friendship. After I returned from APT XIII, I took the Pearson-Marr Archetypes Indicator, which once again revealed my repression of, or aversion to, these archetypes. With this knowledge I was able to make the change with less upheaval than usual. I recommend taking the indicator in Pearson's Awakening the Heroes Within to discover the archetypes active in your life. What story are you living?

Retaking the Indicator also confirmed my intuition that another archetype is becoming active in my life: the Jester or Fool. Even though I write scripts for parties, I had seen myself as more an educator than entertainer. Over the past year, however, I've become aware that I need to have fun with my writing and take myself less seriously. Appreciating the role each archetype plays gives me greater flexibility to shift from my strongest archetypes of Lover, Sage and Magician when the situation warrants.

Carol introduced a new way of viewing the archetypes that I found both useful and suggestive of Temperament. Although she didn't make this correlation, I am adding to her chart the Temperaments most conducive to certain archetypes.

 
 Desire


Safety

 
Belonging

 
Mastery


 Freedom


 Temperament


 SJ


 NF


 NT


 SP

 Style


 Innocent
Caregiver
Ruler


 Orphan
Lover
Jester


 Warrior
Destroyer
Magician


 Seeker
Creator
Sage


 Focus


 Stability


 People


 Results


 Expertise

Carol, an INFP, reported feeling frustrated during a conversation with her husband. "He doesn't understand me ... after all these years together. He will never understand me," her inner voice wailed until she cut it short by affirming, "This is a love story. I'm in a love story." When we are aware of archetypal forces in our daily lives, we can choose the archetype we want to express. We play the role we want instead of playing out an unconscious script.

red triGo Here for more articles on Jung's Theory of Psychological Type

Jeanne Marlowe (INFP), consultant, writer and facilitator, invented Murder for all Occasions in 1987, as a fun and engaging way for participants to get to know each other. "The play's the thing." It requires no rehearsal or elaborate preparation; suspects know only their own point of view (usually a one-page script). Everyone sees the need to fit together these individual persepectives in order to solve the mystery.

Looking for a pary to remember? A natural team-builder? A novel approach to conflict management? Let Jeanne help make your next event memorable, fun, and intellectually stimulating.

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www.personalitypathways.com/marlowe

 

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