The Four Temperaments

Some of the most important recent work done in the field on Personality Typing has been done by David Keirsey, who has created the theory of temperament associated with type. In his research, he has made observations that have allowed him to combine two of the four sets of preferences, into four distinct temperament categories. Each of the sixteen personality types fits into one of these temperament categories. The titles used here for the temperament types, and the individual personality types listed within each temperament, are Keirsey's own descriptions. You'll notice that they do not match our labels for the types.

SJ - "The Guardians"

Keirsey describes the SJ group's primary objective as "Security Seeking". The SJ grouping includes the types:

ESTJ - "The Supervisors"
ISTJ - "The Inspectors"
ESFJ - "The Providers"
ISFJ - "The Protectors"

SP - "The Artisans"

Keirsey describes the SP group's primary objective as "Sensation Seeking". The SP grouping includes the types:

ESTP - "The Promoters"
ISTP - "The Crafters"
ESFP - "The Performers"
ISFP - "The Composers"

NT - "The Rationals"

Keirsey describes the NT group's primary objective as "Knowledge Seeking". The NT grouping includes the types:

ENTJ - "The Fieldmarshals"
INTJ - "The Masterminds"
ENTP - "The Inventors"
INTP - "The Architects"

NF - "The Idealists"

Keirsey describes the NF group's primary objective as "Identity Seeking". The NF grouping includes the types:

ENFJ - "The Teachers"
INFJ - "The Counselors"
ENFP - "The Champions"
INFP - "The Healers"

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