ENTP - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

This article is about the Myers-Briggs personality type. For the Socionics ENTp, see Intuitive Logical Extrovert.

ENTP (extraversion, intuition, thinking, perception) is an abbreviation used in the publications of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator

Myers-Briggs Type Indicator

The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator assessment is a psychometric questionnaire designed to measure psychological preferences in how people perceive the world and make decisions...

(MBTI) to refer to one of sixteen personality type

Personality type

Personality type refers to the psychological classification of different types of individuals. Personality types are sometimes distinguished from personality traits, with the latter embodying a smaller grouping of behavioral tendencies. Types are sometimes said to involve qualitative differences...

s. The MBTI assessment was developed from the work of prominent psychiatrist Carl G. Jung in his book Psychological Types
Psychological Types
Psychological Types is the title of the sixth volume in the Princeton / Bollingen edition of the Collected Works of Carl Jung. The original German language edition, "Psychologische Typen", was first published by Rascher Verlag, Zurich in 1921....

. Jung proposed a psychological typology

Personality type

based on the theories of cognitive functions that he developed through his clinical observations.

From Jung's work, others developed psychological typologies. Jungian personality assessments include the MBTI assessment, developed by Isabel Briggs Myers

Isabel Briggs Myers

Isabel Briggs Myers was an American psychological theorist. She was co-creator, with her mother, of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator ....

and Katharine Cook Briggs, and the Keirsey Temperament Sorter

Keirsey Temperament Sorter

The Keirsey Temperament Sorter is a self-assessed personality questionnaire designed to help people better understand themselves and others. It was first introduced in the book Please Understand Me...

, developed by David Keirsey

David Keirsey

David West Keirsey , is an internationally renowned psychologist, a professor emeritus at California State University, Fullerton, and the author of several books...

. Keirsey referred to ENTPs as Inventors

Inventor (Role Variant)

The Inventor Rational is one of the 16 role variants of the Keirsey Temperament Sorter, a self-assessed personality questionnaire designed to help people better understand themselves. David Keirsey originally described the Inventor role variant; however, a brief summary of the personality types...

, one of the four types belonging to the temperament he called the Rationals

Rational temperament

The Rational temperament is one of the four temperaments defined by David Keirsey. Correlating with the NT Myers-Briggs types, the Rational temperament comprises the following role variants : Architect , Fieldmarshal , Inventor , and Mastermind .-Description:Rationals are abstract in speech...

. ENTPs account for about 2–5% of the population.

The MBTI instrument

E – Extraversion preferred to introversion: ENTPs gain energy through interactions with people or objects in the outside world. They tend to enjoy having a wide circle of acquaintances.
N – Intuition preferred to sensing: ENTPs tend to be more abstract than concrete. They focus their attention on the big picture rather than the details, and on future possibilities rather than immediate realities.
T – Thinking preferred to feeling: ENTPs tend to value objective criteria above personal preference. When making decisions, they generally give more weight to logic than to social considerations.
P – Perception preferred to judgment: ENTPs tend to withhold judgment and delay important decisions, preferring to "keep their options open" should circumstances change.

ENTP characteristics

The ENTP has been described variously as the innovator, the originator, the lawyer, the inventor, the explorer, and the visionary. ENTPs also fall into the general categories of thinkers, rationals, and engineers.

Myers-Briggs description

Using their primary function-attitude of extraverted intuition (Ne), ENTPs are quick to see complex interrelationships between people, things, and ideas. These interrelationships are analyzed in profound detail through the ENTPs auxiliary function, introverted thinking (Ti). The result is an in-depth understanding of the way things and relationships work, and how they can be improved. To the ENTP, competence and intelligence are particularly prized, both in themselves and in other people.

ENTPs are frequently described as clever, cerebrally and verbally quick, enthusiastic, outgoing, innovative, flexible, loyal and resourceful. ENTPs are motivated by a desire to understand and improve the world they live in. They are usually accurate in sizing up a situation. They may have a perverse sense of humor and sometimes play devil's advocate, which can create misunderstandings with friends, coworkers, and family. ENTPs are ingenious and adept at directing relationships between means and ends. ENTPs devise fresh, unexpected solutions to difficult problems. However, they are less interested in generating and following through with detailed plans than in generating ideas and possibilities. In a team environment, ENTPs are most effective in a role where they can draw on their abilities to offer deep understanding, a high degree of flexibility, and innovative solutions to problems. The ENTP regards a comment like "it can't be done" as a personal challenge, and, if properly motivated, will spare no effort to discover a solution.

Keirsey descriptions

Inventors are introspective, pragmatic, informative, and expressive. They can become highly skilled in functional engineering and invention

Invention

An invention is a novel composition, device, or process. An invention may be derived from a pre-existing model or idea, or it could be independently conceived, in which case it may be a radical breakthrough. In addition, there is cultural invention, which is an innovative set of useful social...

. Of all the role variants, Inventors are the most resistant to doing things a certain way just because it was done that way in the past. Intensely curious, Inventors are always looking for new projects to work on, and they have an entrepreneurial character. Designing and improving mechanisms and products is a constant goal of Inventors.

Though full of ideas, Inventors are primarily interested in those that can be put into action or used to make products. For example, they see product design as a means to an end, the goal being a marketable prototype. When beginning a project, they rarely start with a blueprint. Rather they are confident in their ability to find effective and pragmatic solutions during the design process.

Inventors tend to be laid back, nonjudgmental, and good conversationalists. They are often nonconformists who attract a circle of friends interested in their ideas or activities. Generally informative rather than directive in their social exchanges, Inventors are often able to explain their own complicated ideas well, and to comprehend the complex ideas of others. In arguments they may use debating skills, often to the significant disadvantage of their opponent. This strategy can backfire, however, by alienating those seeking a cooperative relationship rather than a combative one.

Inventors are usually ingenious individuals who are capable of rising to meet the demands of challenging situations. In work, they tend to be good leaders of pilot products that test their abilities. Constantly looking for new ways to do things, Inventors usually have the drive and the social skills to implement their ideas.

Cognitive functions

Using the more modern interpretation, the cognitive functions of the ENTP are as follows:

Dominant: Extraverted intuition (Ne)

Ne finds and interprets hidden meanings. This intuitive play weaves together insights and experiences from various sources to find the whole, which can then become a catalyst to action. Ne allows the ENTP to effortlessly identify complex interrelationships between ideas, people, and things that are often invisible to most other personality types.

Auxiliary: Introverted thinking (Ti)

Ti seeks precision, such as the exact word to express an idea. It notices the minute distinctions that define the essence of things, then analyzes and classifies them. Ti examines all sides of an issue, looking to solve problems while minimizing effort and risk. It uses models to root out logical inconsistency. In the ENTP, Ti analyzes the constant stream of information that Ne provides. Ti develops structure and reconciles any inconsistencies in the ENTP's belief system. However, Ti cannot match the activity of Ne, which leads the ENTP to juggle multiple projects and theoretical enterprises at any given time, in various stages of completion.

Tertiary: Extraverted feeling (Fe)

Fe seeks social connections and creates harmonious interactions through polite, considerate, and appropriate behavior. Fe responds to the explicit (and implicit) wants of others, and may even create an internal conflict between the subject’s own needs and the desire to meet the needs of others. When Fe is well developed, the ENTP can foster goodwill in others, and can be seen as quite charming and loyal. When it is not well developed, the ENTP can be seen as aloof and unconcerned with other people's feelings. In most ENTPs, weakness of the tertiary function can be observed in its inconsistency or lack of endurance.

Inferior: Introverted sensing (Si)

Si collects data in the present moment and compares it with past experiences, a process that sometimes evokes the feelings associated with memory, as if the subject were reliving it. Seeking to protect what is familiar, Si draws upon history to form goals and expectations about what will happen in the future. Si offsets the ENTP's natural tendency toward anarchy and non-conformity. It acts as a sort of gravitational pull that keeps the ENTP in orbit around reality. Without this function, the ENTP can be seen as unpredictable and random, but when it is well developed, the ENTP is seen as orderly and understandable.

Shadow functions

Later personality researchers (notably Linda V. Berens) added four additional functions to the descending hierarchy, the so-called "shadow" functions to which the individual is not naturally inclined but which can emerge when the person is under stress. The shadow processes "operate more on the boundaries of our awareness…We usually experience these processes in a negative way, yet when we are open to them, they can be quite positive." For the ENTP these shadow functions are (in order):

Introverted intuition (Ni): Attracted to symbolic actions or devices, Ni synthesizes seeming paradoxes to create the previously unimagined. These realizations come with a certainty that demands action to fulfill a new vision of the future, solutions that may include complex systems or universal truths.
Extraverted thinking (Te): Te organizes and schedules ideas and the environment to ensure the efficient, productive pursuit of objectives. Te seeks logical explanations for actions, events, and conclusions, looking for faulty reasoning and lapses in sequence.
Introverted feeling (Fi): Fi filters information based on interpretations of worth, forming judgments according to criteria that are often intangible. Fi constantly balances an internal set of values such as harmony and authenticity. Attuned to subtle distinctions, Fi innately senses what is true and what is false in a situation.
Extraverted sensing (Se): Extraverted sensing focuses on the experiences and sensations of the immediate, physical world. With an acute awareness of the present surroundings, it brings relevant facts and details to the forefront and may lead to spontaneous action.

External links

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