Carl Jung - Helping Psychology

Extraversion-Introversion is a key component of what makes up the human personality. More aggressive and gregarious individuals are generally referred to as extraverts, while introverts tend to prefer solitude and worry less about being social. By no means are introverts lonely people, they simply prefer to socialize and work in smaller groups. Extraverts live to meet new people and constantly expand their circle of friends, and they often do this quite actively.


The important thing to notice in the description above is that being an introvert has nothing to do with being afraid or anxious about socialization.Introversion is a choice, or at least a preference. Carl Jung initiated the study of Extraversion-Introversion when detailing his analytical model of human personality.
Although Jung contributed a great deal to the world of academics and psychology, his theory on Extraversion-Introversion is so well known that people often believe this was the only thing he studied. Jung observed that society leans in favor of extraverts most of the time, but often inferred that introverts are the more mature group. In the most basic terms, Jung said that Extraversion and Introversion explained the ways in which human beings respond to the world around them.

Jung insisted that in order for a human to be an extravert, he or she had to have only a small leaning toward Introversion and therefore the converse would also be true. Popular psychology today tends to believe that everyone has a mix of Extraversion and Introversion, but Jung’s philosophy differed entirely. So what did Jung say about extraverts? He theorized that they seek excitement and stimulation outside of themselves and that they almost always get enjoyment from being in large groups of people. Parties, politics and public demonstrations would be a great place to look for an extravert. Introverts, according to Jung, prefer to read, write and think.

While they do enjoy socializing, they prefer to do it with small groups of people they already know. Most find no reason to look to expand their social circles. The reason that Jung saw the two personality types as complete polar opposites is that he referred to Extraversion-Introversion as the direction of psychic energy . In other words, if a person felt energized during a party, they would be considered an extravert, as their energy flowed outwards. If a person felt drained during a party, but livened after reading a short book, they would be considered an introvert as their energy obviously flowed inwards. Although Jung did extensive work defining the two personality types, he did not offer a simple way to determine the leanings of an individual. Today the Myers Brigg Type Indicator is a quick test that, when answered honestly, will help an individual discover their own personality type and the implications thereof.


Article Source: Carl Jung Extravert Vs Introvert