Resource Personality Typing, Established and Original Characters

This may come across as weird to some of you and I'm sorry. I've been into typing for quite a while and I've found that sometimes, when one is stuck, it helps to type a character before continuing. And taking any kind of a test on your character's behalf is fun.

What is personality typing? Determining what cognitive functions (for Jungian type tests - i.e. Myers-Briggs, Keirsey, some aspects of Big Five, 16 Personalities, Socionics) the person is using and in which order; determining a bunch of factors that makes you tick (Enneagram, some aspects of Big Five, most other tests) and it's handy for writers as much as it's handy for psychologists, teachers, HR folk and the like.

The accuracy of tests may or may not depend on the taker's sincerity, same for repeated different results. One has to know what they're responding.

So, tell me about typing your characters? Have you ever done so? Have you had a sage who is INFJ, an action hero who is ESTP, an evil ENTJ/INTJ, and so on? Or did your characters go far past these stereotypes?

Links to some tests:
http://16personalities.com
http://www.keys2cognition.com/explore.htm
http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/jtypes2.asp
http://www.keirsey.com/sorter/register.aspx (requires registration)
http://www.sociotype.com/tests/ (attention, introverts: the last letter of your result WILL be different compared to MBTI and other Jungian tests)
http://www.socionics.com/advan/tests.html (same as above)
http://www.personalitypathways.com/type_inventory.html (quick and dirty, with special instructions)
http://similarminds.com/personality_tests_index.html#.WOijRvmGO70 (a whole bunch of tests, the author even made some of their own systems)
http://www.celebritytypes.com/personality-tests.php
https://enneagramtest.net/
https://www.eclecticenergies.com/enneagram/test.php (two tests)

Links to some websites for typing*:
https://funkymbtifiction.tumblr.com/ (aka "Funk My Bit Fiction" )
http://theintuitivemusician.com/
https://mbti-databank.com/
http://www.celebritytypes.com/

* Results for the same famous people may vary, greatly!

So, did you type your characters? How about ECs? What makes them tick? How does your type influence what you're writing? Let's start the discussion!

 

I did this for Claire Moonstep, just for the heck of it, and what I got wasn't quite her. But then she's a brand new OC, and I'm still getting to know her.

 

Cool thread, Ewok Poet! So it comes up that Mirany is ISFJ-A (Defender).

 

I am not surprised at all. That's how I had typed her in my mind.

 

And fugitive Jedi Kash Ferros is ENFJ-T, Protagonist.

 

I'm an ENFP, a child of an ISTJ and a (deceased) ENTP. Life was never dull, it's just that dad drove over the Inner German Border, cooked on camping gas in a hotel room and did a lot of thinks that his ENTP colleague Will E. Coyote would be intrigued by.

My stories usually have NF protagonists, and an occasional NT or SP.

Luke (IMHO), Teebo, Anjie Mencuri, Doria Vorr, Oolteema Misura - INFP
Lil , Deeina Ferry, Luufi (the older one) - ISFP
Charon San Valorum, Luufi (the younger one) - INFJ
Latara, Gredda of R'vanye, Kaargo - ENTP
Code:Blue, Sladok Kusetzi - ESFJ
Taide Lambrin - INTP

And villains of all kinds. But the current one is of an unexpected type.

Roula of Pelayn, Antonio Nokaarbe (not a villain, he's an annoyance) - ESTP
The Wanderer - INTJ

My most recent creation, the Astraali grey Jedi, former Padawan called Ahyolu is an ENFP. I am not sure if I'm writing that type well, the differences are so subtle, but let's say that she made some choices to stay alive and than an INFP would have gladly gone down in such situations, because MORALS.

What I found incredible is that some characters, especially ECs, end up being what you don't expect. For example, Latara ends up having a very rare personality type for non-scientist women: ENTP.

Another thing I found interesting is how many ENTPs and ESTPs exist in cartoons, basically every second character.

When it comes to main SW characters...

...people usually type Luke as INFP or ISFP, rarely ENFP.
...Leia as ENTJ or ESTJ, rarely ENFJ.
...Han as ESTP or ISTP.
...Threepio as ISFJ.
...Darth Vader is a clear ISTJ, but it's hard to type Anakin Skywalker. Not even going to try.

I have seen a lot about Padmé Amidala, but my guess is ISFJ. She comes across as intuitive in TPM, but not in the other films.

Some of my typings coming up...

Legacy comics:
Cade Skywalker - ENTP
Deliah Blue - ENFP
Jariah Syn - ISTJ
Darth Maladi - INTJ
Darth Talon - ISTP
Antares Draco - INFP - and a very extreme example at it
Roan Fel - ENTP
Marasiah Fel - ENTJ
Astraal Vao - ESFJ
Shado Vao - ENFJ
Nat Skywalker/Bantha Rawk - INFJ
Dru - ESFJ
Pretty much any assassin chasing Cade - ISTP
Darth Krayt - INFJ (a screwed up example, he acts much like Hitler would have and Hitler was an INFJ)

Ewoks:
Wicket - ESFP
Kneesaa - ENFJ
Teebo - INFP
Latara - ENTP
Paploo - ESTP
Malani - ENFP
Morag the Tulgah Witch - INTJ
Chief Chirpa - ISFJ
Weechee Warrick - ESTJ
Widdle Warrick - ISTP - and a damn weird one at it. He thinks before he does extremely WTF things.
King Gorneesh - ESTP
Umwak the Dulok Shaman - INTP
Umwak's nephew - ISTJ
Aunt Bozzie - ISTJ
Shodu Warrick - ESFJ
Logray - INFJ
PD-28 - ISFJ
Doctor Raygar - ENTJ
Admiral Kaaz - ESTJ
Hoona the Phlog from the Blue Harvest episode - ESFJ
Mring Mring the Gupin - ISFP
Ubel the Gupin - ISTJ
Asha (Asha Fahn, according to the newer SW material) - ISFP

The Thrawn Trilogy:
Thrawn - INTJ
Talon Karrde, Niles Ferrier, Mazzic - ESTP
Mara Jade - Definitely a Fi user with thinking prioritised. I am leaning towards ISTJ.
Ghent , Winter - INTP
Joruus C'baoth - ENFJ. Manipulative Fe and all
Garm Bel Iblis - ENFP
Wedge Antilles - ESTJ
Gial Ackbar - A very cerebral INFP. Been thinking so since ROTJ (where the other not-so-obvious INFP is Teebo), this proves it.
Borsk Fey'lya - ESTJ


Some more thoughts:

I agree that the Emperor should be an extravert. ENTJ, not INTJ.

Jyn Erso has got to be one of the three blank expression types: INFP, ISFP or ISTJ. She has a RBF throughout the movie, the other thirteen types are far more expressive. I see more Si than Se, but maybe that's just me. My guess is ISTJ, same for Rey. Somebody is trying to show us the good side of the "orphan" and "everyman" stereotypes, especially after Vader was an example for about all the worst and most confusing things about ISTJs.

And trust me on this, an ISTJ is snoring in front of the TV set.

 

Well, Kess is an ESTJ. Mel is an ENFP.

 

So Gaven is a ISFJ a defender.
And it fits to him, he is truly compassionate and friendly and allways tries to see the best in others. He cares a great deal for his friends and puts himself at great risks to protect them.
Howerver he is also very self critical and struggles to deal with his own emotions.

 

I have my beefs with personality typing for real people - but I won't go into them.

However, it is an interesting idea to do it for characters, particularly OCs if you are stuck somewhere or trying to develop them into a realistic personality with depth.

I quickly did one for Lukia Skywalker and got ESTP and yeah, considering she is fairly defiant, it fits her. I haven't done Emrys yet, but I haven't really developed her personality to that point. She's probably going to be something like ISFJ

 

ESTPs can be good, but they need to mature, which most of them don't. And then we have people like Judi Dench and Meryl Streep who are ESTPs who are mature and responsible. So, yes, it's possible. Not all of them are serial killers - that's the ISTPs. In fact, ESTPs are common action heroes - those with great control of their bodies, reflexes et cetera, but with a YOLO attitutde.

ESFPs are usually depicted as silly in fiction. I have Larax Antilless as an example where that trope is played straight. They can also be protagonists in children's shows and films. Wicket is a good example. He's an ESFP that is not seen as "dumb" by his peers, just slightly immature and so on. He keeps that personality in Return of the Jedi as well.

You can always try one of the cognitive functions tests as opposed to a dichotomy one, just to be sure. An ESTP will have Se and Ti, an ESFP Se and Fi as primary functions.

That said, I love my functions acronym - FiNeSiTe - it's like my job.

 

Hi Ewok Poet! What an excellent thread.

I think I've seen a thousand-and-one ways to set up characters in all those "help-to-write" books, but using the actual matrices for real personalities seems like a very good idea to get authentic results.

While it is a matter of taste and necessity on how much time and effort a writer spends on this process for his/her characters, I've found the more the better. Once you really know who your character is, the story almost writes itself as they take on their own life.

As an addendum to your brilliant ideas, I'd like to suggest two things...

1. Once you've got your character's personality down, the next most important thing is to sort out their drive: This is made up of two components - what they want (purpose) and why they want it (motivation).

2. Make sure to match (or mismatch, is perhaps a better word) characters with diametrically opposed personalities - then let the sparks fly!

K

 

I agree about 2.

As for 1, that goes beyond personality typing.

Also...do the test on behalf of your characters? I suspect that Maya is a (rare smart fictional) ESFP, but I might be wrong.

 

Ewok Poet ; Oooh, close... ENFP-T (Campaigner). Another time she was "Protagonist" - but it is difficult because I sometimes project my own answers onto her. The Qs about sensitivity to others depend on the situation, too. Most topics she tries for empathy - but she is devoted to the idea of the Republic, so when others criticise it "pushes her buttons". She can't compromise in that situation.

I'll try Cal next - he'll be totally different.

 

I knew that she would've had to be an extraverted Fi user, but I didn't see her as this "one love" type, more like a solo player. The more I think, I was wrong, because she forms a team with the Clones. The result you got makes perfect sense.

My ENFP has to live alone and she cannot stand it, so as a result of that, she develops a very, very snarky approach to people who are not into chat and go on and on about important concepts. Atypical.

And wow, wow, was I wrong about my weird archaeologist, Taide Lambrin. Thought him an INTP, he's an INFJ. Still confused, as I just cannot perceive him as somebody who can actually handle his own emotions.

EDIT: One cognitive test has him as Ti dom, the other clearly has him as INTP. 16personalities is not perfect.

 

Ewok Poet you're right: The trouble I was having is that she is actually changing after having met the clones. Some of the answers depend on what time I look at her. That process will continue right to the finale...

I like the sound of your ENFP - that is a high-stress situation to put them in. Excellent food for drama.

As for your archaeologist, sometimes perceptions don't match what's happening inside. People who look very secure can actually be insecure but good at hiding it (or compensating) etc. I like the layers you put on your characters, that's what makes them surprise people.

I can see what 16p is trying to do, but the situational Qs can be too specific and so people tend towards the neutral answers - which can cancel each other out, or get those wavering results. If they could give greater weighting to more generalised Qs, or perhaps break them down into sub-questions; "Are you more shy in this situation? How about this situation?" etc. it might get sharper results - you can see above Findswoman struggled with the one about e-mails. It's good for a quick fun look, not for diagnosis.

Now I am totally absorbed in a new world I knew virtually nothing about thanks to you. Damn you!

 

The thing is, those two types don't have much in common: INFJs are people-people and my archaeologist is absolutely not one of those. In the story Findswoman wrote for me, he's chosen for a ceremony of crowning a festival queen and he's totally like NOT ME PLEASE NOT ME I BEG YOU NOT ME in his mind. So, he cannot be somebody with high Fe. I am not sure why 16personalities gives such a weird test result, when all other websites give INTP as the most probable one.

And yeah, it's contagious, isn't it? Funny, my type is the type most into it. We're kind of anti-standard in this world, those who underperform, make less money than others and all, but we're overachieving when it comes to stuff we like, so we kind of need to understand ourselves better.

 

So I was really into reading about the MBTI in high school and used to use it as a basis for inventing OC's... but then I seemed to end up with the same 16 people over and over. Funny how that worked out. And I have read that there are multiple other theories about what types (if any) best describe people. But I still like how in-depth and interesting the profiles get for the various types, and definitely like to use the types to flesh out characters if I can figure out what fits best with them.

These days, I tend to start from writing the character first, which undoubtedly has its problems too. Often all I can tell you for typing is a few ball park guesses and also "oops". Could be that my characters are very complex, or it could be that I'm sloppy at personality building. A little from column A, a little from column B?

Okay, as for a few of the characters that I can remember writing/outlining:

Yoda - I wrote an entire story from his POV and have no clues as to his type, actually. INTP-ish... but not really.

Padmé - Again, your guess is as good as mine. I think I was thinking ENFJ while writing, but as to how accurate that is... no clue.

Lydia Shelvay (OC) - ENFP in the test that I tried a while ago, which sounds pretty close. I'd originally been thinking ESTP, but ENFP would explain a lot too.

Elena Shelvay (minor Legends/EU) - Probably some flavor of NT, but acts like an SJ. She's seriously hard to type; I can't even say extrovert/introvert for sure. (And usually that's the easy one!) She's so suspicious of people that it skews any "people person" tendencies that might be lurking. She's a very minor character, so most of that is from what I've extrapolated or just plain made up.

Ahnjai Rahmma (minor Legends/EU) - ISFJ. Reserved by nature and circumstance. Has a rather deep and poetic view of things (those around him often have no idea). Friendship and filial relationships are super important, and he's very strongly motivated by the traditional code of ethics he was raised with on his homeworld. He's modified his interpretation of that code over the years, but it's still the baseline.

Antinnis Tremayne (minor Legends/EU) - INF?; probably INFJ. He's what happens when an idealist turns to the dark side and can't face themselves -- so he's going to take it out on others and/or try to drag them down the same path. Very guilt-ridden (which he will NEVER ACKNOWLEDGE) and very dangerous because he's got himself mostly believing his own propaganda. There are bad guys who know they're bad guys, and bad guys who think they're good guys. Antinnis is a bad guy who knows he is one deep down, and is going to burn the galaxy down if that's what it takes to justify his investment in the Empire. (Some of this is pure headcanon but a lot is my interpretation of the existing EU material, which provides enough to make some guesses about his character.)

Tionne (Legends/EU) - INFP. Not sure if she's more of an extrovert in canon, but the NFP portion is pretty strongly hinted at with her idealism and love of the arts. (Though I'm sure there are other possibilities; I just went for the easy one in this case since writing an INFP is writing what I know best. )

Kam Solusar (Legends/EU) - Definitely an introvert, probably ISFJ or ISTJ. More of a down to earth type of person than most of the Imperial and New Republic disasters he's worked alongside. (Again, this one is mostly guesswork, though his relative lack of drama in the New Jedi Order is kind of a thing of legend. Or should be.)

 

I loved all of these descriptions, particularly the one of Tremayne. Idealists gone to the dark side are hard to write, but the people behind TFA have shown us that it's possible - Kylo Ren is almost certainly a fallen INFP.

From the way you describe Kam Solusar, I'd think that ISTJ sounds much better. When they are healthy, they can be absolutely and totally drama-immune.

For Elena, I...I give up. Impossible. But she is definitely acting like a SJ, you're right about that one. Perhaps an INTJ would be the closest of the NT types? They're like cynical idealists when not having dark tendencies...

 

This is from the perspective of someone who writes a lot of original characters:

I've found reading biographies to be helpful for creating personalities as well as understanding attitudes.

For instance, authors who write more 'soldier' perspective works, I'd recommend reading works written by actual military personnel to get an idea of attitudes and such for realism. I bring that up because that's a subject near and dear to me due to my own military service.

On a more general basis I read biographies to help with creating characters because it gives me an idea on how experiences can also shape someone. Again referring to the military example, there are tons of biographies ranging from those written by generals to those written by soldiers that can show how their experiences shaped who they are. It's another technique to use.

 

I'm an INFP through and through. The majority of my original main characters (which really, start out as alter-egos of myself) end up INFP, sometimes ENFP. Except for the one I was focusing on portraying being more in charge and decisive, she tested as ESFJ.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

 

I had two co-managers once, that put us through one of these at work, and I wish I still had the report that saddled me perfectly between two types. I remember that depending on the results, whomever ran the session, divided attendees into a sort of Venn Diagram to give the personality types that applied, and I was stuck out by myself.

This was years ago, and the main benefit for me, that I carry forward, is that the process recognised and validated my need for colours. I do a lot of colour-related keys in spreadsheets; and if you are familiar with my fics, you will recognise that I often assign colours to characters' speech, usually assigned by importance to the plot.

I do not "type" my people. I might try this for my E-Branch pair sometime.

 

The thing with INFPs and ENFPs is that they are so, so close - unlike all other E/I pairs. A depressed ENFP can type as INFP - I know I did, for many years. An INFP with bipolar disorder, ADHD or under influence can type as ENFP.

I recommend writing own type as an exercise and to generally blossom as a writer (is this even an idiom or am I so excited about writing again that I'm saying pure nonsense?), so you're doing the same thing I'm doing.

 

Although I do not understand one single of the abbreviations, this thread is pretty interesting As I want to be a psychologist, I love creating my characters' personalities and characteristics to the point where I go into the characters's fathers' brother's traumatic experience at age 5 that causes his father to beat him as a child... see what I mean? I've never done like a personality test, though. Sounds interesting

 

Go ahead and type yourself, then type 'em all.