16 Relations

Video introduction to the 16 relations

Author's notes:
Browse through these previews of each relation type for a quick summary of their Four Relationship Elements and social dynamics.

Read more for a quick reference on identifying the relations from known personality types and a list of small groups to further appreciate the differences of each.

Business Relations - [Read more...]

Basic relationship elements:

  • Egotistic orientations = monoverted
  • Social rhythms = rhythmic
  • Spiritual vibes = repulsive
  • Social rankings = symmetrical

Brief summary

  • It can provide 'superficial cooperation' where partners try to help each but don't understand the other's underlying motivations.
  • It can get dogmatic where partners relate to the other's problems from inconsistent viewpoints.
  • It can lead to formal interactions where partners remain concise and to-the-point with their thoughts.
  • It can help partners sympathise with each other's identical weaknesses.

Activation Relations - [Read more...]

Basic relationship elements:

  • Egotistic orientations = monoverted
  • Social rhythms = arrhythmic
  • Spiritual vibes = attractive
  • Social rankings = symmetrical

Brief summary

  • It can provide social dynamics similar to complementary relations.
  • It can get active and adventurous.
  • It can get started quite easily.
  • It can get irritating and argumentative.
  • It can get like a roller-coaster ride with regular break-fixes.
  • It can get over-stimulating requiring time spent apart.

Mirror Relations - [Read more...]

Basic relationship elements:

  • Egotistic orientations = hetroverted
  • Social rhythms = arrhythmic
  • Spiritual vibes = repulsive
  • Social rankings = symmetrical

Brief summary

  • It can stimulate new lines of thought where each partner can see the other half of a thought.
  • It can promote healthy debates.
  • It can get comfortable with little misunderstanding.
  • It can drain each other after a while from heated discussions.

Complementary Relations - [Read more...]

Basic relationship elements:

  • Egotistic orientations = hetroverted
  • Social rhythms = rhythmic
  • Spiritual vibes = attractive
  • Social rankings = symmetrical

Brief summary

  • It can promote self-actualisation i.e. the motive to realize all of one's potentialities.
  • It can help liberate from any complexes or neuroses.
  • It can help reaffirm one's role in society.
  • It can lead to an 'un-training effect' where each partner takes on the responsibilities that the other takes for granted thus lowering their need to think and act independently.
  • It can lead to an exclusive co-dependency.

Conflicting Relations - [Read more...]

Basic relationship elements:

  • Egotistic orientations = hetroverted
  • Social rhythms = arrhythmic
  • Spiritual vibes = repulsive
  • Social rankings = symmetrical

Brief summary

  • It can begin like the popular cliché that 'opposites attract'.
  • It can lead to a clash of values and temperaments.
  • It can get tiresome finding little or no 'common grounds'.
  • It can help partners appreciate their polar-opposite personality types.
  • It can end up like an endless mêlée of 'relational break-fixes'.

Semi-Complementary Relations - [Read more...]

Basic relationship elements:

  • Egotistic orientations = hetroverted
  • Social rhythms = rhythmic
  • Spiritual vibes = attractive
  • Social rankings = symmetrical

Brief summary

  • It can seem like complementary relations except partners realise a deficiency in 'yin and yang' chemistry like an engine with half the spark plugs removed.
  • It can get passionate when partners get together else remains indefinitely dispassionate when apart relying on 'coincidental meetings' for sparks to fly.
  • It can help partners resolve their neuroses and anxieties like complementary relations except not to the extent they would like resulting in unintentional quarrels.
  • It can lead to a partially exclusive co-dependency giving room to explore other relations unlike 'the jealous factor' of fully exclusive complementary relations.

Identity Relations - [Read more...]

Basic relationship elements:

  • Egotistic orientations = monoverted
  • Social rhythms = rhythmic
  • Spiritual vibes = repulsive
  • Social rankings = symmetrical

Brief summary

  • It can provide useful reflections of each other's problems.
  • It can result in a student-mentor relationship where roles often get reversed.
  • It can seem like a 'feedback loop' where each partner can't directly help the other.
  • It can lead to an envious relationship of each other's achievements.
  • It can help the other see another glimpse of themselves.

Kindred Relations - [Read more...]

Basic relationship elements:

  • Egotistic orientations = monoverted
  • Social rhythms = rhythmic
  • Spiritual vibes = repulsive
  • Social rankings = symmetrical

Brief summary

  • It can provide 'superficial like-mindedness' where partners can understand each others motivations albeit from a differing sphere of interests.
  • It can get cooperative when partners independently concentrate on their own special interests for the benefits it can bring to the other.
  • It can lead to a congenial, friendly and agreeable relationship.
  • It can help partners fine-tune their social skills and develop their socialization.

Mirage Relations - [Read more...]

Basic relationship elements:

  • Egotistic orientations = hetroverted
  • Social rhythms = rhythmic
  • Spiritual vibes = attractive
  • Social rankings = symmetrical

Brief summary

  • It can seem like extinguishing relations where partners have a clash of introspective/extrospective behaviours and attitudes.
  • It can get attractive with a 'deceptive like-mindedness' where the extrospective partner expects the introspective partner to adapt to his opposite temperament.
  • It can lead to a companionship of joint ventures and thought experiments in achieving goals.
  • It can help partners in practical ways rarely getting involved together with trivial matters.

Supervision Relations - [Read more...]

Basic relationship elements:

  • Egotistic orientations = hetroverted
  • Social rhythms = arrhythmic
  • Spiritual vibes = repulsive
  • Social rankings = asymmetrical

Brief summary

  • It can feel like the supervisor takes on a 'baby-sitters role' towards the supervisee.
  • It can get neurotic for the supervisee who drew 'the short end of the stick' in getting their 'little brother' social position.
  • It can get confusing for the supervisor in their 'big brother' social position when the supervisee doesn't respond well to their dominant attitudes.
  • It can help the supervisee appreciate how their weak and under-developed 4th function (see Model A) could work if they had the egotistical strength of the supervisor.
  • It can lead to a master-slave relationship composing of a 'sanctum of safety' provided by the supervisor who gets to 'defend the oppressed' in the form of the supervisee whom reciprocates with their undivided attention.

Quasi-Identity Relations - [Read more...]

Basic relationship elements:

  • Egotistic orientations = monoverted
  • Social rhythms = arrhythmic
  • Spiritual vibes = attractive
  • Social rankings = symmetrical

Brief summary

  • It can have misunderstandings analogous to people that read their language from left-to-right versus those who read from right-to-left.
  • It can require partners take more effort to understand each other's ideas as they initially get perceived 'back-to-front'.
  • It can lead to 'peaceful suspicions' of each partners dissimilar value systems.
  • It can lead to a clash of rational/irrational behaviours and attitudes.

Super Ego Relations - [Read more...]

Basic relationship elements:

  • Egotistic orientations = monoverted
  • Social rhythms = rhythmic
  • Spiritual vibes = repulsive
  • Social rankings = symmetrical

Brief summary

  • It can get deceptively alluring as partners view each other as 'mysterious ideals'.
  • It can get touchy-feely at times with half-baked admirations.
  • It can lead to 'fatal attractions' with misunderstood intentions.
  • It can lead to incongruent values, beliefs and outlooks.
  • It can help each other appreciate dissimilar ways of thinking albeit with great effort.

Extinguishing Relations - [Read more...]

Basic relationship elements:

  • Egotistic orientations = hetroverted
  • Social rhythms = rhythmic
  • Spiritual vibes = attractive
  • Social rankings = symmetrical

Brief summary

  • It can lead to suspicions of each partner's thought experiments.
  • It can have an intellectually attractive quality (at first).
  • It can end up with a clash of ideas and expectations.
  • It can lead to a clash of introspective/extrospective behaviours and attitudes.

Benefaction Relations - [Read more...]

Basic relationship elements:

  • Egotistic orientations = monoverted
  • Social rhythms = arrhythmic
  • Spiritual vibes = attractive
  • Social rankings = asymmetrical

Brief summary

  • It can seem like the beneficiary regularly takes an interest in the life of the benefactor.
  • It can get puzzling for the benefactor as to why their beneficiary has a fascination for them.
  • It can help the benefactor spiritually when the beneficiary seeks to offer advice to their weak and unconscious 5th function which enjoys receiving information.
  • It can lead to a give-and-take relationship where the benefactor tries to provide for the beneficiary though usually ends up receiving the actual benefits of an interaction.
  • It can seem like the beneficiary has drawn 'the short end of the stick' since he gives more than he receives though this doesn't interfere with his admiration for the benefactor who usually provides a sense of reassurance.
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