On April 6th, I had a Socionics Diagnostic interview with Jack from the World Socionics Society. He concluded that LII was the type that suit me best in socionics. LII stands for Logical Intuitive Integrator and this type is a rough translation to MBTI’s INTP and has Ti and Ne as its first two functions. Since Socionics defines functions differently and uses an 8 function stack, the translation does not map over entirely, but what does translate is that Ti and Ne are in the first and second slot in both systems. These functions have different definitions between the systems though and I’m going to talk about how I see each of those functions in my type related back to myself. You can read more about the complications involved in translating between systems on our Socionics reference page.
The video of our interview is below if you’d like to view it. You can also jump to 52:45 if you’d just like to hear Jack’s analysis and not listen to me talk about myself, which I can understand. You can also read about the LII type on the World Socionics Society’s blog.
Did I think I was an LII?
Before I dive into the LII’s functions… I have some tea to spill. (am I using that right Noor?)
Did I think I would get this type? NO. Honestly, LII was the type I had considered the least of the Alpha Quadra in Socionics, which consists of ILE (ENTP/NeTi), LII (INTP/TiNe), ESE (ESFJ/FeSi), and SEI (ISFJ/SiFe). For some reason, I have just refused to see myself as a Ti dominant type in any system I have come across. I’m sure the reasons are largely anecdotal and I’m letting that cloud my reasoning. Which again, since I’m doing that I can’t be Ti right? Wait… that is anecdotal again, dammit! Why does this always go in circles!?
Anyway, I spent the weekend reading up a bit on Socionics and thinking about how these types might relate back to me and my life. I did not really study the theory behind the Quadras very much but instead skipped straight to the types (which honestly, is probably part of the problem). Regardless, I spent my time considering whether I could be some type in Alpha Quadra, mostly because I believe my type to use those functions in the Objective Personality system (FF NeTi CSPB is my current self-type). Whether that is entirely accurate or not remains to be seen since currently the only way to be typed in that system requires you to be typed by Dave and Shannon (though I’m considering a call).
Speaking with my fiance the day before my interview, I expressed to her the type that I felt like I wanted to be and how that I probably wasn’t that type because I wanted to be that type. The type I told her I wanted to be was… ESE. The significance of this is that in Socionics, ESE is the dual type of LII. Their functions mirror each other in such a way that they support one another. LII has Strong Ti and Ne with weak Si and Fe. ESE has Strong Fe and Si with weak Ne and Ti. These types therefore support one another in their weak functions creating a complement. I’m still learning about duality and the significance of it in Socionics, but you can read a little bit more about relationships in socionics here.
Why did I want to be an ESE you ask? Well ESE is a type known for its natural ability to create fun and relaxing environments for those around them. When I’m in a group setting this is what I want to be able to do, and I want to do it well. I want to make sure that people are happy and having a good time. I did fear that I was not truly doing this for people and that my thoughts are truly elsewhere and therefore not actually providing those things for those around me and while this typing does not mean that I cannot do those things, it does confirm my suspicion that this is not my natural ability and something that will likely need to be continually developed. Anyway, I hope you are having a fun and relaxing time reading this article.
So I didn’t think I was an LII, but to be honest, I didn’t know much about what an LII was! And maybe you don’t either so let’s look at the types function’s together.
Ego Block – Leading Function:
Introverted Logic – Ti – Laws
In Socionics, each type has 8 functions which play out in different ways according to their position in what are referred to as the 4 blocks, Ego, Super-Ego, Super-Id, and Id. The Ego Block for the LII contains the Leading Function called Introverted Logic, Ti, or Laws and the Creative Function called Extroverted Intuition, Ne, or Ideas.
Alright so Ti… why didn’t I think this could be my leading function? As I stated earlier, I think the anecdotes were getting to me a bit. I just don’t see myself as someone who is particularly rigid in the way I navigate the world, which is something I have come to associate with Ti, particularly in terms of a leading function. I actually told my fiance about the people that have also been typed as LII and her response were… why are these all assholes?
I mean look at this guy…
Does this look like someone you’d want over to play Settlers of Catan with? I don’t think so…
Then look at me!
This guy looks like he is going to bring a 6-pack of beer to share to your game night!
Sure we both have curls in our hair, but… wait… that smile doesn’t look as pleasant as I remember. Dammit! Note to self: Update. Profile. Picture. Anyway, back to Ti…
In Jack’s analysis, he describes Introverted Logic as creating “certainty and structure”. This need for me to search for certainty is something I do see in myself, but with the knowledge and acceptance that certainty is not always achievable (although I do my best). I like to have a good sense of where the walls around me are, what rules are core and will guide each experience to its truest conclusion. In this way, I do see how Ti makes sense for me as a leading function. I am constantly relying on these principles and walls I’ve discovered to help keep me in check. It is important for me to know that when I am exploring outside the confines of these walls (which I’ll discuss more with Ne) and where things are more known and certain. I do tend to approach things fairly cautiously until I discover where the new walls are and carefully map out my surroundings.
“I like to have a good sense of where the walls around me are, what rules are core and will guide each experience to its truest conclusion.”
One example where this cautious behavior manifests is when joining a new group of people. I like to understand what the social constructs of that group are before cracking jokes at an inopportune time or calling too much attention to myself too early. I tend to prefer to remain on the sidelines and observe before diving into that environment and when I finally do, I like for there to be a place on the sidelines I can return to rather than remaining there for too long. I experiment and feel out what works in this new environment and what doesn’t as I slowly build up what makes sense for me in this new environment. In this way, I see that Ti is the way in which I have learned to navigate many of the everyday constructs like this one.
When relating this idea to other concepts you can see the ways in which my Ti manifests in my approach to many aspects of life. I’ve developed my understanding and principles surrounding things and I don’t necessarily want to stray from those. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. But… if it is broke and is causing unnecessary pain or displeasure, then let’s take a look at it and fix it. I see myself sticking to things like a water bottle that suits my needs with a cap that is easy to open and slides nicely into my backpack, spending time looking for a backpack that will address the specific use cases I have for it, and employing my known strategies when playing a game that I know well and seems to work for me while looking for ways to build on them rather than completely abandoning that existing structure.
Relating this all back to Objective Personality, I’ve heard a lot recently about Oi being about building on the known vs Oe being about exploring the new. As someone who has self typed as an Oe and been typed by others generally as Oe, this has given me a bit of pause since my Socionics typing. While I am a fairly risk averse and cautious person, as I described above and discussed in the interview, I do see myself as someone who is always staying open to new experiences that can build on my existing understandings (that is just what an Oi would say o_o). This openness is the key to how I see myself as Oe over Oi generally speaking. Being open to trying these new things and exploring outside my walls. But, when we look at the definitions of how the coins are written and diagnosed in OP, it is entirely possible that I could actually be considered an Oi in this system. Maybe I’m crazy, but I’d be interested to hear some feedback about this from my OP peeps.
For reference, everyone’s favorite Objective Personality Librarian, Laura, was also typed as LII by Jack in Socionics, but was typed MF SiTe BPSC in Objective Personality (Oi > Oe). Her video is below if you haven’t seen it already.
Ego Block – Creative Function:
Extroverted Intuition – Ne – Ideas
My buddy Ne… what can I say about my buddy Ne…
Ne is something I have felt fairly confident I could see myself using since I first learned about it in my early studies of the MBTI. I don’t think translating the concept over to Socionics really changed my perception of Ne all that much (at least not yet). I see myself using Ne in a seeking of ideas with which to toy around with in my mind. I have always loved turning these ideas over in my head and trying to make sense of them, how does it all fit together. I’ve come to realize that a lot of this is essentially my Ne and Ti working together to create some underlying structure, and really when I think about it in this way it becomes hard to really separate out all the functions because they are all working together to contribute to that understanding. Perhaps the simple fact that I think about it in terms of this theoretical construct in my mind is one aspect of my use of Ne.
“I see myself using Ne in a seeking of ideas with which to toy around with in my mind.”
But where do I see myself using Ne in my life? Well again Jack talks in his analysis about he saw me wanting to “get deep into systems and look at different possibilities”. This rings true for me, particularly when I consider my approach to programming at work where I’m using Ne to explore the possible ways we could approach problems from a theoretical perspective. Rather than necessarily knowing exactly what to do with a problem using empirical data or experience with similar problems, I am often thinking on the fly and coming up with new solutions to these problems or finding ways to improve what is already there by moving this piece here or that piece there. This approach similarly has its benefits in games where I’m constantly trying to understand the ways in which my limited resources and knowledge can be leveraged to uncover a new strategy that may be more effective.
In this way I constantly see myself looking for the other option in situations. If this option exists, what could be its opposite? What if I combine this with this, or that with that and so on. This can sometimes result in fairly humorous and absurd thoughts which can be fun to point out in the moment, or cause me to laugh at an inopportune time. However, it can also result in a new solution that others might not have explored from focusing too much on the empirical data and what has been proven to work in the past. By exploring beyond those bonds I can end up discovering something new or building on what was there in a previously unexplored way.
Stepping back to Objective Personality again, Ne is seen as gathering concepts prior to organizing them. So perhaps this is where we can see that I could still be Oe > Oi in OP. I spoke above of exploring what could be and attempting to figure things out theoretically without regard for the known (aka boring) information. In fact, one of my preferred ways to learn things is to explore and observe in a fairly random manner to get a larger picture of what is going on so that I can then attempt to piece the larger picture together in my mind. This relates back to my previously discussed preference to largely remain on the sidelines before jumping in, but I still tend to see this as an Oe method of discovering information. While I tend to do it cautiously, I do often plunge in and then try to organize what all I’ve learned later. Does this sound like CS as I’ve been typed as in OP, or does it sound like something else?
The end of part one…
Thus concludes my exploration of the first piece of my Socionics type, my Ego block, Ti and Ne. Tune in next time to see how I feel about the next parts. Will I ramble on and start talking about OP? Will I discuss more than two functions? Only time will tell…
Subjective Personality 
I love your article and thanks for referencing my video.
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Roqb = ILE-D
Rachel Maddow = ILE-D
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