Function-attitudinal roles
Hero — the conscious identity. Axial opposite of the soul, orbital opposite of the nemesis, polar opposite of the demon.
Parent — protector of the child and the ultimate excuse. Axial opposite of the child, orbital opposite of the senex, polar opposite of the trickster.
Child — obsessive excuse. Axial opposite of the parent, orbital opposite of the trickster, polar opposite of the senex.
Soul — the point of comfort. Axial opposite of the hero, orbital opposite of the demon, polar opposite of the nemesis.
Nemesis — a natural strength that is ignored until necessary. Axial opposite of the demon, orbital opposite of the hero, polar opposite of the soul.
Senex — an object of critique and a way to criticize others. Axial opposite of the trickster, orbital opposite of the parent, polar opposite of the child.
Trickster — a point of ignorance and pain. Axial opposite of the senex, orbital opposite of the child, polar opposite of the parent.
Demon — a point of neglect. Axial opposite of the nemesis, orbital opposite of the soul, polar opposite of the hero.
The terminology was introduced by John Beebe (albeit is slightly altered). Refers to which role is the primary of which archetype. Usually non-capitalized when referring to the positions.
Positional dichotomies
Ego-syntonic vs Ego-dystonic
- ego-syntonic — complimentary to the Ego’s values (“I like”, “I value”); hero, parent, child, soul;
- ego-dystonic — adversary to the Ego’s values (“I dislike”, “I devalue”); nemesis, senex, trickster, demon.
Matrix vs Core
- matrix — taken seriously, forms the basis of worldview; hero and soul (as well as nemesis and demon);
- core — excuse for the matrix; parent and child (as well as senex and trickster).
Active vs Passive
- active — paid attention to as an area of activity; hero/nemesis and parent/senex;
- passive — not paid attention to as an area of activity; soul/demon, child/trickster.
Optimistic vs Pessimistic
- optimistic — hero/nemesis and child/trickster orbits. Unbalanced excitation-inhibition. Careless use, confident, inflexible;
- pessimistic — parent/senex and soul/demon. Balanced excitation-inhibition. Careful use, unconfident, more flexible.
Exterior vs Interior
- exterior — in line with the hero’s attitude; demonstrated to the outer world, bold; hero, child, senex, demon;
- interior — not in line with the hero’s attitude; hidden from the outer world; parent, soul, nemesis, trickster.
Mental vs Vital
- mental — concurring for consciousness (“I want to be like”); hero, parent, demon, trickster;
- vital — subdued by the mental (“I have no desire to be like”); nemesis, senex, soul, child.
- contacting – roles via which information is rapidly transmitted; hero, soul, senex, trickster;
- ignoring – roles not particularly responsive to communication; nemesis, demon, parent, child.
Positional tetrachotomies
Orbits
Corresponds to the four functions.
- dominant (matrix, active, optimistic) — hero/nemesis — the function pertaining to this orbit is the flagship of the psyche, its most weighty area;
- manipulative (core, active, pessimistic) — parent/senex — this function is not particularly confident, but flexible, paid attention to as an area of activity and not just the most principled. It is used as the biggest excuse for the dominant function, characterized by a certain “manipulativeness” in terms of its aspects;
- problematic (core, passive, optimistic) — child/trickster — the child in its hyperfixation (which can prove quite draining to the individual) further reinforces the illusion of the trickster’s capability. The function itself is quite inflexible, but not subject to particular standards and normally not paid too much attention to;
- inferior (matrix, passive, pessimistic) — soul/demon — the function pertaining to this orbit is partially neglected by the dominant function’s overconfidence, lacking confidence by itself and partially ignored. Nevertheless, certain primitive standards are still assigned to it, and their fulfillment can be pleasing or interesting.
Blocks
Corresponds to energetic pairs (Ji + Pe or Je + Pi) of function-attitudes.
- ego block (ego-syntonic, active, mental) — hero-parent;
- superid block (ego-syntonic, passive, vital) — soul-child;
- id block (ego-dystonic, active, vital) – nemesis-senex;
- superego block (ego-dystonic, passive, mental) — demon-trickster.
Libidinal levels
Represents how energy is distributed between the roles.
- identity (exterior, ego-syntonic, optimistic) — hero, child — the pair with the highest energy consumption, used to maintain a sense of personal identity, showcasing the biggest strength and hiding the biggest weakness. But while the hero comes naturally, the child can be quite draining to focus attention on;
- defense (exterior, ego-dystonic, pessimistic) — demon, senex — unconfident, but demonstrative pair, energy to which is directed for the sake of protecting the enlightenment pair (without such a necessity it would be neglected). The identity of the Persona;
- enlightenment (interior, ego-syntonic, pessimistic) — soul, parent — the key to balancing the psyche and healthy self-realization of the individual. The identity of the Anima;
- suppression (interior, ego-dystonic, optimistic) — nemesis, trickster — the lowest libidinal level. The identity of the Shadow.
Social roles
Reflects the place of roles in social interaction.
- mission (exterior, active, contacting) — hero, senex — socially engaged, demonstrative area, constituting the individual’s conscious agenda, as well as the object and means of critique;
- adaptation (exterior, passive, ignoring) — demon, child — cover for the inertness pair. The mission of the Persona;
- privacy (interior, active, ignoring) — nemesis, parent — an area of private indulgement, serving as a source of hidden wisdom, but concealed from the outer world. The mission of the Shadow;
- inertness (interior, passive, contacting) — soul, trickster — most commonly underdone, but can sometimes be overdone (sometimes, when soul is not satisfied, trickster can be used to do its bidding — for example, when TiNe grants itself the right to apply physical violence for the sake of justice or when FiNe utilizes rape to gain a sense of authority, these types being otherwise opposed to Se). The mission of the Anima.
Four main archetypes
Ego — the main lens by the means of which one sees the world. Based around the ego block. “conscious”
Persona — a way to adapt to the collective. Based around the superego block. “preconscious”
Shadow — the mechanism of suppressing ego-dystonic informational contents in favor of the Ego. Based around the id block. “unconscious” (not to be confused with the broader notion of the unconscious)
Anima — the mechanism of repressing ego-syntonic informational contents in favor of the Persona. Based around the superid block. “subconscious”