Determining the Basic Psychotype Through Nervous System Traits

How can you quickly identify a person’s psychotype? How can you accurately determine someone’s basic psychotype? Which psychotype should you adapt to if you don’t know the base? How do you figure out which of two highlighted psychotypes is the primary one? How do you determine your own psychotype?

In this article, I’ll answer these questions by describing an algorithm for personality profiling at the initial stage. Why at the initial stage? In any activity (driving, playing a musical instrument, etc.), there are skills that are developed and integrated through targeted and systematic practice. There’s no more effective tool for mastering a profession or craft than daily practice. Where? Anywhere: on the street, at work, while watching movies, or interacting with clients. After accumulating enough experience, you develop an “eye” for it, so that when a new person enters your field of view, you immediately have assumptions close to the truth, and through further interaction and observation, you confirm them.

But until you reach that point, let’s recall what we base our descriptions of people’s behavioral traits on. Higher nervous activity (HNA) in humans is characterized by innate anatomical and physiological features of the nervous system. These are the traits of the nervous system. Whether you like it or not, they influence the formation of individual behavioral patterns and character. While they don’t directly reflect the content of the psyche, they are the physiological foundation that prepares the ground. With certain traits, some behaviors form more easily; with opposite traits, others do.

The main nervous system traits are: strength, mobility, and balance. When describing psychotypes, we refer to these nervous system traits. So, the first thing you can do when meeting a new person is try to identify behavioral indicators that correspond to specific nervous system traits. Through further observation, you can draw conclusions about their basic psychotype.

Key Nervous System Traits and Their Behavioral Indicators

Strength of the Nervous System

This trait reflects the working capacity of the brain’s cortex cells, i.e., their ability to withstand either very strong or prolonged (even if not strong) stimulation without entering an inhibitory state. [Bulaeva K.B., Genetic Foundations of Human Psychophysiology]

• Signs of a Strong Nervous System:
  • High work capacity. Can work for long periods without fatigue. They don’t get distracted or lose productivity during work, though it may take them longer to get into the workflow compared to those with a weak nervous system.
  • Slower learning. It takes longer to master new material due to a slower formation of conditioned reflexes, but they have an advantage in memorizing large amounts of information.
  • Lower sensitivity to feedback. May seem indifferent to low-intensity stimuli. For example, they may not care much about how their words affect others and are hard to interrupt once they start talking.
  • Adapt well to various working conditions. Can work effectively in noisy, distracting environments, such as open offices, without a drop in efficiency. They can also handle very strong stimuli.
  • Strong willpower. High endurance, patience (especially if also inert), persistence, and stubbornness. Stubbornness is especially noticeable in interactions.
• Signs of a Weak Nervous System:
  • Low work capacity. They get involved in activities quickly but make mistakes and lose focus during prolonged or intense work. They need frequent breaks, more rest, and sleep. It’s better to assign them tasks from complex to simple, so the main workload is at the start.
  • Low resistance to external stimuli. Working in distracting environments is challenging, as their resources are spent processing these distractions instead of the main task. Open offices are especially tough for them, leading to frequent distractions and low efficiency.
  • High sensitivity and vulnerability. They notice subtle signals, are more empathetic, and react strongly to perceived injustice, even if it’s not real.
  • Fast learning. They form conditioned reflexes quickly, adapt easily to new conditions, and pick up information rapidly. This is their strength.
  • Need for feedback. They often seek others’ opinions, have trouble making decisions alone, are easily interrupted, and are influenced by others’ viewpoints. They watch for reactions and approval during conversations.
  • Prone to inhibition. They don’t handle criticism or negative feedback well. If publicly reprimanded, they may withdraw from work for a long time or even sabotage further tasks.

Mobility of the Nervous System

This trait is the ability to quickly respond to changes in the environment and switch between excitation and inhibition processes.

• Signs of an Inert (Stuck) Nervous System:
  • Difficulty switching tasks. They struggle to move from one activity to another until the previous one is finished. In conversations, they find it hard to change topics until the current one is closed.
  • Slower learning and skill acquisition. They need more time to understand new information or learn new activities. High performance is possible only after actions become automatic.
  • Slower information processing. They may react to jokes or comments later than others and often speak more slowly.
  • Ineffective under time pressure, but effective in monotonous conditions. They struggle in brainstorming sessions but excel in routine, repetitive tasks.
  • Resistant to distractions, focused, and independent. They can work alone without supervision and maintain concentration for long periods.
  • Thoroughness and attention to detail. They are meticulous in their work and communication.
  • Can handle prolonged stress and increase productivity toward the end of a task. Their activity builds up slowly but is sustained for a long time.
  • Good long-term memory. They retain information for a long time and forget slowly.
• Signs of a Mobile Nervous System:
  • Restlessness and excitability. They can’t sit still, are fidgety, and react strongly to their surroundings.
  • Easily distracted. Their attention is unstable, making them ineffective in monotonous work.
  • Work best with short work-rest intervals. Their ideal formula is “work-rest, work-rest.”
  • Hasty and fast-paced. They complete short, clear tasks quickly and speak rapidly.
  • Adapt easily to new situations and switch tasks quickly. They can easily move from one activity to another, like switching from reading to exercising without difficulty.
  • Quick reactions and readiness for sudden changes. They process new information rapidly and respond quickly to jokes, questions, or topic changes.
  • Lose interest and forget quickly. They can’t stay motivated by one thing for long and quickly forget unused information, leading to decreased motivation if results aren’t immediate.

How to Use These Traits to Determine Psychotype

We’re not considering the trait of balance here, since within some psychotypes you can find both balanced and unbalanced individuals (for example, among epileptoids: both the balanced, pedantic type and the unbalanced, explosive type).

By identifying, through behavioral indicators, the strength or weakness and mobility or inertia of a person’s nervous system, you can narrow down the possible psychotypes. After that, through further observation, identifying criteria, and basic adaptive reactions, you can determine the sought-after basic psychotype.