PTypes - Personality Types
PTypes A Correspondence of Psychiatric, Keirsey, and Enneagram Typologies Self-Sacrificing Type

Traditionalist



Serious Personality Type






The Serious type represents a particular  irrational strategy for obtaining happiness.

Serious Vices New!

Values of the Serious Type

Needs of the Serious Type



Idols

Compulsive attachment: hard work
Compulsive aversion: ease

more...

Idols of the Types



Strategy

Strategy: work to survive

Goals tagged "serious" on 43 Things


I now see Dr. Oldham's Serious Personality Style construct from a Niebuhrian perspective, whereby it represents an attempt to find our source of security and significance in a strategy rather than in a trust in God (Cooper); or, in Karen Horney's terms, it represents a search for glory. See the outline of my personality theory.


Dr. John M. Oldham has defined the Serious personality style. The following seven characteristic traits and behaviors are listed in his The New Personality Self-Portrait.

  1. Straight face. Individuals with the Serious personality style maintain a sober demeanor. They are solemn and not given to emotional expression.

  2. No pretentions. They are realistically aware of their own capabilities, but they are also aware of their own limitations; they are not tempted by vanity or self-importance.

  3. Accountability. Serious people hold themselves responsible for their actions. They will not soft-pedal their own faults and do not let themselves off the hook.

  4. Cogitation. They're thinkers, analyzers, evaluators, ruminators: They'll always play things over in their minds before they act.

  5. Nobody's fool. Men and women with Serious personality style are sharp appraises of others. In their ability to critique other people, they are as unhesitating as in their own self-evaluation.

  6. No surprises. They anticipate problems and when the worst happens, they're prepared to deal with it.

  7. Contrition. Serious people suffer greatly when they realize they've been thoughtless or impolite to others.



Source: Oldham, John M., and Lois B. Morris. The New Personality Self-Portrait: Why You Think, Work, Love, and Act the Way You Do. Rev. ed. New York: Bantam, 1995.



Idealized Image

I did conceive of "character strengths and virtues" in a positive way as Martin Seligman does in his Positive Psychology, but now see them as images of perfection that inflate the idealized self theorized by Karen Horney.



Character Strengths and Virtues (what the Depressive type is proud of)


The "Character Strengths and Virtues" are attributes of the idealized self, or ego ideal. As "conditions of worth" they are idols.

"Predominantly Serious people bring the same virtues to their personal lives that they demonstrate in the workplace. They are dependable, trustworthy, steady, and predictable in their relationships" (Oldham, 372).

  1. Seriousness, sobriety.
  2. Humility, modesty.
  3. Responsibility.
  4. Deliberateness, cautiousness.
  5. Honesty, realism, judiciousness.
  6. Prudence, attentiveness, preparedness, anticipation.
  7. Contrition, thoughtfulness, justice, fairness, concern, equitableness.

Seriousness, care, diligence, industriousness, honesty, integrity, perseverance, realism, endurance, sobriety, humility, modesty, responsibility, deliberateness, cautiousness, judiciousness, prudence, attentiveness, thoughtfulness, steadfastness, loyalty, trustworthiness, steadiness, reliability, frugality, thriftiness, forbearance, dutifulness, honorableness, sensibility, firmness, stoicism, fortitude, dependability, sincerity, providence, faithfulness, self-control.



Signature Strengths*

"Persistence [perseverance, industriousness]: Finishing what one starts; persisting in a course of action in spite of obstacles; "getting it out the door"; taking pleasure in completing tasks

"Integrity [authenticity, honesty]: Speaking the truth but more broadly presenting oneself in a genuine way and acting in a sincere way; being without pretense; taking responsibility for one's feelings and actions"

"Fairness: Treating all people the same according to notions of fairness and justice; not letting personal feelings bias decisions about others; giving everyone a fair chance"

"Humility / Modesty Letting one's accomplishments speak for themselves; not regarding oneself as more special than one is

"Prudence: Being careful about one's choices; not taking undue risks; not saying or doing things that might later be regretted" (Peterson & Seligman, 29, 30).


* Selected from Christopher Peterson and Martin E. P. Seligman, (2004). Character Strengths and Virtues: A Handbook and Classification. Oxford: Oxford UP.




Seriousness


Serious: "1. Grave in character, quality, or mien; sober. 2. Said or done in earnest; sincere." (AHD)

Synonyms: "grave, solemn, somber, sedate, staid, sober, earnest"

"Serious, grave, solemn, somber, sedate, staid, sober, earnest may be applied to persons, their looks, or their acts with the meaning not light or frivolous but actually or seemingly weighed down by deep thought, heavy cares, or purposive or important work. Serious implies absorption in work rather than in play, or concern for what matters rather than for what merely amuses ... Grave implies both seriousness and dignity but it usually implies also an expression or attitude that reflects the pressure or weighty interests or responsibilities ... Grave is more likely than serious... to be used when a mere appearance is to be implied ... and it may be used of things with qualities suggestive of human gravity ... Solemn usually heightens the suggestion of impressiveness or awesomeness often implicit in grave ... Somber applies to a melancholy or depressing gravity, completely lacking in color, light, or cheer ... Sedate implies composure and decorous seriousness in character or speech and often a conscious avoidance of lightness or frivolity ... Staid implies a settled sedateness, often a prim self-restraint, and an even stronger negation of volatility or frivolity than sedate ... Sober sometimes stresses seriousness of purpose ... but it more often suggests gravity that proceeds from control over or subdual of one's emotions or passions ... Earnest implies seriousness of purpose as well as sincerity and, often, zealousness and enthusiasm ... "

Analogous: "austere, stern, severe, ascetic: thoughtful, reflective, contemplative, meditative: deep, profound"

Antonyms: "light, flippant"

Contrasted: "frivolous, flighty, volatile ... " (MW, 725-26)


The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1981, c.1969). William Morris, Ed. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.

Merriam-Webster (1984). Webster's New Dictionary of Synonyms: A Dictionary of Discriminated Synonyms with Antonyms and Analogous and Contrasted Words. Springfield, MA: Merriam-Webster.



Careers and Jobs for Serious type

Google Answers: selecting the right career for me



This list represents careers and jobs people of the Serious type tend to enjoy doing.

management
accounting
auditing
efficiency expert
engineer
geologist
bank examiners
organization development
electricians
dentists
pharmacist
school principals
school bus drivers
file clerk
stock broker
legal secretary
computer operator
computer programmer
technical writer
chief information officer
police officer
real estate agent

Source: U.S. Department of Interior, Career Manager - ISTJ.



Noteworthy examples of the Serious personality type

Many people (and not just those of the Serious personality type) have serious traits or behave in a serious manner. But the traits and behaviors of the Serious personality type are not so inflexible and maladaptive or the cause of such significant subjective distress or functional impairment, as to constitute

Depressive personality disorder.
The noteworthy examples of the Serious personality type listed below are examples of a *type*, not of a disorder. It is my opinion that the ideal type which is described above is best characterized as serious, and that the Serious personality type represents the pervasive and enduring pattern of the personalities of the people listed below better than any other type.

Famous persons on this list may serve as ego ideals, idealized images, and idols for individuals of the Serious type.

Noteworthy examples of the Serious personality type are: Index of noteworthy examples



Weblogs






  "Gradually it has become clear to me what every great philosophy so far has been: namely, the personal confession of its author and a kind of involuntary and unconscious memoir" - Friedrich Nietzsche.

I hypothesize that the personality theories of personality theorists best describe themselves and those of their own type.



Anna Freud

I think it is likely that Anna Freud, in The Ego and the Mechanisms of Defense, used "case material" to disguise her own autobiography (Young-Bruehl, pg. 210). This is also Paul Roazen's (1993, pg. 77) belief: "In Anna's book, she seems to have chosen to talk about herself in a chapter titled "A Form of Altruism." She was purporting to describe the psychology of a "young governess" in analysis, as if such a person would have been likely in those days to seek out such an unusual form of treatment." Anna Freud wrote: "What chiefly struck one about her as an adult was her unassuming character and the modesty of the demands which she made on life." "She showed little sign of envy or ambition and would compete with other people only if she were forced to do so by external circumstances." The usual psychoanalytic interpretation would hold that such an adult personality structure was based upon repression of childhood wishes, especially sexual feelings:

One's first impression was that, as so often happens, she had developed in exactly the opposite direction from what her childhood would have led one to expect and that her wishes had been repressed and replaced in consciousness by reaction formations (unobtrusiveness instead of a craving for admiration and unassumingness instead of ambition).
But, instead of interpreting herself in terms of repression, Anna "proposes that her own life could be characterized as being of a special altruistic sort. The concept of the repression of early childhood wishes would not do to account for the "young governess" (pg. 78):
When her life was examined in more detail, it was clear that her original wishes were affirmed in a manner which seemed scarcely possible if repression had taken place. The repudiation of her sexuality did not prevent her from taking an affectionate interest in the love-life of her woman friends and colleagues. She was an enthusiastic match-maker and many love-affairs were confided to her. Although she took no trouble about her own dress, she displayed a lively interest in her friends' clothes.
Anna Freud's involvement in the lives of others was "especially gratifying for her in a way that went beyond what one would expect merely as the outcome of repressed desires. Anna can be understood to have felt that hers had been a fulfilled life" (pg. 79):
Childless herself, she was devoted to other people's children, as was indicated by her choice of profession. She might be said to display an unusual degree of concern about her friends' having pretty clothes, being admired and having children. Similarly, in spite of her own retiring behavior, she was ambitious for the men whom she loved and followed with the utmost interest. It looked as if her own life had been emptied of interests and wishes; up to the time of her analysis it was almost entirely uneventful. Instead of exerting herself to achieve any aims of her own, she expended all her energy in sympathizing with the experiences of people she cared for. She lived in the lives of other people, instead of having any experience of her own.
Elisabeth Young-Bruehl has, I think, put her finger on the essential motivation of Anna Freud, and others of the Devoted type. "In the chapter on "A Form of Altruism" in The Ego and the Mechanisms of Defense, Anna Freud gave her most succinct description of her type of strength" (pp. 233-234).
In conclusion, we may for a moment study the notion of altruistic surrender from another angle, namely, in its relation to the fear of death. Anyone who has very largely projected his instinctual impulses onto other people knows nothing of this fear. In the moment of danger his ego is not really concerned with his own life. He experiences instead excessive concern and anxiety for the lives of his love objects. Observation shows that these objects, whose safety is so vital to him, are the vicarious figures upon whom he has displaced his instinctual wishes....Analysis shows that both the anxiety [about others] and the absence of anxiety [about himself] are due rather to the subject's feeling that his own life is worth living and preserving only insofar as there is opportunity in it for the gratification of his instincts. When his impulses have been surrendered in favor of other people, their lives become precious rather than his own.

Roazen, Paul (1993). Meeting Freud's Family. Amherst: University of Massachusetts.

Young-Bruehl, Elisabeth (1988). Anna Freud: a biography. New York: Simon & Schuster.



Charles Dickens

  • Bear and Forbear: Stoicism, Epictetus and Joe Gargary

    "Dickens exemplifies much of the philosophy taught by Epictetus through Joe Gargery's method of living his life. In Joe, Dickens has created a Stoic with qualities similar to Epictetus, for as Soccio explains, "Epictetus acquired special insight into the major issue of Stoicism: controlling what we can and accepting what is beyond our control" (208). Like Epictetus, Joe has this same insight. His understanding of control and its relation to life allows Joe to enjoy moments of true happiness. Joe's life enacts Epictetus's motto."


  • The Blacking Factory and Dickens's Imaginative World

    For more than a half century, students of Dickens have emphasized the crucial importance of the traumatic period in his life when his parents suddenly removed him from school and their middle-class, more-or-less genteel environment, made him live apart from the family, and forced him to work at Warren's Shoeblacking factory and warehouse. As Walter Allen points out, this experience had crucial influence on (1) the writer's emphasis upon orphans and abandoned children, (2) the self-pity that permeates many of his works, and (3) their fairy-tale plots:


  • On Duty

    Whereas the power of knowledge, if I understand it, is, to bear and forbear; to learn the path of duty and to tread it; to engender that self-respect which does not stop at self, but cherishes the best respect for the best objects to turn an always enlarging acquaintance with the joys and sorrows, capabilities and imperfections of our race to daily account in mildness of life and gentleness of construction and humble efforts for the improvement, stone by stone, of the whole social fabric. Speeches: Literary and Social by Charles Dickens: SPEECH: LEEDS, DECEMBER 1, 1847.

    At the point in history when an innovative mode of fixing the future--such as that which the Malthusians or utilitarians or positivists would favor--is united with the traditional mode sanctioned by Victorian religion and ethics, we find that cardinal Victorian virtue: duty. Dickens' treatment of duty has provided us with an exceptionally clear example of his dialectical mind. Dickens began with a conventional adoption of the term and concept; but by the last half of his career--although Esther in Bleak House often counsels duty to herself--Dickens more often derides an uncritcal acceptance of the convention of duty. For under the rubric of duty, the future may be as cut and dried as it is by any other means. Duty can be used as a shibboleth to foster stasis and to stymie spiritual progress. Charles Dickens: the uses of time.
  • Some Memories of Charles Dickens

  • "A Life of Charles Dickens" by A.B. DeMille.


Aaron Beck

  • A Pragmatic Man and His No-Nonsense Therapy - New York Times.

    With a colleague, he designed an experiment to test the link between depression and masochism, a basic psychoanalytic notion. But the researchers found no evidence that the depressed patients in the study somehow needed to suffer. Instead, Dr. Beck said, they simply showed low self-esteem, devoid of hidden motives. "They saw themselves as losers because that's the way they saw themselves," he said.
  • APA Convention2000 - Aaron Beck and Albert Ellis - photo: August, 2000.


Bernard J. Paris



Peter D. Kramer

John M. Oldham (pg. 383) discusses the use of medications in Depressive personality disorder:

"Certainly medication is often useful in personality disorder that produces symptoms of depression, anxiety, or confusion. But, as we have maintained throughout this book, medication cannot 'cure' a personality disorder, which is a pattern of habits and reactions and beliefs that have existed for years.

"Or can it? In Listening to Prozac, Peter Kramer has made a popular though highly controversial case for the ability of a particular class of antidepressants—the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs)—to transform the lives of many people who are inhibited, pessimistic, hardworking underachievers with low self-esteem who are reluctant to take risks. these traits describe people with Depressive personality disorder or even Serious personality style. 'In an era when personality was understood to be the summation of psychological defenses, and the defenses were understood as responses to trauma during development, it was threatening to see personality as responding to medication', writes Kramer. 'It may be that Prozac [and other drugs in its class] is special in its effect on temperament, or that Prozac arrived at a propitious moment and as a result . . . Prozac has allowed us to see an effect of medications that we should have attended to long ago'."


John Dewey

  • Amazon.com: Books: The Education of John Dewey

    Although he was serious and conventional in his personal life, intellectually Dewey traveled far from his pietistic upbringing in the 1860s, traversing Hegelian idealism en route to his arrival to the view that the practical must trump the theoretical. - Gilbert Taylor


John Steinbeck

  • Guardian Unlimited Books | By genre | Mighty words of wrath

    Grapes helped to improve migrant conditions, but it also brought Steinbeck, many threats against his life, wide-spread condemnation as a dangerous Communist activist, and surveillance from the FBI. He never wrote another comparable novel. The only criticism made of his finest novel now is what some critics said 50 years ago - that the rhetoric is sometimes overblown, that his love for the Joads verges on sentimentality, and that the ending is too melodramatic. But just as many critics say that is all nonsense.




Charles Schulz

  • Yahoo! Full Coverage:'Peanuts' Creator Charles Schulz Dies
  • You were a good man, Charles Schulz - Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Feb 14, 2000)

    It was another February, in 1943, when Schulz was drafted. For a few days, he was quartered at an induction center at Fort Snelling in Minneapolis. He was given a weekend pass to visit his critically ill mother across the river in his old St. Paul neighborhood. She had cancer.

    On a Sunday night, as he prepared to return to Fort Snelling, Sparky went in to say goodbye to her.

    "Yes," she said, "I suppose we should say goodbye, because we probably never will see each other again." She died the next day.

    When he told me that story over four decades later, his voice held fresh grief. Schulz simply could not let go of life's sad moments, defeats, major or minor losses.

    So, instead, he used them. They were grist for his genius. And he not only tapped into personal troubles; you might say he collected poignant trivia.

    "Do you know that Leo Tolstoy's wife copied and recopied his manuscripts for 'War and Peace' seven and a half times by hand?" he asked me one day. I did not.

    "Later on, he divorced her." (That obscure bit of literary history found its way into a Peanuts gag.)



President Abraham Lincoln



Henry David Thoreau

  • Thoreau in Walden: Epicurean or Stoic? - Toby Svoboda.

  • Thoreau, Walden, and the Environment [via Mike's Weblog]
    • Thoreau's Poetry: "Within the Circuit of This Plodding Life"

      Within the Circuit of This Plodding Life

      Within the circuit of this plodding life
      There enter moments of an azure hue,
      Untarnished fair as is the violet
      Or anemone, when the spring strews them
      By some meandering rivulet, which make
      The best philosophy untrue that aims
      But to console man for his grievances.
      I have remembered when the winter came,
      High in my chamber in the frosty nights,
      When in the still light of the cheerful moon,
      On every twig and rail and jutting spout,
      The icy spears were adding to their length
      Against the arrows of the coming sun,
      How in the shimmering noon of summer past
      Some unrecorded beam slanted across
      The upland pastures where the Johnswort grew;
      Or heard, amid the verdure of my mind,
      The bee?s long smothered hum, on the blue flag
      Loitering amidst the mead; or busy rill,
      Which now through all its course stands still and dumb
      Its own memorial,?purling at its play
      Along the slopes, and through the meadows next,
      Until its youthful sound was hushed at last
      In the staid current of the lowland stream;
      Or seen the furrows shine but late upturned,
      And where the fieldfare followed in the rear,
      When all the fields around lay bound and hoar
      Beneath a thick integument of snow.
      So by God?s cheap economy made rich
      To go upon my winter?s task again.

  • Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862): A Guide to Resources [via Netscape - Editor's choice.]
  • from Ethics Vol. 3, Salem Press, 1994.

    Whether the words of Walden and "Resistance to Civil Government" ("Civil Disobedience") or the actions on which they are based have had greater influence, it is clear that Thoreau's life refutes the notion that the Transcendentalists spent their time in the clouds rather than on earth. A skilled observer of nature as well as a citizen who spoke his mind on current ethical questions, Thoreau made the idealism of Transcendental philosophy a part of his daily life. At Walden Pond, he put into practice Ralph Waldo Emerson's advice to be self-reliant and self-directed. He built his own house, planted his own garden, and lived without a conventional job for more than two years quite contentedly and, as he goes into great detail to show, quite economically. He believed that to mire oneself in materialism and then to sacrifice ones principles for fear of losing those material things was to sink into evil. This point is established in "Resistance to Civil Government," in which Thoreau chastises his fellow citizens for grumbling about the government's war in Mexico while continuing to pay the taxes that supported it. His own refusal to pay was based not only on his moral judgment of the war but also on the questionable ethicality of a private individual's being forced to support any activity of the larger society. In "Resistance" and other essays--"A Plea for Captain John Brown," "Slavery in Massachusetts," "Life Without Principle"--Thoreau chides his fellow citizens for the disparity between their actions and their principles.


Tori Amos

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