Over the last few years, I have been reading a lot
about psychology. Mostly I’ve been reading about it because it interests me,
but I think that having some knowledge of psychology can be helpful for
writers. Your characters might be more realistic if you understand what makes
real people function.
One of the things that I’ve been reading about is
the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. This is a questionnaire that reveals how a
person sees the world and makes decisions. For example, is the person
extraverted or introverted? Does the person prefer to think problems through or
improvise solutions quickly? Does the person prefer to base decisions on
feelings or logic? There are sixteen possible types that are each referred to
by a four-letter abbreviation. None of the types are good or bad. The test just
shows the ways that a person prefers to deal with the world.
Fictional characters, like real people, all see the
world in slightly different ways. If you are struggling with character
development, the Myers-Briggs types could give you a blueprint for creating a
realistic person.
I’ve noticed that different versions of the
questionnaire will give you slightly different results. Every questionnaire
that I’ve done says that I’m either ISTJ or INTJ. Here are links to two
different versions of the questionnaire:
With fictional characters, it might be more helpful
for authors to just read about the sixteen different types.
I’ve heard that the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator is
more accurate than many other psychological questionnaires. For fiction writers,
an understanding of the types may help you create characters with realistic
strengths, weaknesses, and ways of responding to the world.
No comments:
Post a Comment