How do you see the world?
We experience and shape our lives in three different ways: instinctively, emotionally and rationally. All three aspects develop during childhood and mature throughout the course of our lives. However, the individual relationship, in which our instinct, emotions and understanding interact, remains quite stable and unchanged. This fundamental character-based attitude can be very significant, as it determines how we experience reality.
Instinct. Your tendency to behave according to your instinct, without necessarily pausing to think about the reasons behind it.
Feelings. Your tendency towards emotional behaviour. Your feelings are the primary driver of how you see the world and your place within it. This is the sort of person who finds tears coming to their eyes during a sad scene in a film.
Intellect. Rational considerations and objectivity determine your views and actions and are the presiding factors in decision making processes. For example, this sort of person might be someone who stops themselves from buying new trousers because they don’t really need them.
Your balance of passion and conscience
Passion is an elemental emotional force: We are born with it. It ensures that our needs are satisfied, that we do not merely satisfy the urge to eat and drink, find love and sex, but can enjoy them heartily. This emotional energy is accompanied by a controlling element. It increases over time and makes sure that our passionate experiences are not unbridled, but socially acceptable.
Inner energy. It arises from inner needs like hunger, thirst or sexual desire. While Freud limits libido to sexual drive, Jung defines it as psychological energy in general, which is the definition preferred here. A person with strong mental energy likes to eat, drink, and satisfy their needs immediately.
Self-control. According to Freud, this trait develops during an individual’s upbringing as he/she learns to adopt the accepted norms of family and society. For example, at family celebrations we learn to be polite and civil to relatives, even if we would normally avoid them.
Gender roles in your partnership
The concept of male and female sides are based on the work of C.G. Jung, the founder of analytical psychology. Both extremes describe gender archetypes that have passed into our collective subconscious. It is advantageous when the characteristics are similar. Example: A man seeing himself as the family breadwinner will be compatible with a woman who relishes being a housewife and mother. In contrast, a person with a progressive stance on gender roles will harmonise well with someone who shares this modern point of view.
Masculine side: the proportion of so-called masculine characteristics. An example of this type of person might be someone who displays courage, initiative or a dominant streak. According to Jung, every person has characteristics that are conventionally ascribed to people of the opposite sex. Many of them are not evident to the person in question, because they have been driven out, perhaps by their upbringing.
Feminine side: the proportion of so-called feminine characteristics. This might be someone who puts the emphasis on emotions or who is susceptible to mood changes. According to Jung, every person has characteristics that are conventionally ascribed to people of the opposite sex. Many of them are not evident to the person in question, because they have been driven out, perhaps by their upbringing.
Desire for relational closeness
Your desire for relational closeness. The degree to which an individual seeks physical and mental ‘closeness’ to their partner and the degree to which they need to do everything together. For example, when you have read a book that you really enjoy, does it double your excitement to have your partner read it as well?
Empathy. The ease by which we are able to understand and share the feelings of another. Empathic people have an intuitive understanding of the feelings, thoughts and motivations of others, and pick up on – even without much being said – what is going on in someone’s head.
