Personality Types

The Helper

The Helper (Guardian) About half the children/students you'll encounter

The helper child is just that, a great helper! They love to help with chores, keeping their rooms and closets neat and tidy, and helping others with things that they may need. They receive a lot of joy and fulfillment from these activities and from pleasing their parents and teachers. They like to show that they can be trusted and depended upon. They have self esteem through being dependable.

They are often called the "good boys" and "good girls" because they like rules and routines and following them. They like to feel secure and safe and through routines and rules they are able to feel that sense of security. This can be evident also in that they don't like to take risks. They will play where they feel comfortable like the yard or their house. When they go places they can feel homesick. If there is something unexpected or unplanned, it can cause them anxiety or distress. They are very cautious and don't go looking for the unexpected or dangerous.

They can be pessimistic and expect the worst in things. They use this to help them be prepared for what could happen. They can be called "worry warts" as they think about the possibilities of what could happen in certain scenarios.

Helpers want to belong and they are often with people. They also seem to take the role of planning or making sure plans go through with family and friends. They see this role displayed from their parents and will usually take it up with their friends.

They do very well when they are praised that they are doing the right thing or "just the way" it needed to be done. They like stickers, stamps, charts, and notes written on the top of worksheets. They work very hard to be noticed for their work. They are doing it to be noticed by parents and teachers to please them. They trust authority completely and want those in authority to notice all they are doing. They are also those known as "busy beavers".

The helpers are a cooperative type, which means they work well with others and like to do so. Earlier it was mentioned they like to belong and this comes into play here. They also like to serve and this gives them a chance to look for the needs that they can meet. Cooperative types also don't like testing limits or questioning authority. They like to please others.

This type is also what is known as concrete. This means they like things that make sense and are in common with the world they know. They like books that make sense, especially non fiction. When they play with a truck, it is a truck and probably won't be something else. They like nursery rhymes and counting games. They like tools and toys that are hands on and will play with them in the way they were meant. They also like to make crafts and do things with their hands.

The Player

The Player (Artisan) Close to half of the children/students you'll encounter

The player is a very fun loving type. They trust their impulses and are always looking for a good time. They are sensory oriented and like to find stimulation through any sense. They are often good eaters and great with motor skills early on. This type is very excitable and with stay excited longer than other types. But on the other hand, they can also be easily bored. This causes them to look for something fun and exciting and can get them into some less than desirable situations.

This type is looking for stimulus. They will look anywhere for it. They are proud of their boldness. So if they are bored and they find something a little dangerous, if someone tells them to do it, they probably will. If they are called a "chicken", that is a blow to their self respect. They will not let that stand and will probably do whatever the action is.  This boldness should be encouraged in healthy and safer ways, so they can still have self esteem.

They are great at anything physical. This is where they really stand out. This can be sports, the arts, contests, or games. They have self esteem through doing well in these things. They can sometimes brag or show off because being good at these things is what makes them confident.

The arts is one way they can have fun. They love to be messy and will work on a project to experience it and sometimes not worry about the result. Since they have good fine motor skills they will excel at this. Along with visual arts is music. They have great rhythm and coordination and that is a great help to them with instruments.

Players are also charmers. They learn quickly how to know what to say to get what they want. Along with learning how to handle toys and tools, they start to learn how to handle people as well. They are so fun and people want to be around them, they often get what they want with this charm.

This type is a utilitarian type. This goes along with the paragraph above. They look at why things are done certain ways and what is the use of it being done that way. This allows them to know how to manipulate what is going on around them. This includes people. They see things as tools to get things done. This isn't that they don't care about people, but they just view things different than a cooperative type. Cooperative types work together to get things done, while a utilitarian type uses things and people to get done what they think should be done.

The players are also a concrete type, like the helpers above. They deal with things in the world that can be seen and handled. They talk about these things and want to read about them as well. Things that make sense with the world they know. They usually like to talk with peers instead of adults. They would rather playtime than story time, but they still like stories. Stories that straight-forward or well known or about animals or real people.

The Feeler

       The Feeler (Idealist) A small percent, about 10% of the population 

The feeler is very enthusiastic about pretty much everything. Their feelings are easily brought to the surface and they many times can't help but talk about them and their thoughts. This type is often early speakers and have a great vocabulary. They can still misuse words, but they use a lot of large vocabulary correctly. They also use a lot of feeling words in their conversations. Those who are reserved can have a harder time expressing themselves, and will probably do so only with family.

This type values relationships pretty much above everything else. They relate to people easily and work to keep harmonious relationships. If there are disharmonious relationships either in their families or friendships, they are very bothered by this and work very hard to be peacemakers. Feelers take pride in their relationships. One of the reasons they relate so easily to people is because they are so genuine and warm hearted. They also seem to have an innocence about them. 

Because they care so much about relationships, it comes out in their play. They usually are very focused in their dramatic play, figurine play, building, drawing, storytelling, writing, on the people and their relationships. They will spend most of their time focused on these. They also enjoy reading so much because of the relationships in the books. Feelers become very wrapped up in stories and feel as if they are a part of the story. They also often play teacher, doctors, counselors; people who help and cultivate relationships.

Feelers also work hard to help people. They serve because they want to help and create or strengthen relationships. They also don't feel right about being deceitful toward others or with themselves. They want to be unique and individuals and are trying to find who they truly are and encouraging others to as well. They want to be authentic and anything deceitful sits wrong with them. They will feel guilt about it. As they search for themselves, they can often feel different from their peers. Since they are a smaller percentage, they will feel a little different until they feel they have discovered who they truly are.

They are the most trusting. They need people around them who admire their uniqueness and give them personalized attention. They need to hear they are special and important. 

The feelers are a cooperative type like the helpers. They don't want to push limits or go against authority. They want to have harmonious relationships and work with others around them to accomplish good. They like to please others as well.

This type is a abstract type instead of concrete. This means they like imaginative things and fantasy. Things not of this world and things that don't have to make sense. They often like to talk and listen to adults as they are learning of new things. They like myths, fables, fairytales, magic, and things with symbols. They like to make up stories that are far fetched. They are more likely to play with something known, like a truck, but make it something else, like a dinosaur.

The Thinker

The Thinker (Rational) A very small percent, about 6% of the population

The thinker type values being calm and controlled. They like to be in control of their emotions. This can sometimes come off as them being distant or unemotional, but they are just trying to keep control of those and let them be known when they want them to be. As infants they are usually very calm and still. This type is apparent usually very early on.

They are always wanting to learn and find knowledge. Because of this they are constantly investigating and experimenting. They will have collections and documentations of what they are researching. They can often be in their own heads as they are making connections and thinking through evidence. This can lead to them having messy bedrooms and closets. They can have moments of wanting things clean and organized, but often they work in a organized chaos. They will be able to find or show you anything that is supposed to be in their rooms.

This type likes to explore things through building or taking things apart and putting them back together. They are constantly trying to figure to figure out the world around them. They are always asking "why" questions. They need to know the reason behind doing things, why things are done that way, why is it important to do it that way. If it doesn't make sense to them, they will have a hard time doing it. This is seen in routines or niceties like table manners. If they don't see the point or the reason behind it, they will have a hard time with it.

They are the most prone to self doubt. They feel proud when they feel smart. If they are unable to figure something out or it is above their level, they get frustrated and doubt themselves. This type will work tirelessly to figure something out. That is their goal. Once done, they move to the next. There is always more to learn. Praise is not helpful to thinkers, they do like encouragement if they have asked for help. This will help them more than what they see as empty praise.

Thinkers also love to read. There is so much to learn in books. But also they have a very vivid imagination. This can cause nightmares at times. Especially repeated nightmares. They can be often very far ahead in reading and vocabulary or sometimes behind (Einstein). They do love to be read to. This allows things that could be above their level to be exposed to them and they think more critically about these complex ideas.

They want to be self sufficient in all things. They must find out about everything and so they are relying on no one. As they get older it is hard for them to rely on their parents for things or others. They can seem like they are pulling away, but it is just to assert themselves as individuals. This can also be perceived as them being "prideful" or "arrogant" as they talk about things. But it is because they are relying on their own information and have confidence in what they have researched and found out. This is why they also have a hard time with authority. Thinkers don't want to be told what to do or think. They can do that for themselves. They are confident in their resolve.

This type is a utilitarian type like the players. They are learning and discovering how everything works in their world so that they can know how to work things the way the want and need them.

Thinkers are abstract types like the feelers. I am going to paste the paragraph from the feelers section here. This means they like imaginative things and fantasy. Things not of this world and things that don't have to make sense. They often like to talk and listen to adults as they are learning of new things. They like myths, fables, fairytales, magic, and things with symbols. They like to make up stories that are far fetched. They are more likely to play with something known, like a truck, but make it something else, like a dinosaur.

*All research and information was derived from Dr. Keirsey's book Please Understand Me II.
**Your child can like other things, this is just what they are naturally inclined toward.