Interview with Dr. John Beebe, Jungian Analyst
By Lauren Yanks
Below is an interview I conducted with Dr. John Beebe, a Jungian analyst who has pioneered an understanding of "psychological type." Dr. Beebe will be presenting at our upcoming Jung on the Hudson Seminar Series, "Type vs. Archetype: Conflict or Confluence?" From July 29 to August 3rd. As past president of the C.G. Jung Institute of San Francisco and Founding Editor of the San Francisco Library Journal, Dr. Beebe has authored and edited numerous books and articles, including "Psychological Types in Transference, Countertransference and the Therapeutic Interaction," and "Understanding Consciousness Through the Theory of Psychological Type".
So tell me, what is psychological type?
Psychological types are not types of people, but types of consciousness—what we would nowadays call mental processes. Jung was the first person to come up with the idea that there are different kinds of intelligence. Before Jung, there had been different kinds of unconscious temperament that were known, but not different types of consciousness. Jung founded a new way to look at all the different types of intelligence that characterize what he called “consciousness.”
Can you speak a bit about Jung's different types of intelligence?
Jung found 8 different types of intelligence, and he said that each of us has all 8 of these kinds of intelligence, or consciousness.
The different intelligences are: extraverted thinking, extraverted feeling, extraverted intuition, extraverted sensation; as well as introverted thinking, introverted feeling, introverted intuition, and introverted sensation.
Different people use different types of consciousness. People are typically much stronger in some areas and much weaker in others.
Why is it important to know your types of intelligence?
Speaking for myself, I need to know how I’m relating to other people, especially if I’m working with others in a team. Otherwise I can be quite surprised by what I stir up in them. Knowing what type of consciousness I’m using helps me to make better decisions when I approach people who may not prefer that type.
How have these ideas affected the way you approach your profession?
As an analyst, I'm interested in getting my patients to see what they're doing. The choices they make on the basis of the information are up to them, but most of us who train ourselves to recognize our type strengths and weaknesses are able to relate to others more wisely. Also, it invites us to use our strengths. I have learned to trust my intuition, for instance, which is my own strongest intelligence.
How has your work contributed to Jung's ideas?
I added that for every type of consciousness that we have available to us as part of our personality, there will be an archetype supporting the way it gets expressed. For instance, an extraverted intuitive type is someone who has extraverted intuition expressed through the hero archetype, but that same person (I am talking about myself here!) may use introverted thinking as well, but as an auxiliary function expressed through the father archetype (that type and archetype combination shows up when I teach.). Knowing both the type and archetype you're using at a particular time helps you gauge your impact on others better.
What should those who come to this conference look forward to by learning about psychological types?
They should come prepared to learn more about themselves. Any psychological conference with depth teaches us about some of the most private games we play in life. This one is meant to help us learn to recognize when our conscious strengths are working, and when they're not. Getting to know ourselves better in these ways can lead to smarter life choices.
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