ESFP


 * This article is about the Myers-Briggs personality type. For the Socionics ESFp, see Sensory Ethical Extrovert.

ESFP (Extraversion, Sensing, Feeling, Perception) is an abbreviation used in the publications of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) to refer to one of the sixteen personality types. The MBTI assessment was developed from the work of prominent psychiatrist Carl G. Jung in his book Psychological Types. Jung proposed a psychological typology based on the theories of cognitive functions that he developed through his clinical observations.

From Jung's work, others developed psychological typologies. Jungian personality assessments include the MBTI instrument, developed by Isabel Briggs Myers and Katharine Cook Briggs, and the Keirsey Temperament Sorter (KTS), developed by David Keirsey. Keirsey referred to ESFPs as Performers, one of the four types belonging to the temperament he called the Artisan. ESFPs account for about 4–10% of the population.

The MBTI instrument

 * E – Extraversion preferred to introversion: ESFPs often feel motivated by their interaction with people. They tend to enjoy a wide circle of acquaintances, and they gain energy in social situations (whereas introverts expend energy).
 * S – Sensing preferred to intuition: ESFPs tend to be more concrete than abstract. They focus their attention on the details rather than the big picture, and on immediate realities rather than future possibilities.
 * F – Feeling preferred to thinking: ESFPs tend to value personal considerations above objective criteria. When making decisions, they often give more weight to social implications than to logic.
 * P – Perception preferred to judgment: ESFPs tend to withhold judgment and delay important decisions, preferring to "keep their options open" should circumstances change.

Cognitive functions
Using the more modern interpretation, the cognitive functions of the ESFP are as follows:

Dominant: Extraverted Sensing (Se)
Se focuses on the experiences and sensations of the immediate, physical world. With an acute awareness of the present surroundings, it brings relevant facts and details to the forefront and may lead to spontaneous action.

Auxiliary: Introverted Feeling (Fi)
Fi filters information based on interpretations of worth, forming judgments according to criteria that are often intangible. Fi constantly balances an internal set of values such as harmony and authenticity. Attuned to subtle distinctions, Fi innately senses what is true and what is false in a situation.

Tertiary: Extraverted Thinking (Te)
Te organizes and schedules ideas and the environment to ensure the efficient, productive pursuit of objectives. Te seeks logical explanations for actions, events, and conclusions, looking for faulty reasoning and lapses in sequence.

Inferior: Introverted Intuition (Ni)
Attracted to symbolic actions or devices, Ni synthesizes seeming paradoxes to create the previously unimagined. These realizations come with a certainty that demands action to fulfill a new vision of the future, solutions that may include complex systems or universal truths.

Shadow functions
Later personality researchers (notably Linda V. Berens) added four additional functions to the descending hierarchy, the so-called "shadow" functions to which the individual is not naturally inclined but which can emerge when the person is under stress. For ESFP, these shadow functions are (in order):


 * Introverted Sensing (Si): Si collects data in the present moment and compares it with past experiences, a process that sometimes evokes the feelings associated with memory, as if the subject were reliving it. Seeking to protect what is familiar, Si draws upon history to form goals and expectations about what will happen in the future.
 * Extraverted Feeling (Fe): Fe seeks social connections and creates harmonious interactions through polite, considerate, and appropriate behavior. Fe responds to the explicit (and implicit) wants of others, and may even create an internal conflict between the subject’s own needs and the desire to meet the needs of others.
 * Introverted Thinking (Ti): Ti seeks precision, such as the exact word to express an idea. It notices the minute distinctions that define the essence of things, then analyzes and classifies them. Ti examines all sides of an issue, looking to solve problems while minimizing effort and risk. It uses models to root out logical inconsistency.
 * Extraverted Intuition (Ne): Ne finds and interprets hidden meanings, using “what if” questions to explore alternatives, allowing multiple possibilities to coexist. This imaginative play weaves together insights and experiences from various sources to form a new whole, which can then become a catalyst to action.

Type and personal growth
Each person is unique; there is no "right" or "wrong" type. The purpose of learning about personality type is to understand oneself better and enhance relationships with others. Results on the MBTI suggest the probable type based on the choices made when answering the questions; however, only the individual can determine his or her true type preference. Moreover, type does not explain everything. Human personality is much more complex.

Correlation with Enneatype
According to Baron and Wagele, the most common Enneatypes for ESFPs are Helpers and Enthusiasts.