088: Four Types of Temperament Understanding People’s Behavior

The idea of the four temperaments traces back to an Ancient Greek notion that there were four underlying, essential bodily humors (blood, yellow bile, black bile, and phlegm) which could cause disease and infection if they were out of balance. The terms sanguine, choleric, melancholic, and phlegmatic were invented by the Greek physician Aelius Galenus to define the effect of these humors on human behavior. This idea is perhaps one of the oldest that concepts that begins to develop a medical theory on personality. 

This theory is still popular today, widely used in the fields of management, psychology, and leadership. Being cognizant of these temperaments and understanding how they operate can assist with social interactions and communications. Analyzing these dynamics can help us become more self-aware and assess how teams function together, for example. 

To determine which temperament type I leaned towards most, I took the OSSP Four Temperaments Scale TEST on OpenPsychometrics.org, which is a free and open-source measure designed to match the taker to one of the four temperaments. 

After answering 24 question, you receive a “score” from 1-24 on each of the four temperament types. My score for Choleric was 6, Melancholic was 5, Sanguine was 19 and Phlegmatic was 12. 

Quote: I think we judge talent wrong. What do we see as talent? I think I have made the same mistake myself. We judge talent by people's ability to strike a cricket ball. The sweetness, the timing. That's the only thing we see as talent. Things like determination, courage, discipline, temperament, these are also talent. – Rahul Dravid

As discussed in Episode #077 of The Motivation Movement, it’s no easy task to completely shift our temperament from negative to positive, but we can take action to make progress towards a more desired state of mind and life in general. When asking ourselves “how can I control my temperament?”, understanding your natural disposition is crucial. So, let’s dive into the FOUR different types of TEMPERAMENT . . . Sanguine, Choleric, Melancholic and Phlegmatic!

The SANGUINE personality type is described mainly as being highly talkative, enthusiastic, active, and social.

Choleric individuals tend to be more extroverted. They are described as independent, decisive, goal-oriented, and ambitious. 

Melancholic individuals tend to be analytical and detail-oriented, and they are deep thinkers and feelers. They are introverted and try to avoid being singled out in a crowd. 

The Phlegmatic temperament is fundamentally relaxed and quiet, ranging from warmly attentive to lazily sluggish. Phlegmatic are referred to as “the watcher” — they are best in positions of unity and mediation, and solid in positions that desire steadiness. 

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