Other Characteristic Features and Psychodynamic Considerations

Guilty

The identification with the aggressor and the introjection of an internal persecutor, aimed at defending oneself from external threats, lead to the development of a superego that constantly feeds the feeling of guilt. This guilt is a way of controlling the world: "If it's my fault, I can do something." The person then seeks punishment—as Dostoevsky masterfully expresses in Crime and Punishment—in the hope of placating that irreducible self-persecution.

Unconscious conduct sometimes leads him to "let himself be discovered in order to obtain the punishment through which he hopes, in vain, to open himself to be forgiven, to be rescued." This neurotic mechanism induces him to seek the love of one of the parents (usually the father) through the admission of guilt and inadequacy, in order to obtain forgiveness. For the Self-Preservation 6, it is impossible to obtain love and appreciation for their own merits and personal value.

As a child, if I cried because I wanted something or was prevented from doing something, my mother said I made myself the victim. It is as if, for a long time, she had been terrified by the idea that my father could die at any moment due to their health problems, and that I was too far away to take care of them, torturing myself with the thought that I might have been selfish and could have done something, seen them more often so they wouldn't feel lonely, that time was running out and we were separated by great geographical distance, and that it was not fair to them. I was then tormented by feelings of guilt and distressed by images and thoughts of death and loneliness.

Pursued

Seeing himself constantly as guilty, he also feels persecuted: he projects the internal persecution abroad. It's a paranoid thought: others are always ready to pick on him, attack him, and criticize him, and if they don't, it's only because it suits them to mask their intentions for the time being in order to ensure the hit later.

Since he demands more and more from himself, he can't stand it when others claim him, and he swings easily from victim to accuser.

Accuser

The Self-Preservation 6 has a competitive desire to take the place of authority and often argues. They must always do things and submit to their superiors. He loves and hates authority at the same time, which he mythologizes.

He has a hard time assuming responsibility for himself in negative situations (failures, conflicts) for fear of being vulnerable and that others will take advantage. He is accused of defending himself and not to be accused.

Concerned

He obsessively seeks to confirm what he is and what he does. The dominant fear is to fail or to be wrong, and it is so predominant that it blocks action or expression, as if an internal method were lacking to determine whether a personal choice is correct or erroneous. Prior to action, a long and tormented process leads him to ruminate with a rigidity that turns into immobility. Fear of judgment compromises doing, with an inhibition that drives him toward known or comfortable goals.

In the workplace, he chooses to do things he is sure of, taking paths already traveled. He avoids changes for fear of not being able to face them, of lacking the capacity or knowledge; he does not propose but waits for others to make proposals.

He does not like to improvise; he prefers to prepare himself before facing new situations for fear of ridicule. The moment of confrontation with others is very stressful. The feeling is always that of not being sufficiently prepared. He needs constant confirmation, from people he trusts, that he is on the right track. And when this confirmation does not come, he mentally reviews—typical of an insecure person—what he has said or done.

Indecisive and Doubtful

His thinking focuses on subjective content to defend himself against what he does not perceive clearly. But he does not acknowledge having started from absolutely subjective premises. His main goal is to prove (first to himself) that his idea is valid. A "Cogito, ergo cogitos" complicates his thought to such an extent that, in the end, he is left in the hands of doubt.

Doubt is connected with self-invalidation and ambivalence. He devalues himself and at the same time has a great concept of himself. He feels persecuted (in extreme cases, he can

reach paranoid schizophrenia). He doubts even that he doubts. He is one step away from others and suffers from chronic uncertainty about what action to take.

He loves and hates the father figure in authority. He wants to please and attack. He lives contact and withdrawal with ambivalence; the desire for relationship and fusion is as strong as the fear that it will happen. He has not built the capacity to establish clear limits and moves with extreme ambivalence between the desire to satisfy his needs and the fear of losing the relationship with others.

Faced with this fear, while the E9 resolves the conflict by renouncing the differentiation between Me and You, the E6, feeling threatened by the You, withdraws to defend the I. This leads to an inhibition of decision-making and, consequently, action—whether at the interpersonal level, directed toward an external You, or at the intrapsychic level, where You represents the internalized emotions and needs of others.

Passive

The issue of control is basic in childhood and adolescence, starting with schoolmates and ending with loved ones. The message received is: "The world is dangerous; you are weak and impressionable, and therefore we are the ones who guide you because we know what is right for you."

My mother's most frequent words of appreciation are: "You are a good daughter because you don't bring us problems or worries, you always make a good impression, and you take care of us when we are sick." I am a good daughter if I behave like this, and if I respect this model, they recognize me. But if I do something that has value to me and they don't see its use, they'll tell me I'm just doing what comes into my head or being stubborn. Or that it's a waste of time, that others take advantage of me, that I don't earn anything, that I live on illusions...

My mother tells me that since I was little, I have been good; in the cradle, I did not cry and limited myself to sleeping and eating. She was often nervous about family confrontations and my father's problems; so the best thing was to be obedient like a little soldier. She was always willing to put the needs of the family before mine.

Introvert

Among the psychological types described by Jung, the Self-Preservation 6 corresponds to the reflective introvert. The introvert, closed in on himself, shuns contact with external

reality. The reflective introvert is characterized by the primacy of thought: the ideas that he has of others condition his relationships, without realizing the distance that he introduces in them. He has a negative relationship with others, which ranges from indifference to rejection. Thought tends to disarm the adversary. The other is always a little neglected or surrounded by precautionary measures with which he defends himself against external demands.

The Self-Preservation 6 fears that the emotional manifestations of others will make him succumb. He prefers reading to human contact, is introspective, programs his activities, and controls his impulses and feelings.

Suspicious

The first psychosocial structure that the child learns, according to E. Erikson, is trust. With milk, the child incorporates the mother and nutrition. The resulting well-being makes the object world around him acceptable to him: this is the basis on which we build our psychic world.

"I am what I receive," the child could affirm, in the sense that he has confidence in himself and in others because of the quantity and quality of the security he has received. The Self-Preservation 6 has not been able to incorporate the feeling of well-being linked to the relationship with a nurturing mother, and consequently has not built that trust from security. This lack makes him insecure and fearful.

Ambivalent

The warm E6 was a hyper protective child who did not feel accepted in his true needs, with an acknowledgment of the less positive aspects of himself.

If the child is not helped in his efforts at individuation to be what he is, or is induced toward a definition of himself that satisfies the parent's representation more than his true nature, he has two possibilities: to submit or to rebel. Or the two reactions together, which is what happens in most cases.

At first, the child rebels, but over time, he ends up accommodating to the demands and needs of the parents to avoid rejection and withdrawal of affection, so as not to face disapproval and, in practice, loneliness.

In his ambivalence, the Self-Preservation 6 cannot live serenely either adaptation or rebellion: both polarities are unsatisfactory to him, and he lives in an irreconcilable dilemma between freedom and obligations.

Claudicant

When forced to choose between their own aspirations, built through personal effort, and someone else’s project, which offers the comfort of guaranteed support, the Self-Preservation 6 type typically opts for the easier path: the one laid out by others.

This decision comes with a significant cost: they forgo their need for self-realization, leading to an overwhelming sense of hostility. Unable to express this hostility, it is redirected inward, manifesting as guilt. To gain acceptance, they adopt behaviors that align with social expectations, like obedience, kindness, or solidarity. These actions, however, are often in conflict with deeper needs, such as the desire to assert their individuality or fulfill personal, sometimes base, needs.

In an attempt to suppress unacceptable desires that persist despite everything, the Self-Preservation 6 engages in a form of self-idealization. This manifests as a perfectionistic view of themselves, combined with an illusion of omnipotence and omniscience. Through this idealization, they convince themselves they’ve conquered self-hatred and earned approval from others, resolving the tension between their desire for personal fulfillment and the societal need for conformity.

Submissive

Karen Horney’s neurotic model describes the Self-Preservation 6 as a conciliatory personality with a resignation-oriented conflict resolution style, particularly evident in those who submit rather than confront. These individuals minimize personal desires, becoming spectators in their own lives. They may relinquish all ambitions that require effort, especially those tied to external expectations and responsibilities. Instead, they immerse themselves in a fantasy world, nurturing an idealized self-image, all while procrastinating on necessary action.

Often, they are convinced they know what they want, though they lack clarity about their true desires. This disconnection leads to a state of inertia, both emotionally and in terms of action, especially in areas like relationships and sexuality. The resigned submissive is preoccupied with conflict and punishment, projecting hostility onto others while failing to confront their own fear of independence and self-expression.

Selfish and Greedy

The Self-Preservation 6 is prone to the belief that resources—material or emotional—are scarce, and that survival is perpetually threatened. This perception breeds a selfish, hoarding mentality, as they react out of concern that they may not be able to meet life’s demands. Initially, this fear is unconscious, but once recognized, it is seen as an uncomfortable flaw, something to be ashamed of.

Nebulous

The Self-Preservation 6’s thinking tends to focus on the past or the future. The future orientation stems from their need for security and the desire to anticipate and avoid potential problems. Their lack of confidence in their ability to handle situations exacerbates this anxiety. Meanwhile, reflecting on the past serves to maintain control over past mistakes, attempting to correct actions to secure safer outcomes. Guilt becomes a defense against pain that cannot be let go of.

Thought precedes emotion for the Self-Preservation 6; their feelings are controlled by their reasoning. They are often reluctant to allow themselves to simply "be" without external permission, especially from authoritative figures. Their thoughts may appear logical but are, in truth, vague and undefined. This lack of clarity helps them avoid deep commitments and conflicts, presenting a persona of indifference while their emotions simmer beneath the surface.

Inhibited

The Self-Preservation 6 is inhibited both sexually and emotionally, often struggling with hesitance between their impulses and the intense fear of acting on them. This inhibition originates in early experiences of fear, often tied to authority figures, and perpetuates a strong internalized moral code. Their personality is typically marked by a lifelong effort to please others, adopting a "good boy" or "good girl" demeanor, sometimes accompanied by an ingratiating attitude.

Insecure

Unlike the schizoid E5, who is a true loner, the Self-Preservation 6 tends to shy away from others out of fear of disturbance or insecurity. Despite this, they yearn for emotional closeness and often form a small circle of supportive relationships to fulfill this need.

Slow

Making decisions is an arduous process for the Self-Preservation 6. Fear of change makes it easier for them to maintain the status quo rather than face the uncertainty of new challenges. This tendency toward slow, cautious decision-making is coupled with a preference for creating mental fog to avoid clarity, effectively stalling both action and thought. They may resemble the naïve fool in fairy tales, too cautious to think independently and easy to exploit.

Dreamer

The Self-Preservation 6 is more of a dreamer than a doer. They often retreat into fantasy, trading reality for their idealized inner world. This tendency toward inefficiency is a natural byproduct of their introspective nature and lofty ideals.

Their emotional suppression leads to hypersensitivity and fantasizing, which often obstructs spontaneous action and instinctual behavior. For those whose strategy revolves around avoiding commitment and deep engagement, fantasizing about merging with others becomes more appealing than establishing distinct, confronting relationships.

No Right

The Self-Preservation 6 frequently feels like an outsider, as if they don’t belong in their own life. Whether in family, relationships, or work, they often feel like the uninvited guest, the one who got involved without fulfilling the expected role. This sense of alienation lingers, like a shadow that never quite goes away.

Suspicious

Always alert, the Self-Preservation 6 is constantly searching for hidden meanings and threats. Unlike the E3, which seeks control, they engage in constant questioning and paranoia, seeking problems to solve in order to feel secure. Their reliance on reason becomes an obsessive strategy for managing their anxieties, leaving little room for trusting others or acting without analysis.