Four temperaments

Temperament theory has its roots in the ancient theory of humourism. It may have originated in Mesopotamia, but it was Greek physician Hippocrates (460–370 BC) (and later Galen) who developed it into a medical theory. He believed that certain human moods, emotions, and behaviours were caused by an excess or lack of body fluids (called "humours"), which he classified as blood, yellow bile, black bile, and phlegm, There could also be balance between the qualities, yielding a total of nine temperaments. The word "temperament" itself comes from Latin "temperare", "to mix". In the ideal personality, the complementary characteristics were exquisitely balanced among warm-cool and dry-moist. In four less-ideal types, one of the four qualities was dominant over all the others. In the remaining four types, one pair of qualities dominated the complementary pair; for example, warm and moist dominated cool and dry. These last four were the temperamental categories which Galen named "sanguine", "choleric", "melancholic", and "phlegmatic" after the bodily humours. Each was the result of an excess of one of the humours which produced the imbalance in paired qualities. For example, if a person tends to be too happy or "sanguine", one can assume they have too much blood in proportion to the other humours, and can medically act accordingly. Likewise for being too calm and reserved or "phlegmatic" from too much phlegm; excessively sad or "melancholic" from too much black bile; and too angry or "choleric" from excess yellow bile. The properties of these humours also corresponded to the four seasons. Thus blood, which was considered hot and wet, corresponded to spring. Yellow bile, considered hot and dry, corresponded to summer. Black bile, cold and dry, corresponded to autumn. And finally, phlegm, cold and wet, corresponded to winter. These properties were considered the basis of health and disease. This meant that having a balance and good mixture of the humours defined good health, while an imbalance or separation of the humours led to disease. Lack of sufficient heat was believed to result in an excess of phlegm. Persian polymath Avicenna (980–1037 AD) extended the theory of temperaments in his Canon of Medicine, which was a standard medical text at many medieval universities. He applied them to "emotional aspects, mental capacity, moral attitudes, self-awareness, movements and dreams." Nicholas Culpeper (1616–1654) suggested that the humors acted as governing principles in bodily health, with astrological correspondences, and explained their influence upon physiognomy and personality. He proposed that some people had a single temperament, while others had an admixture of two, a primary and secondary temperament. Modern medical science has rejected the theories of the four temperaments, though their use persists as a metaphor within certain psychological fields. Immanuel Kant (1724–1804), Erich Adickes (1866–1925), Alfred Adler (1879–1937), Eduard Spranger (1914), Ernst Kretschmer (1920), and Erich Fromm (1947) all theorised on the four temperaments (with different names) and greatly shaped modern theories of temperament. Hans Eysenck (1916–1997) was one of the first psychologists to analyse personality differences using a psycho-statistical method called factor analysis, and his research led him to believe that temperament is biologically based. The factors that he proposed in his book Dimensions of Personality were neuroticism (N), the tendency to experience negative emotions, and extraversion (E), the tendency to enjoy positive events, especially social ones. By pairing the two dimensions, Eysenck noted how the results were similar to the four ancient temperaments. In the field of physiology, Ivan Pavlov studied on the types and properties of the nervous system, where three main properties were identified: strength, mobility of nervous processes and balance between excitation and inhibition, and derived four types based on these three properties. Other researchers developed similar systems, many of which did not use the ancient temperament names, and several paired extraversion with a different factor which would determine relationship and task-orientation. Examples are DISC assessment and social styles. One of the most popular today is the Keirsey Temperament Sorter, attributed to the work of David Keirsey, whose four temperaments were based largely on the Greek gods Apollo, Dionysus, Epimetheus, and Prometheus, and were mapped to the 16 types of the Myers–Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI). They were renamed as Artisan (SP), Guardian (SJ), Idealist (NF), and Rational (NT). C.G. Jung's Psychological Types surveys the historical literature of the 'four humors' and related discussions extensively and in depth and proposes a psychoanalytic integration of the material. ==The four temperament types==

Each of the four types of humors corresponded in ancient times to a different personality type. These were associated with a domination of various biological functions. Lievegoed suggested that the temperaments come to clearest manifestation in childhood, between approximately 6 and 14 years of age, after which they become subordinate (though still influential) factors in personality. Sanguine The sanguine temperament is traditionally associated with air. People with this temperament tend to be lively, sociable, carefree, talkative, and pleasure-seeking. They may be warm-hearted and optimistic. They tend to be task-oriented people and are focused on getting a job done efficiently; their motto is usually "do it now." Pedagogically, they can be best reached through mutual respect and appropriate challenges that recognize their capacities. Melancholic The melancholic temperament is traditionally associated with the element of earth. People with this temperament may appear serious, introverted, cautious or even suspicious. They can become preoccupied with the tragedy and cruelty in the world and are susceptible to depression and moodiness. They may be focused and conscientious. They often prefer to do things themselves, both to meet their own standards and because they are not inherently sociable. Pedagogically, they can be best met by awakening their sympathy for others. Phlegmatic The phlegmatic temperament is traditionally associated with water. People with this temperament may be inward and private, thoughtful, reasonable, calm, patient, caring, and tolerant. They tend to have a rich inner life, seek a quiet, peaceful atmosphere, and be content with themselves. They tend to be steadfast, consistent in their habits, and thus have steady and faithful friends. Pedagogically, their interest is often awakened by experiencing others' interest in a subject. People of this temperament may appear somewhat ponderous or clumsy. Their speech tends to be slow or appear hesitant. == Modern views, implementations and restatements ==

(1921-2013) was a modern psychologist known for his work on temperament theory. Waldorf education and anthroposophy believe that the temperaments help to understand personality. They also believe that they are useful for education, helping teachers understand how children learn. Christian writer Tim LaHaye has attempted to repopularize the ancient temperaments through his books. James David Barber developed The Presidential Character, wherein active relates to hot, passive relates to cold, positive relates to moist, and negative relates to dry. If one were to make a Punnett square of these characters, one can find an Active–Positive, Passive–Positive, Active–Negative, or Passive–Negative individual. This diagram was made after an influential study of the U.S. presidency, hence the name. Robert R. Blake created The Managerial Grid, wherein high concern for production relates to hot, low concern for production relates to cold, high concern for people relates to moist, and low concern for people relates to dry. If one were to make the same Punnett square of these characters, one can find a Team Management, a Country Club Management, a Task Management, or an Ineffective Management individual. == Usage ==

The 18th-century classical composer Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach composed a trio sonata in C minor known as Sanguineus et Melancholicus (Wq 161/1). In the 20th century, Carl Nielsen's Symphony No. 2 (Op.16) is subtitled "The Four Temperaments", each of the four movements being inspired by a sketch of a particular temperament. Paul Hindemith's Theme and Four Variations for string orchestra and piano is also known as The Four Temperaments: although originally conceived as a ballet for Léonide Massine, the score was ultimately completed as a commission for George Balanchine, who subsequently choreographed it as a neoclassical ballet, using the theory of the temperaments as a point of departure. The 19th-century French author Émile Zola used the four temperaments as a basis for his novel Thérèse Raquin. == See also ==