My time today was mostly consumed looking into what personality type I may have; or more practically, what, if any, personality disorders I may possess. So far what I’ve been able to gleam from mild research around the web, and archived internet discussions, was that I fell into two possible categories: the Myers-Briggs personality type of INTJ (introversion, intuition, thinking, judgment) or some type of schizoid personality disorder. The first one matches me to a ‘T’, but unfortunately I also meet a number of the criteria that are used to classify people into as schizoid personality. Could it be that having an INTJ personality type means that I automatically have a schizoid personality? I’m really not sure, and probably lack the background to make such a judgement, but the description of people possessing each is rather interesting.

INTJs apply (often ruthlessly) the criterion “Does it work?” to everything from their own research efforts to the prevailing social norms. This in turn produces an unusual independence of mind, freeing the INTJ from the constraints of authority, convention, or sentiment for its own sake … INTJs are known as the “Systems Builders” of the types, perhaps in part because they possess the unusual trait combination of imagination and reliability. Whatever system an INTJ happens to be working on is for them the equivalent of a moral cause to an INFJ; both perfectionism and disregard for authority may come into play … Personal relationships, particularly romantic ones, can be the INTJ’s Achilles heel … This happens in part because many INTJs do not readily grasp the social rituals … Perhaps the most fundamental problem, however, is that INTJs really want people to make sense.

INTJs are analytical. Like INTPs, they are most comfortable working alone and tend to be less sociable than other types. Nevertheless, INTJs are prepared to lead if no one else seems up to the task, or if they see a major weakness in the current leadership. They tend to be pragmatic, logical, and creative. They have a low tolerance for spin or rampant emotionalism. They are not generally susceptible to catchphrases and do not recognize authority based on tradition, rank, or title.

INTJs are strong individualists who seek new angles or novel ways of looking at things. They enjoy coming to new understandings. They tend to be insightful and mentally quick; however, this mental quickness may not always be outwardly apparent to others since they keep a great deal to themselves. They are very determined people who trust their vision of the possibilities, regardless of what others think. They may even be considered the most independent of all of the sixteen personality types. INTJs are at their best in quietly and firmly developing their ideas, theories, and principles.

– from wikipedia page on INTJ

People with SPD are seen as aloof, cold and indifferent, which causes some social problems. Most individuals diagnosed with SPD have difficulty establishing personal relationships or expressing their feelings in a meaningful way, and may remain passive in the face of unfavourable situations. Their communication with other people at times may be indifferent and concise. Because of their lack of meaningful communication with other people, those who are diagnosed with SPD are not able to develop accurate reflections of themselves with respect to how well they are getting along with others. Such reflections are important for a person’s self-awareness and their ability to assess the impact of their own actions in social situations. R. D. Laing suggests that without being enriched by injections of interpersonal reality there occurs an impoverishment in which one’s self-image becomes more and more empty and volatilized, leading the individual himself to feel unreal.[3]

According to Gunderson,[4] people with SPD “feel lost” without the people they are normally around because they need a sense of security and stability. However, when the patient’s personal space is violated, they feel suffocated and feel the need to free themselves and be independent. Those people who have SPD are happiest when they are in a relationship in which the partner places few emotional or intimate demands on them, as it is not people as such that they want to avoid, but both negative and positive emotions, emotional intimacy, and self disclosure.[5]

This means that it is possible for schizoid individuals to form relationships with others based on intellectual, physical, familial, occupational, or recreational activities as long as these modes of relating do not require or force the need for emotional intimacy, which the individual will reject.

Donald Winnicott sums up the schizoid need to modulate emotional interaction with others with his comment that schizoid individuals “prefer to make relationships on their own terms and not in terms of the impulses of other people,”[6] and that if they cannot do so, they prefer isolation.

– from the wikipedia page on schizoid personality disorder