Type Comparison: EIE (ENFj) and ESI (ISFj)

Socionics Characteristics

Observable Differences in Behavior

  1. EIE are relatively better at assessing the emotional atmosphere occurring in a group or during an activity than ESI.
  2. When meeting someone knew, EIE are not as likely as ESI to perceive "getting to know somebody" as a special kind of activity. EIE know very well whey they are getting acquainted (i.e., what the purpose of the relationship is, be it business, personal, travel, etc.). EIE, in contrast with ESI, do not divide the process of getting acquainted into consecutive stages; rather EIE immediately establish the necessary emotional distance in contact and can regulate it if needed. To bridge the gap between poorly acquainted people in a group EIE amp up the emotional tone; this can be mutually experienced happiness or misfortune. The name and title of the person are of secondary relevance to EIE and their relationship with the other person.
  3. ESI are more likely to believe in objective truths than EIE. That is, ESI are more likely to believe there is a correct or best way of doing something than EIE.
  4. EIE are more inclined to believe there are relative truths than ESI. That is, this relativity is perceived by EIE as an extenuation of the differing beliefs, opinions, intentions, etc. of each person.
  5. When something is perceived by ESI as being incorrect, they are more likely (than EIE) to tell the person who made the error what they did wrong and how to do it the right way. ESI are focused on who made the error and helping them to correct the mistake.
  6. When something is perceived by EIE as being incorrect, they are more likely (than ESI) to ask why it was done that way. Instead of necessarily trying to correct the person who made the error, EIE attempt to understand the person's reason for their decision/action.
  7. ESI tend to internally combine emotional exchanges with other activities rather than separating them out like EIE. E.g., ESI see having fun occurring simultaneously with other activities, such as work or even serious affairs. EIE are more likely to internally separate out having fun with other activities, although the two can be interchanged at a high frequency.
  8. The "comparison and verification of concepts" is a more common phenomenon among EIE than ESI. This comparison not only concerns EIE methods, but also their understanding, terminology, etc. EIE are attuned to the fact that different people might understand and interpret different concepts and terms differently. They perceive terminology as well as actions of other people as part of the subjective concept inseparable from personal opinion, position, intent, etc. In contrast to ESI who perceive terminology as "objective," EIE understand personal differences behind terminology (this applies even to well established terms) and they attempt to compare and verify them.
  9. ESI are not as inclined to compare and verify concepts as EIE. ESI assume that these can have only one unique interpretation (the "correct" interpretation), and ESI often do not think about the fact that the other person may be interpreting them differently. Much more than EIE, ESI apply concepts such as "objective reality," "unequivocal facts," and de-emphasize concepts; ESI consider that they know the "right" way of doing things, how something "truly is," etc.
  10. ESI are more likely (than EIE) to use special rituals or other culturally accepted formalities when forming relationships with others. What that means is that the emotional proximity and relationship status for ESI be more externally predetermined. Additionally, ESI generally progress in relationships through stages, and therefore are more familiar with these stages than EIE. ESI tend to be more linear in their relationship progression than EIE, and ESI assign importance to the formalities of recognizing the start and end to each of these stages.
  11. EIE tend to be more idealistic with their heads-in-the-cloud. ESI, on the other hand, are more realistic and down-to-earth.
  12. ESI are better at noticing details than EIE. EIE on the other hand, are better at seeing the big picture than ESI.
  13. EIE are more focused on ideas and concepts than ESI. On the other hand, ESI are more focused (than EIE) on their surroundings.
  14. ESI are more naturally comfortable with physical confrontations than EIE.
  15. EIE are often more interested in the idea or theory of something, whereas ESI are more interested in the actual practice or implementation of it.
  16. When planning to complete something, EIE are more likely to focus their attention on the goal itself, overlooking and deprioritizing the individual actions needed to reach that goal. On the other hand, ESI tend to focus their attention on the each action; i.e., they're focused on how each decision and choice is being made (towards reaching the goal), in a step by step process.
  17. ESI are able to change and make adjustments to their goals more easily than EIE (depending on how progress is being made, etc.). EIE on the other hand, prefer to stick with their original goals.
  18. EIE tend to judge their available options by how likely the option will help them reach their goal. If a choice no longer helps EIE reach their goals, it will be dismissed and discontinued. On the other hand, ESI prefer to continue pursuing their current option, opting to adjust their ultimate goal in order to fit the current choice.
  19. EIE are more likely than ESI to perceive and distinguish themselves primarily through personal qualities. EIE focus on individualism more than ESI.
  20. EIE attitude towards a specific person (more so than ESI) is based on their personal characteristics (authority, intellect, personal achievements, etc.) EIE recognize superiority of certain individuals drawing from their personal qualities
  21. ESI, more than EIE, frequently perceives and defines themselves and other people through group associations. ESI focus on collectivism over individualism.
  22. When ESI form opinions of others, these opinions are formed under the influence of their attitude towards the group to which the person belongs. To ESI, it is incomprehensible how it is possible to belong to two opposing groups at the same time:, i.e., "you're either with us, or with them and against us."
  23. ESI are often able to form quicker opinions of others they have just met than EIE. This is based on the ability of ESI to draw conclusions about the person based on the groups the person belongs to; EIE are more reluctant to make these inferences.
  24. ESI' psychic energy more often flows outwards, whereas with EIE, their psychic energy more often flows inward.
  25. EIE' energy levels tend to improve when they're alone whereas ESI' energy levels increase when they're interacting with larger groups.
  26. ESI' energy levels tend to decrease when they're alone whereas EIE' energy levels will decrease when they're interacting with larger groups of people.
  27. With regards to energy levels, ESI tend to have higher energy levels than EIE.
  28. EIE are more often focused on their thoughts and feelings where as ESI are more often focused on their surroundings.
  29. ESI tend to be more active and initiating with others where as EIE tend to be more passive and less initiating.
  30. EIE often have a smaller, closer network of friends where as ESI often have a wider network of friends.
  31. ESI are often more cognizant of their outwards appearance and are thus better at presenting themselves than EIE.
  32. EIE are generally better at concentrating on specific tasks for longer periods of time than ESI.
  33. ESI often prefer to work with others in a team where as EIE often prefer working alone.
  34. EIE tend to perceive events in an episodic manner, i.e., they see events evolve in discrete states rather than continuous changes. On the other hand, ESI tend to perceive events in a continuous sequence; i.e., they see events evolving fluidly rather that one state to the next.
  35. When describing the stages of an event, ESI are more likely to focus on how stage A leads to stage B, how stage B leads to stage C, etc. EIE, on the other hand, focus more on the stages themselves without necessarily seeing or emphasizing the transitions or causes and effects of the stages to the extent that ESI do.
  36. When describing reality, EIE are more likely to talk about the properties and structure of reality. ESI are more likely to describe reality as movements, interactions, and changes.
  37. When developing a plan of action or process, ESI tend to see themselves as "within the process"; they are immersed in it. Often because of this, they have more difficulty managing several plans at once. On the other hand, EIE tend to place themselves "outside of the process"; they dissociate from it. For them the process or situation is something external from themselves.
  38. When working on a project, EIE experience more discomfort (than ESI) if the project does not have a clearly delineated end-goal or result. This happens because EIE have more difficulty monitoring and understanding how the project is developing than ESI because they are outside of the process.

Compare/Contrast Sociotypes