COMMUNICATIVE TYPES OF MEDIA-BASED INTERLOCUTORS

Y. Zhdan

(Canada, University of Lethbridge)

Currently, there are many different approaches to understanding the personality of a media interlocutor and its typology. However, there is no doubt that the personality of a media interlocutor is a person who has self-awareness and a worldview, as well as crystallized social, moral, psychological, and aesthetic qualities. The identification of different personality types has been a subject of study for quite some time. Swiss psychologist Carl Gustav Jung was the first to write about this. Studying mental processes, he noted a significant difference in people's perception of reality and the variability in the manifestation of the structure of the psyche. In his book "Psychological types" (Jung, 2023: 63), Carl Jung conducted fundamental research in the field of personality psychology and provided a detailed description of the differentiation of people into two main personality types: extroverts and introverts. These types represent distinct ways of perceiving life, understanding the world, and relating to it.
Extroversion is characterized by an interest in external objects, responsiveness and readiness to perceive external events, a desire to influence and be influenced by events, a need to interact with the outside world, the ability to tolerate and even enjoy chaos and noise of all kinds, the ability to maintain constant attention to the outside world, the ability to make many friends and acquaintances without much consideration, and a strong inclination to show off oneself. Accordingly, the extrovert's philosophy of life and ethics tend to be highly collectivist (beginning) with a strong inclination towards altruism. Their conscience is heavily influenced by public opinion. If the extrovert does not interfere too much in other people's affairs, is not too assertive, and is not too superficial, they can be a highly productive member of society (Jung, 2023: 119). Introversion is not so easy to observe. He keeps his distance from external events, does not get involved with them, and shows a distinctly negative attitude towards society as soon as he finds himself in a large group of people. In large companies, he feels lonely and lost. He is not a very sociable person. He keeps his best qualities for himself. He is known for being envious, easily offended, and irritable. An introvert finds great pleasure in thinking and reflecting on himself. His relationships with others become warmer only when he feels safe. He has a limited number of friends and acquaintances. Despite these characteristics, an introvert is by no means a social loser. His withdrawal is not a complete renunciation of the world, but rather a search for solace, where solitude allows him to contribute to society (Winsler, Fernyhough & Montero, 2021: 67).
The difference between these types is quite clear, therefore K. Jung takes the next step in exploring the differences between individuals. Based on experience, he distributes individuals not only according to their universal characteristics of extraversion and introversion, but also according to the predominance of one of the main functions of the individual, which is mainly used by one or another individual. He identified four such functions: thinking, feeling, sensation, and intuition. When describing them, he mentioned that the functions of thinking and feeling are rational, while sensation and intuition are irrational. Further, C. Jung described the groups of psychological types that he identified as rational and irrational. Thinking is the rational ability to structure and synthesize discrete data through conceptual generalization. In its simplest form, thinking tells the subject that there is a present thing. It gives a name to the thing and introduces a concept. Feeling is a function that determines the value of things and measures and defines human relationships.
      Thinking and feeling are rational functions because thinking evaluates things from the point of view of “truth or falsehood,” and feeling evaluates them from the point of view of “acceptable or unacceptable” (Puchalska-Wasyl, Chmielnicka-Kuter, & Oles, 2021: 83).
These functions form a pair of opposites, and if a person is more advanced in thinking, then they are clearly lacking in feeling. Each member of the pair seeks to disguise the other and to slow it down. For example, if you want to think in a dispassionate way, whether it is scientific or philosophical, then you must suppress all your feelings. An object viewed from a sensory perspective will differ in its holistic relationship from an object viewed from a cognitive perspective. Perception is a function that tells a person that something is there, but it does not tell them what it is, it only indicates that something is present. In perception, objects are experienced as they exist in reality. Intuition is defined as the perception of the unconscious, which involves the reduction of images and narratives of reality that are unclear, vague, and difficult to explain. The functions of sensation and intuition are irrational - external and internal perception that is independent of any evaluation. In turn, rational and irrational functions operate in a mutually exclusive manner. The presence of all four psychological functions in an individual, which are reflected in a particular psychological attitude, allows for a holistic perception of the world and adaptation to the surrounding reality (Kojic, 2023: 139).
Based on the teachings of Carl Jung, his followers and other researchers developed a more detailed characterization of psychological personality types. Four pairs of preferences were derived in different combinations of psychological types and functions (Tigar, 2021: 68).
     1. E – Extroversion (communicability, socialization, communication, interaction, breadth of views and interests, radiation of energy, interest in external events. Used to think out loud, take the initiative in conversation. Tend to raise their voice). I – Introversion (reservedness, sense of their territory, concentration, composure, depth, thoroughness, preservation of energy, interest in internal reactions. Many introverts have a calm, measured tone. Prefer to discuss one issue to the end before moving on to another.).
2. T – Thinking (reasonableness, prudence, laws, firmness, justice, analysis. Logicians use words that accurately reflect the situation, but do not reveal their own opinions. They speak more quietly, calmly, and measuredly. Their thoughts always follow a clear order, even during stressful and conflict situations).
F – Feeling (social values, society’s assessments, justifying circumstances, ability to persuade or dissuade, humanity, sympathy. Emotionals easily lose their calmness, especially if the conversation is important to them, raising their voice and intensively gesturing. Often mention the interlocutor’s name in the conversation.)
3. S – Sensation (experience, past, realist, practicality, common sense. Prefer a relaxed, direct manner of communication. Tend to list facts and details. Their speech is always consistent: each next thought logically follows from the previous one.).
N – Intuition (premonitions, the future, speculative, ingenuity, calculation of options for possible events. Intuitives' sentences are long, confusing, disorderly and often cut off in the middle. They are more figurative and verbose, they like interesting, unusual colorful words, idioms, puns).
4. J – Prudence (making a decision, being fixed in one's decisions, planning ahead, everything on time, setting intermediate goals along the way. If such people are asked for their opinion, they will answer without hesitation, without asking additional questions. They are unwavering in their opinions, and often use grandiose phrases ending with an exclamation mark6 "Of course! Definitely! Absolutely! Without a doubt!").
P – Impulsivity (to collect more data, mobility, mobility, variability, adaptation to the course of events, why limit yourself to deadlines? We'll wait and see. They prefer not to answer questions immediately, they try to get as much information as possible. They often answer a question with a question. They express their opinion with similar phrases: "As far as I know...", "Maybe I'm wrong, but...", "I'm not sure"). 
Researchers went on further. They identified four types of temperament and sixteen psychological portraits that describe the differences between the main aspirations and value orientations of their representatives (Tigar, 2021):
1. SP – Dionysus. Freedom, spontaneity of reactions, and the desire to follow one's own impulses. The following psychological portraits are associated with this type of temperament:
ESFP – Toastmaster (optimism and warmth, avoid loneliness, go through life laughing, life is full of adventures, avoid everything gloomy, generous, succumb to temptations, an older friend for their child, know how to work with people, rich language, business and trade are close to them, science is not for them).
ISFP – Artist (properties manifest themselves in art, an epicurean lifestyle, a keen sense of the present moment, a high sensitivity to shades and half-tones, no interest in the subtleties of written and spoken language, their areas of interest include music, dancing, and drawing, they are prone to freedom, optimism, rebelliousness, and a desire to escape from any restrictions
ESTP – Entrepreneur (energy, play, inexhaustible, sophisticated in dealing with people, wit, pragmatism, working under conditions of risk and on the verge of disaster, seeking thrills, benefit in relationships, chasing after Lady Luck).
ISTP – Master (does not recognize subordination, fearlessness, thirst for action, ability to handle tools, fighter, ninja, fraternal relationships, often drop out of school, do not strive for higher education).
ESTP – Entrepreneur (energy, play, inexhaustible, sophisticated in dealing with people, wit, pragmatism, working under conditions of risk and on the verge of disaster, seeking thrills, benefit in relationships, chasing after Lady Luck).
ISTP – Master (does not recognize subordination, fearlessness, thirst for action, ability to handle tools, fighter, ninja, fraternal relationships, often drop out of school, do not strive for higher education).
2. SJ – Epimetheus A sense of duty, the desire to take a worthy place in a certain social structure. This includes such psychological portraits as:
ESFJ – Merchant (open, practical, worldly wisdom, sociable, hospitable, communicative, the interests of the moment above all, responsible).
ISFJ – Keeper of Traditions (calm, responsible, interests of the organization, traditions, connection of times, everything according to plan, caring, better to carry out assignments than to lead, master in his own house)
ESFJ – Administrator (leader, responsible, duty, hierarchy, order, practical, open, everything according to plan, no nonsense or imagination, unsophisticated, executive, whole nature).
ISTJ – Guardian (duty, man of his word, responsible, calm, firm, reliable, logical, low-emotional, family man, thorough and detailed).
3. NF – Apollo The desire to be yourself, to have value in your own eyes. The following psychological portraits belong to this temperament.
ENFJ – Teacher (leader, sociable, attentive to others, exemplary parent, impatient with routine and monotonous activities, ability to distribute roles in a group).
INFJ – Predictor (the joy of friends is also joy for him, insight and foresight, successful self-education, vulnerability, does not like arguments and conflicts, rich imagination, poetic, love of metaphors, this is a doctor, writer, harmony of human relationships. psychologist).
ENFP – Journalist (ability to influence others, ability to see through people, detachment from reality in search of harmony, ability to notice the unusual, sensitivity, rejection of dry logic, creativity, enthusiasm, optimism, rich imagination, politician, playwright, practical psychologist, extravagance, and sometimes recklessness).
INFP – Romantic (calm, idealistic, self-respect, fighting evil for the ideals of goodness and justice, lyrical symbolism, writer, psychologist, architect, but not a businessman, capable of learning languages, "my home is my fortress").
4. NT – Prometheus The spirit of scientific research, the desire for power over the laws of nature. The following psychological types belong to this temperament:
ENTJ – Field Marshal (leader, goal-oriented, logical, efficiency in work above all, keeper of the hearth, intellectual, demanding leader, tireless, career sometimes more important than family well-being).
INTJ – Researcher (self-confident, future-oriented, authority-free, theorist, brainstorming, life is a game on a giant chessboard, logic, high-level management positions, lack of emotionality, high learning abilities, independence, intuition, possible difficulties in the world of emotions and feelings).
ENTP – Inventor (applies intuition in practice, enthusiastic, innovative, charming interlocutor, proactive in communication, impatient with banal and routine operations, good teacher, humor, motto – “Understand people!”).
INTP – Architect (a connoisseur of thoughts and speech, instant assessment of the situation, logicality, knowledge of the laws of nature, an intellectual, somewhat arrogant, a philosopher, a mathematician, an inexhaustible fountain of new ideas, a sensitive and intelligent parent, a complex inner world full of associations).
It should be noted that psychologists allow for 256 variations of psychological portraits of communicative types of media-based interlocutors.
Classifications in the field of media communication are popular and in demand. Nadezhda Greidina provides a classification of abstract types of media-based interlocutors. An abstract media-based interlocutor is an imaginary psychological model that reflects certain characteristic properties that are important for conducting media communication: a positive person is a communicator with whom it is most pleasant to conduct media conversations (they are focused on cooperative interaction); "the nihilist" is an impulsive communicator who can't wait (they can be described as "nasty people"); "the know-it-all" is a communicator who is always ready to demonstrate their knowledge, even if it is shallow, in any field, trying to show everyone that they understand the subject better than others; "the chatterbox" is an impolite communicator who may suddenly interrupt the conversation, drawing the attention of the listeners to themselves with their personal stories; "the coward" is an insecure communicator who is usually afraid of public speaking (sometimes they don't know how to express their thoughts); "the cold-blooded interlocutor" is an "alienated type of interlocutor" who can be described as being "on their own wavelength"; uninterested interlocutor – a type of interlocutor who does not show interest in the topic of conversation; "an important bird" – this interlocutor does not tolerate criticism of himself (herself) because he (she) considers himself (herself) to be an ideal person, standing a few steps above the rest.
There are a lot of descriptions of "harmful" personality types (Glass, 2023), who can lead to a media communication conflict. It seems to be important to be able to recognize such people in order to build a proper media communication strategy. H. J. Hermans & H. K. Kempen identify seven personality types based on the criterion of emotionality (which emotions prevail in a particular type and what effect they have on his behavior), showing aggression to one degree or another in communication: "rude tank", "rude screamer", "grenade", "habitual screamer", "pessimist", "passive-aggressive", "over-accommodating" (Hermans & Kempen, 2023: 16). There are some more types of media-based interlocutors who may not be overly aggressive, but will complicate the communication process. These types include "complainers," "silent people," "know-it-alls," "indecisive people," and "maximalists."
The main criteria for classifying these types are competence, frankness, sincerity, as well as the ability to communicate and the desire to succeed in the conversation (Mead, 2019: 38). There is another type that is also identified -: the "why-boy". It is the media interlocutor who constantly asks questions.
It should be noted that these types do not exist in pure form in real life, but rather, every media interlocutor possesses a combination of these characteristics to varying degrees.
Thus, there is a need to build a typology of language (a person in their ability to perform speech acts) and media personality (a specific participant in a certain media act). The characteristics of media interlocutors in a speech exchange include the cognitive potential of each of them, their socio-psychological type, the social relations between the communication partners, the degree of familiarity and experience of previous interaction, etc. Many typologies are based on linguistic criteria, which consider various ways of influencing the media-based interlocutor. For example, the classification proposed is based on the following speech-influencing aspects: argumentation, motivation, pragmatics, and accumulation. 
I guess a media-based interlocutor should be described not statically, but dynamically, in terms of models of speech behavior and methods of speech maneuvering. Such portraits should be based on the following criteria: the type of self-presentation, the level of tact, the level of control over effective communication and communicative pressure, the methods of maintaining communicative contact, the degree of attention to language forms, and the way information is presented.
I propose to analyse the type of a media-based interlocutor not only treating psychological personality parameters (that includes cognitive processes such as perception, memory, imagination, intuition), but, above all, interactive characteristics that determine the uniqueness of the personality. the use of the language code in various media situations, as well as purely psycholinguistic features, consciousness as a way of perceiving the surrounding reality and reflecting objective reality, its degree of participation in speech behavior, self–awareness characterizing the attitude to the world, thinking type (theoretical, logical, visual, sensory), and the social determinant in media interaction. Taking these criteria into account will allow researchers to provide the most comprehensive description of media-based interlocutors types. 

References

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