Exploring the interface of the type and emotional intelligence landscapes

between EI and the MBTI instrument. For the most part, the results have been mixed, with the exception of Thompson (2006), in that there seems to be a positive relationship between overall EI and the MBTI scales of Extraverting and iNtuiting and mixed findings on the other preferences. Thompson’s study is the most comprehensive research on Type and EI to date and the only study to examine the MBTI Form Q facets and EI. More information about this particular study will be provided later in this article. This paper has a multi-fold purpose: (1) to provide a thumbnail sketch of how Jung’s typology fits into an overall Dynamical Human Systems Model; (2) to look at Type and EI landscapes through a dynamical systems lens; (3) to explore the application of EI in the Type setting; (4) and to tug on Superman®’s cape—just a little. Affect tends to contaminate or distort each of the functions: we can’t think straight when we’re mad; happiness colors the way we perceive things and people; we can’t properly evaluate what something is worth to us when we’re upset; and possibilities dry up when we’re depressed (Sharp, 1987, p.18). One of the principles of the Dynamical Human Systems Model is that all perception (Perceiving) and decisionmaking (Judging) have both cognitive and emotional components that influence what is perceive