For centuries people have tried to classify individuals into distinct categories. It appears to be the human condition where individuals are more comfortable knowing a specific category in which others fall. Some regard personality types as distinct, others regard as continuous. However, most do regard personality types as discontinuous, meaning you are either in one group of individuals or another. You are either an introvert or an extrovert but do not necessarily hold the traits of both.
The desire to put individuals into categories has been documented as far back as 2000 B.C., during which the ancient Greeks described four different types of “humors” in people. Each type of person was believed to have an excess of one of four different body fluids, all of which corresponded to their external personalities or character. The Greeks believed that individuals were either irritable, depressed, optimistic or calm.
In the 1940s, William Sheldon classified personalities of individuals according to body type. His system was called somatotypes and based an individual’s character on the shape of the body. For instance, he theorized that people who are plump had relaxed and sociable personalities while those who were lean or delicate were quiet, non-assertive and sensitive. (3)
References:
(1) Center for applications of Pyschological Type: The Story of Isabel Briggs Myers
http://www.capt.org/mbti-assessment/isabel-myers.htm
(2) Psychology Today: Working With a Type A Personality
http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/digital-leaders/201201/working-type-personality
(3) British Journal of Sports Medicine: Anthropometric characteristics, Body Composition and Somatotype of Elite Junior Tennis Players
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17957016
(4) Myers Briggs Foundation
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