We carried out extensive work to refine the definitions of Afanasyev’s typology parameters and align them with the psychoanalytic paradigm and modern scientific understanding of the psyche. In our work, we summarized data obtained during therapeutic sessions with clients, career-orientation consultations, and personality research. We also provided a psychoanalytic explanation for the formation of functions within Afanasyev’s typology.
The results of this scientific study underwent double-blind peer review and were published in a psychology journal included in the list of journals recommended by the Higher Attestation Commission (HAC) under the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation.

As we mentioned earlier, Afanasyev’s typology operates within the framework of psychoanalysis — that is, within the psychoanalytic paradigm.

Psychoanalysis is a psychological theory and the set of methods based on it. All modern non-medical psychotherapy approaches are built upon psychoanalytic foundations. The founder of this field is Sigmund Freud, whose work was later expanded by Carl Gustav Jung, Alfred Adler, Jacques Lacan, Françoise Dolto, and others.

At the core of psychoanalysis lies the idea that the human psyche consists of three parts: the conscious, the preconscious, and the unconscious. This structure explains how a person experiences life events and internalizes their experiences. Part of a person’s experience is processed and becomes integrated into consciousness, while another part remains unprocessed and turns into trauma, “falling” into the unconscious. Traumatic experiences accumulate there and influence a person’s life, draining their psychological energy (time, strength, emotional resources). The psyche tries to protect the individual from this painful material and activates various defense mechanisms.

Psychological therapy in the psychoanalytic modality is based on helping a person become aware of their defense mechanisms and work through their traumatic experiences so that these issues no longer interfere with their ability to achieve their goals and live a fulfilling life.

Afanasyev’s typology is not a replacement for psychological therapy. It will not solve all your psychological problems or answer the question, “What event caused them?” What it provides is a map showing in which areas you have more traumatic experience and in which areas less; it can also offer hypotheses about where to look for the roots of psychological difficulties.

This helps explain why we struggle to realize certain abilities, why some activities attract us while others repel us. The root of this lies in childhood experience — the result of parental upbringing and the child’s early encounters between their own desires and the outside world. Based on these experiences, a child develops primary psychological defense mechanisms that protect them from painful feelings and inner conflicts. These defenses later shape the social roles a person is willing and able to take on, as well as their interests and ambitions.

As a result, Afanasyev’s typology can be used to analyze the areas and directions in which a person is able to express themselves more easily, and where internal blocks and complexes hinder self-realization. This helps many people understand why they struggle to fully find their path and unlock their innate abilities.

Afanasyev’s typology studies and describes a person’s self-perception. These self-perceptions are formed in childhood (between approximately 2.5 and 7 years old) under the influence of parental upbringing and the way parents relate to the child. A child learns about themselves through the responses and attitudes of their parents. Based on the parents’ daily actions and patterns of behavior, the child forms a self-image and develops behavioral strategies that help them adapt to their parents.

Later in life, these formed self-perceptions influence a person’s choice of interests, friends, future profession, and the social roles they tend to take on — as well as the roles they tend to avoid.

Formed self-perceptions and the behavioral strategies that follow from them do not change dramatically over time. However, through personal development or psychotherapy, a person can learn to accept themselves, manage these strategies more effectively, and reach a state in which these patterns no longer interfere with achieving their goals.

Therefore, knowing Afanasyev’s typology helps us predict a person’s behavioral strategies in different areas of life — which responsibilities they will naturally gravitate toward and which responsibilities they will tend to avoid.

Afanasyev’s typology identifies four main areas in which a person expresses themselves, traditionally called aspects in the original system. Below, we describe the content of each of these four areas, along with their traditional names used in Afanasyev’s typology.

The “Resource” sphere.
At the core of this sphere are the processes through which a person obtains and maintains resources. A child’s self-perception in this area is shaped by the parents’ attitude toward resources (living space, belongings, food) — specifically, how much the parent allows the child to claim resources as their own and manage them independently.

The self-image formed through these early interactions influences the following areas of life:
— physical labor and sports;
— attitude toward material well-being;
— working with physical objects (cooking, nursing, carpentry, crafting, etc.);
— interaction with nature and forms of physical rest.

The “Learning” sphere.
At the core of this sphere are the processes through which a person satisfies their curiosity and acquires knowledge. A child’s self-perception in this area is shaped by the degree of parental involvement in the child’s exploration and learning about the world.

The experiences formed in childhood within the Logic aspect later manifest in areas such as:
— intellectual work;
— education and academic achievement;
— teaching and mentoring;
— scientific or research activity;
— intellectual games;

— analytical discussions and debates.

The “Interpersonal” sphere.
At the core of this sphere are the processes of establishing contact with another person and maintaining that connection. A child’s self-perception in this area is shaped by the emotional involvement and sensitivity the parents show in their relationship with the child.

Later in life, these early experiences influence a person’s functioning in areas such as:
— entertainment and social activities;
— psychology and emotional work;
— forming and maintaining social connections and relationships (friendships, work relationships, family, romantic relationships, etc.).

The “Agentic” sphere.
At the core of this sphere are the processes through which a person becomes aware of their independence and maintains it (non-submission). A child’s self-perception in this area is shaped by the distribution of power within the family — specifically, how much one parent dominated the other and the children in decision-making.

Later in life, these early impressions influence a person’s involvement in:
— positions of authority;
— politics and leadership;
— personal independence and autonomy;
— attitudes toward fame and career advancement;
— and overall leadership behaviors and ambitions.

Often, role distribution within groups follows this very principle. For example, Belbin’s team-role theory describes the same kind of division, only with more fine-grained distinctions within each sphere. This type of categorization is also reflected in culture, where the social roles of characters are presented in an exaggerated or amplified form.

A person’s self-perception is described by three parameters. Two of them are primary and form in childhood, while the third parameter is a balancing one — it softens or moderates the expression of the first two.

At the intersection of these three parameters, four priorities (functions) are identified. This means that a person has spheres of realization that are more and less important to them. The order of these spheres by priority is what defines a PY-type (from psyche-yoga).
For example, the type ALIR indicates that for a person with this type, the spheres of power and intellectual work are far more engaging than communication and manual or physical work.

The psychic energy parameter assesses a person’s self-perception of their own power or powerlessness within a given sphere. It has two poles, referred to as “Resilient / Depleted ”

Depleted priorities are the spheres in which a person perceives themselves as insignificant or powerless. This is associated with a greater number of intrapersonal conflicts, traumas, and complexes. When a person encounters tasks or situations within such a sphere, they will more often experience resistance and the activation of psychological defenses. These defenses attempt to protect them from the negative emotions and feelings connected to that sphere, as these emotions may resemble past traumatic experiences.

Because of this, work in these spheres is difficult without psychotherapy aimed at resolving internal conflicts and processing trauma.

Resilient priorities are the spheres in which a person perceives themselves as powerful or capable. This is associated with fewer intrapersonal conflicts, traumas, and complexes compared to the low-priority spheres. The person has positive experiences and feelings of satisfaction related to functioning in these areas.

As a result, it is much easier for them to express themselves in these spheres, since they encounter fewer psychological defenses and have enough energy not only to overcome obstacles but also to actively engage and achieve meaningful results.

The desires orientation parameter reflects a person’s attitude toward their own capabilities. It has two poles, referred to as “ego-centlic” and “allocentric”

Ego-centric priorities are the spheres in which a person holds an exaggeratedly high opinion of themselves and their abilities, because they are confident in their superiority over others. This develops from the fact that, in childhood, their attempts at realization in these spheres were singled out in a special way. This could have been either positive or negative attention, but the key point is that the parent reacted to these areas differently than to others — which led the child to form an inflated self-perception in these spheres.

Allocentric priorities are the spheres in which a person has a more self-critical view of themselves and their abilities. Later in life, they see themselves and their desires as equal to those of others. Since adults did not emphasize the child’s achievements in these areas as strongly as they did in the principled spheres, the person is not inclined to assert or prove any sense of superiority there.

As we mentioned earlier, the two previous parameters can be balanced by a third one — the strategy for resolving internal conflicts. This parameter has two poles, called “Merging” and “Oscillating.”

An intrapersonal conflict is a state in which a person experiences contradictory motives, goals, or desires that they are unable to reconcile in the moment. These inner conflicts often do not remain internal — a person may project them outward and reenact their internal struggle with the people around them.

Resilient priorities, as well as depleted priorities, almost never produce strong contradictions, because the person’s desires align with their self-perception. As a result, it is easier for them to resolve internal conflict. These priorities are called Merging.
Merging priorities are the spheres in which a person remains unwavering when making decisions. They experience contradictory motives and desires less often, and even when such contradictions arise, the person resolves them quickly and without inner doubt.

Resilient priorities and depleted priorities, on the other hand, more frequently create intrapersonal conflicts. This happens because the person’s desires conflict with their self-perception, which generates a struggle between desires and the psychic energy needed to satisfy them. It becomes harder for the person to resolve these conflicts, leading to doubt and internal battles between motives. These priorities are called Oscillating.
Oscillating priorities are the spheres in which a person becomes overwhelmed by inner conflicts and fluctuations. It is difficult for them to stick to a decision because of persistent doubts, and they seek support from the external world — trying to align their desires and decisions in that sphere with other people.

This function is the most important one in a person’s hierarchy of priorities. In this sphere, the person is completely confident in their desires, has enough energy to pursue them, and therefore does not experience intrapersonal conflict. Agentic sphere in the first function happen very quickly, following the principle: I want it → I do it.
It is vital for a person to realize their first function in society. If they cannot express it in the social or professional environment, they may fall into apathy, depression, or other negative psychological states. This is why it is extremely important to express and develop the first function either in one’s career or through hobbies and personal projects.

A person often projects their uncompromising nature onto others through their first priority, and this can appear rather harsh or insensitive to other people’s struggles and inner conflicts. For example, someone with a dominant first function might say things like: “If you haven’t done anything yet, it means you didn’t really want it,” or “What’s so difficult? Just go and do it.”
This is why the first function is often associated with the image of a dictator or a ruler.

This function is the second most important for a person. People often choose their hobbies, jobs, and interests based on their second function. There are no grand ambitions here and no inflated self-importance. On the contrary, a person often downplays their real achievements and skills in this sphere.
In the second function, a person pursues their own desires, can help others fulfill theirs, and easily makes compromises. Seeing other people’s desires as equal to their own makes them tolerant and respectful of others’ “quirks,” traumas, and insecurities within this sphere.

A person often lacks initiative or strong personal desires in their second function, which is why they need someone else to engage in the activity together — cooking together (Resources), studying together (Learning), sharing responsibility (Agentic), or building friendships together (Interpersonal). Acts of will here are more complex because the person spends a lot of time struggling with conflicting motives.
They can’t easily decide how to act: follow their own wishes, follow someone else’s wishes, or find something in between. As a result, they often involve others in discussion to find a compromise that satisfies everyone.
This is why the second function is associated with the image of a therapist — someone who listens, understands, and tries to help in any way they can.

This function is a source of constant inner conflict, because an inflated sense of self-worth coexists with a feeling of personal insignificance. This creates many ambitions without the confidence needed to fulfill them. A person often cannot realize their desires in the third function. When they face these desires in real life or even in their own thoughts, they automatically recall the painful experiences they had in this sphere during childhood.
As a result, the psyche tries to protect the person from confronting this emotional pain. Various forms of resistance appear: sudden laziness, loss of energy, urgent “more important” tasks — and the person abandons the pursuit of their desire. However, the desire itself does not disappear.
Consequently, when they see others achieving their goals in this sphere, they begin to feel envy, which produces negative emotions such as anger, resentment, hatred, or passive aggression. The psyche shields the person from touching that internal pain, so they project onto others the feelings they actually experience toward themselves as a result of their own sense of powerlessness.

In the third function, a person tends to slip into child-like states — for example, waiting for others to guess their desires and help them, much like a mother caring for her child and anticipating their needs. This is only one of many possible expressions of the third function’s defensive reactions.
The third function is the most diverse in its manifestations because it involves the largest number of possible psychological defenses: projection, devaluation, rationalization, regression, denial, substitution, escape, dissociation, deflection, egotism, compensation, and many others.

People tend to hide their third function not only from others — because showing weakness can feel shameful — but also from themselves, because it is difficult to admit one’s own vulnerability. This is why the largest number of mistakes in self-typing within Afanasyev’s typology occurs specifically around the third function.

During self-diagnosis, people often try to:
— push it into first place (“this is the most important thing in my life, and don’t touch me here”);
— or into second place (“it’s not that bad, I can more or less manage it with others’ help”);
— or into the last place (“this is ABSOLUTELY not important to me — ABSOLUTELY!!!”).
Each of these is simply another way the psyche unconsciously protects the person from painful feelings.

The fourth function is traditionally called “a trifle,” but this is not quite accurate. It is actually the most problematic and the most painful function. This is where the core traumas and complexes reside — the most frightening parts of our childhood. These experiences are so painful that the psyche, in an attempt to protect us, has buried them so deeply that very little trace remains.
These feelings, events, and everything associated with them are repressed into the unconscious. As a result, a person may not even remember what happened to them in the area of the fourth function — what caused the pain. It may seem as if “nothing ever happened here,” but somewhere deep in the unconscious, something significant is hidden.

Independent work in this sphere is extremely difficult, because the heavy burden of the unconscious immediately drains a person of both energy and desire as soon as they begin doing something in this area or even think about doing it. Their hands drop, and they no longer want to continue. As a result, the person gives up and lets everything run its course. There is often not even a hope that someone will come and do things for them.
This is why, in the fourth function, people tend not to resist the desires of others — things “somehow get done on their own.” But these external behaviors should not be mistaken for the person’s true desires. Such outward signs indicate a deeply suppressed trauma and show that the person needs support and help.