Call it karma, kismet, or plain old cause and effect – everyone has an opinion when it comes to the effects that personal actions have on the course of our lives. Our ideas on this topic can be influenced by religion, personal experience, or even scientific observation. It’s certainly a safe assumption that personality type plays a part as well.
To determine what role personality type plays, we asked if our readers agreed or disagreed with the statement “Most people get what they deserve in life.” The results were both fascinating and enlightening.
There are significant differences between nearly all of the traits, Roles, and Strategies. Extraverts were more likely to agree than Introverts (52% and 44% agreeing, respectively), as were Thinking types over Feeling types (54% and 45%).
However, one aspect stood out as having the greatest impact on whether a respondent agreed or disagreed with this statement – Identity. The influence of an Assertive (53%) or Turbulent (47%) Identity resulted in a large variance in responses within individual personality types. Specifically, when Assertiveness was paired with a Thinking or Judging trait, that type was significantly more likely to agree than the same type with a Turbulent Identity. We discuss the effects of all these components below.
Roles
Analysts and Sentinels (51% and 50% agreeing, respectively)
Analysts and Sentinels agreed most with the statement (though they were still evenly split), both having a specific trait that made them more likely to agree that people get what they deserve. For Analysts, it’s their shared Thinking trait; for Sentinels, their Judging trait. For these types, personal responsibility overrides individual circumstances in determining one’s destiny. It’s how individuals respond to their circumstances – or how they create those circumstances – that determines their lot in life.
Commanders (ENTJ) (63% agreeing), for example, are incredibly driven and determined. They tend to believe that success is due to hard work and applied intelligence. Anyone who does not succeed, in their opinion, has simply not tried hard enough. They get what they earn.
Executives (ESTJ) – the highest-scoring personality type (with 64% agreeing) – hold themselves as well as others to extremely high, but also realistic, standards. Executives have little patience or understanding for those who fail to meet their expectations, though. John D. Rockefeller exemplifies the Executive mentality on personal responsibility: “I believe in the dignity of labor, whether with head or hand; that the world owes no man a living but that it owes every man the opportunity to make a living.”
Diplomats and Explorers (46% and 44%)
Diplomats and Explorers were less likely to report believing that most people get what they deserve in life. There were, however, significant differences in responses within each of these Roles.
For example, while Protagonists (ENFJ) (55%) were the most likely Diplomat personality type to agree with the statement overall, they agreed less than Assertive Advocates (INFJ-A) (57%). Turbulent Advocates (INFJ-T) (42%), however, were significantly less likely to agree.
Both Protagonists and Advocates are incredibly idealistic, but they are not immune to the inequality that they observe (often from the front lines). While Judging Diplomats are sensitive to the emotions and situations of others though, they remain more grounded than most Prospecting personality types who, Entrepreneurs (ESTP) (59%) aside, were some of the least likely to agree.
Open-minded and sensitive, Diplomats with the Prospecting trait and Explorers in general are more likely to believe that everyone deserves a happy life. Like Fox Mulder, an infamous Mediator, they “want to believe” that there is potential for a positive future for all people. They are aware of the realities, but Explorers especially feel that the burden of consequence shouldn’t always have to outweigh simple joys.
Strategies
People Mastery (54% agreeing)
People Masters were the Strategy most likely to agree that people get what they deserve in life. Assertive Executives (ESTJ-A) (66%), Commanders (ENTJ-A), (64%), Entrepreneurs (ESTP-A) (60%), and Protagonists (ENFJ-A) (59%) all agreed by a strong majority. This confirms that the Thinking and/or Judging traits, when combined with an Assertive Identity, make them much more likely to see individuals as responsible for creating their own destiny.
Assertive Entertainers (ESFP-A) (44%) agreed least among People Masters that most people get what they deserve in life. Entertainers, an emotionally sensitive type, are more interested in making sure that everyone is having a good time than in making sure everyone bears strict responsibility for the consequences of that fun. Spontaneous and focused on the moment, they tend to blame circumstances when things go wrong, then move on.
Confident Individualism (50%) and Social Engagement (49%)
Confident Individualists gave a collective shrug to the statement with an even 50% agreement. These types follow their own thoughts and actions. They are unlikely to see themselves as so tied to the broader world that they need to worry about how consequences reverberate, instead focusing on personal passions. Confident Individualists are more insulated from their surroundings than any other Strategy.
Virtuosos (ISTP) demonstrate this insular attitude well. 53% of Assertive Virtuosos agreed, while just 34% of Turbulent Virtuosos did. Virtuosos are a contradictory type – creative and spontaneous, yet practical and rational. Assertive Virtuosos lean more towards their practical and rational tendencies, resulting in lower levels of empathy and understanding than their Turbulent counterparts, who are more sensitive to the pressure of personal responsibility. For Turbulent types, pointing to outside forces as the root of success or failure can be a very useful tactic when trying to reduce stress.
Social Engagers, such as Turbulent Commanders (ENTJ-T) (61%) and Turbulent Entrepreneurs (ESTP-T) (57%), subscribe to the “work hard and reap the rewards” ideal. Commanders and Entrepreneurs actually thrive on the stress of their ambitions, but their perfectionism and sometimes extreme reactions separate them from the Confident Individualists and People Masters. Other people’s opinions hold great value to Social Engagers, and accepting the consequences of their actions, especially when they perform well, can give a real boost to their self-esteem that fatalism can’t deliver.
The higher levels of emotional expression and compassion found in Turbulent Entertainers (ESFP-T) (42%) and Consuls (ESFJ-T) (46%) produce greater sensitivity towards others. Combined with a strong aversion to conflict, these personality types are more inclined to find ways to support others than to demand justice and just compensation at every turn.
Constant Improvement (41%)
Constant Improvers, such as Turbulent Virtuosos (ISTP-T) (34%), Adventurers (ISFP-T) (37%), and Mediators (INFP-T) (38%) were significantly less likely to agree with the statement than other Strategies. To these personality types, the world is a massive, almost incomprehensibly complex thing, churning out results and creating winners and losers in ways that go far beyond personal effort. They are certainly believers in the power of personal effort, but may not think that effort always matches results.
These personalities are usually turned inwards, more concerned with happiness and meaning. They are less likely to judge other people who are attempting to find their own way in life, acknowledging their own struggles in a world that seems to demand thick skin and an inherently social disposition to achieve success.
CONCLUSIONS
People's opinions on karma and kismet, destiny and nihilism, politics and economics, are influenced by many things, not the least of which is personality type. Our research has shown that certain personality types, specifically those with a tendency to prefer the rational, orderly, and objective, are more likely to believe that people get what they deserve in life.
While it may be possible to determine if we feel that we get what we deserve in our own lives though, it is nearly impossible to determine if someone else deserves what they have received in their life. Concepts such as fate are paired with the question of whether day-to-day society is fundamentally fair – countless factors can affect one’s path in life, and it comes down to whether we believe will is stronger than fate.
But more important than attempting to determine if most people get what they deserve in life, is focusing on living a life that lines up with the values that we believe in.
Do you believe that most people get what they deserve? Why or why not? Let us know in the comments section!