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TETRAHEDRAL PSYCHODYNAMICS FRAMEWORK

Displayed at Modelling in interactive 3D as primary mnemonic aid to strategic comprehension (2025)

Complete Documentation Summary (provisional) by Claude-4.5

Overview

The Psychodynamics model maps Jung's psychological functions onto tetrahedral geometry, showing relationships between Cognition, Emotion, Behavior, and Identity. This is expected to be the best fit of all four models - Jung's triplicities are the original inspiration for the exclusion principle.

STRUCTURE

Vertices (4 Psychological Functions)

  1. COG - Cognition

- Thinking, Reasoning, Planning, Analysis

- Color: Golden-yellow

- Position: (0.707, 0.707, 0.707)

- Jung: Thinking function

  1. EMO - Emotion

- Feeling, Affect, Motivation, Mood

- Color: Blue

- Position: (0.707, -0.707, -0.707)

- Jung: Feeling function

  1. BEH - Behavior

- Action, Habits, Skills, Motor responses

- Color: Red

- Position: (-0.707, 0.707, -0.707)

- Jung: Sensation function (action-oriented)

  1. ID - Identity

- Self-concept, Values, Meaning, Purpose

- Color: Teal/Cyan

- Position: (-0.707, -0.707, 0.707)

- Jung: Intuition function (self-understanding)

Edges (6 Psychological Processes)

  1. C-E (Cognitive-Emotional) - COG↔EMO

- Appraisal, Emotional regulation

- Cognitive reappraisal, affect modulation

  1. C-B (Cognitive-Behavioral) - COG↔BEH

- Decision-action link, Learning

- Executive function, habit formation

  1. C-I (Cognitive-Identity) - COG↔ID

- Self-reflection, Belief formation

- Narrative construction, meaning-making

  1. E-B (Emotional-Behavioral) - EMO↔BEH

- Impulse, Expression, Action tendency

- Emotional expression, motivated behavior

  1. E-I (Emotional-Identity) - EMO↔ID

- Self-feeling, Attachment

- Emotional identity, core values

  1. B-I (Behavioral-Identity) - BEH↔ID

- Self-expression, Role enactment

- Behavioral identity, enacted values

Central Hub

Attention

CIRCUITS (4 Psychological Modes)

Each circuit represents a mode where ONE function is repressed/inferior (Jung's principle).

🔴 RED Circuit: REACTIVE/FLOW MODE

Excludes: ID (Identity-free, pre-reflective)

Path: BEH → COG → EMO

Dynamic labels:

Characteristics:

Jung's functions: Sensation → Thinking → Feeling (extraverted, action-focused)

Psychological examples:

Phenomenology: "I'm not thinking about myself, I'm just doing"

Critique/shadow: Can lack direction, meaning, self-awareness; reactive rather than chosen

🔵 BLUE Circuit: DELIBERATE/WILL MODE

Excludes: EMO (Emotion-free, cold cognition)

Path: ID → COG → BEH

Dynamic labels:

Characteristics:

Jung's functions: Intuition → Thinking → Sensation (introverted, strategic)

Psychological examples:

Phenomenology: "I know who I am and what I need to do"

Critique/shadow: Can be rigid, cold, disconnected from feelings; burnout risk

🟢 GREEN Circuit: REFLECTIVE/CONTEMPLATIVE MODE

Excludes: BEH (Action-free, non-doing)

Path: EMO → COG → ID

Dynamic labels:

Characteristics:

Jung's functions: Feeling → Thinking → Intuition (introverted, contemplative)

Psychological examples:

Phenomenology: "I'm exploring what I feel and what it means"

Critique/shadow: Can be passive, stuck in analysis, avoidance of action

🟡 GOLD Circuit: EXPRESSIVE/AUTHENTIC MODE

Excludes: COG (Non-cognitive, spontaneous)

Path: ID → EMO → BEH

Dynamic labels:

Characteristics:

Jung's functions: Intuition → Feeling → Sensation (extraverted, creative)

Psychological examples:

Phenomenology: "This is who I am, expressed directly"

Critique/shadow: Can be impulsive, unexamined, emotionally driven

JUNG'S PSYCHOLOGICAL TYPES MAPPED

The Dominant-Inferior Axis

Jung argued that we develop one function as dominant while its opposite remains inferior/repressed.

Classic pairings:

The 4 circuits represent different exclusion patterns:

Developmental Integration

Mature psychological functioning involves accessing all four domains. The circuits represent:

The missing circuit (balanced integration of all four) represents individuation - Jung's goal of psychological wholeness.

CRITICAL ASSESSMENT

What This Model Does Exceptionally Well

✅ Direct Jung application:

✅ Phenomenologically valid:

✅ Developmentally meaningful:

✅ Therapeutically useful:

✅ All circuits pass through COG in segment 2:

Comparison to Other Models

vs. Metabolism (⭐⭐⭐):

vs. World Dynamics (⭐⭐⭐⭐):

Verdict: Psychodynamics is ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ - Best fit of all models

Limitations and Nuances

⚠️ Jung's theory is contested:

⚠️ Circuits are ideal types:

⚠️ Cultural specificity:

⚠️ The "excluded" function isn't absent:

What We ARE Claiming

✓ Four fundamental psychological functions (established in Jungian theory)

✓ Six processes connecting them (recognized in psychology)

✓ Four modes representing different exclusion patterns (Jung's types)

✓ Integration as psychological goal (individuation)

✓ This framework is pedagogically and therapeutically useful

What We're NOT Claiming

❌ This is the only valid psychological model

❌ People fit neatly into one circuit

❌ The geometric structure is neurologically mapped

❌ This replaces other personality frameworks

❌ Evidence base is beyond Jung's original theory

USING THIS VISUALIZATION

Self-Awareness Applications

  1. Identify your default circuit:

- Which mode feels most natural?

- Which function do you over-use?

- Which do you avoid?

  1. Recognize your shadow:

- Which circuit do you rarely access?

- What's the excluded function?

- How does this limit you?

  1. Practice integration:

- Deliberately engage non-preferred circuits

- Develop inferior functions

- Move toward wholeness

Therapeutic Applications

Assessment:

Intervention:

Goal-setting:

Interpersonal Applications

Understanding differences:

Communication:

Team building:

CIRCUIT TRANSITIONS

Healthy Transitions

RED → BLUE: Flow → Will

BLUE → GREEN: Will → Reflection

GREEN → GOLD: Reflection → Expression

GOLD → RED: Expression → Flow

Problematic Fixations

Stuck in RED: Pure reactivity

Stuck in BLUE: Over-control

Stuck in GREEN: Analysis paralysis

Stuck in GOLD: Unexamined expression

Integration Pathways

Accessing the excluded function:

TECHNICAL IMPLEMENTATION

Dynamic Labels

Each colored sphere shows which psychological function is active:

| Sphere | Excludes | Path | Mode |

|--------|----------|------|------|

| RED | ID | BEH→COG→EMO | Reactive/Flow |

| BLUE | EMO | ID→COG→BEH | Deliberate/Will |

| GREEN | BEH | EMO→COG→ID | Reflective |

| GOLD | COG | ID→EMO→BEH | Expressive |

Labels appear only when circling vertices (not in transitions).

Color Symbolism

Edge Labels (Abbreviated)

Full meanings:

COMPARATIVE RANKINGS

All Four Models Assessed

  1. Psychodynamics: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

- Perfect fit (Jung's original framework)

- Established theory, recognizable modes

- Therapeutically validated

- Phenomenologically accurate

  1. World Dynamics: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

- Strong fit (real political-economic systems)

- Historical examples

- Practically useful

  1. Metabolism: ⭐⭐⭐

- Decent mnemonic (valid domains)

- Speculative circuits

- Educational value despite limitations

  1. Knowledge Space: ⭐⭐ (pending)

- Expected weakest fit

- Conceptually confused

- May need reconceptualization or abandonment

FURTHER DEVELOPMENT

Research Applications

Empirical questions:

Assessment tools:

Therapeutic Innovations

Circuit-based interventions:

Integration practices:

Educational Applications

Teaching psychology:

Personal development:

DISCLAIMERS & CAVEATS

Theoretical Status

This visualization:

Recommended Framing

For clinical use:

"This framework adapts Jung's psychological types to a geometric visualization. While Jung's theory has extensive clinical application, it remains one of many valid approaches to understanding personality and psychological functioning."

For educational use:

"A visual tool for exploring different psychological modes based on Jungian theory. Useful for self-awareness and understanding individual differences, while recognizing that real psychological experience is more complex than any model."

For research:

"A theoretical framework proposing four psychological modes based on Jung's type theory. Empirical validation needed for specific claims about circuit structure and function."

CONCLUSION

The Psychodynamics tetrahedral model is the strongest and most defensible of all four frameworks. It directly applies Jung's established psychological theory, maps to recognizable experiential states, and has immediate therapeutic and educational utility.

Why it works:

Primary applications:

Primary strength:

This is the model where geometry meets psychology most naturally and powerfully.

FILES

Status: 3 of 4 models complete. Psychodynamics confirmed as strongest fit.