Surrounded by Idiots

Here’s another modern-day take on the Four Temperaments, a popular book series by Thomas Erikson called “Surrounded by Idiots.” After the original which is subtitled “The Four Types of Human Behavior and How to Effectively Communicate with Each in Business (and in Life),” he has written sequels titled “Surrounded by Narcissists,” “… by Psychopaths,” “… by Bad Bosses,” and “… by Setbacks”.

I have found a simple chart explaining his original four types using a two-by-two matrix of introvert vs. extrovert and task or issue-oriented vs. relation-oriented, and a review I read indicates that the DISC Theory of personality is the main influence for the author (and which is also related to humorism.)

- Red: Extrovert and Task/Issue-oriented
- Yellow: Extrovert and Relation-oriented
- Blue: Introvert and Tasks/Issue-oriented
- Green: Introvert and Relation-oriented

Notably the cover art for the series uses four colors for the different types of people: Red, Yellow, Green, and Blue. These colors are sometimes also used by others to denote the Four Temperaments. These four colors are often used for other classification schemes, and even for corporate logos. Also, these four colors are the set union of the three primary colors of light and the (traditional) three primary pigments.