Basic e*f*a* (IcRcUc)

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In spite of being one of the most tension producing adjustments of the primitive IRU orientation, the e*f*a* adjustment is one of the most productive and efficient adaptations. The person who makes this adaptation is almost a "carbon copy" of the direction, training, and influence he received during his maturation period. Thus, this is a pattern of extremes since the influences can be so diverse and unpredictable. Beginning as a passive, non-responsive child, the e*f*a* has learned to control his self-centeredness, to discipline his ideational activity, and to develop an effective, comfortable social role.

The e*f*a* has more social versatility but this, in effect, makes him more vulnerable to unconscious deception. The e*f*a* learns a fixed social role that conforms to his occupational and ethical framework as structured by his socio-cultural back ground. It is the e*f*a* who is the embodiment of his cultural heritage; many times, he comes close to its ideal. The characteristics that are spoken of as Oriental, South European, Scandinavian, or American are best assimilated and performed by the e*f*a*. Similarly, the military, Madison Avenue, or professional stereotype exist in their purest to form this cluster. The more precise and structured the tasks, intellectually and socially, the more precise and exact is the performance of the e*f*a*.

In a sense, the e*f*a* is so dependent on, and so non-resistant toward the forces that shape him, he puts little of himself into his development. He is loyal to those things to which he is trained to be loyal, and is relatively non-susceptible to seduction, subversion, and interpersonal involvement. If his society teaches him abstract ideas like honor and respect for parents, love of country, respect for God and the ministers of God, he accepts and applies these concepts with relative insulation against disillusion ment through experience. By the same token, if his society teaches him that white men are poison, that parents should be liquidated when they are old and feeble, and Allah is the true God, he is equally loyal and unswerving in his devotion and the performance of his duty. Surprisingly enough, however, this adjustment has little intensity or sense of dedication. There is a mechanical, take-it-for-granted character to the individual for he has little anxiety, guilt, or interactive responsiveness to control, sublimate, or defend against.

The problem for the e*f*a* is that he often becomes concerned over his lack of intensity, lack of feeling, and his awareness that many of the traditions do not affect him as he thinks they should. In general, the e*f*a* is a highly effective person in whatever he does, but he often seems reserved, non-involved, and indifferent. He usually recognizes and responds to the ambition and drive of, for example, his parents, but he may be bewildered as to why they take everything so seriously. Obviously, many great actors will be found in this cluster. However, their greatness is very much a function of the skill of their directors and the breadth of his writers. The e*f*a* puts little into his part in the way of personal interpretations, but he reflects magnificently the intent of this author and director. Great ballet dancers may also come from this cluster, but again, their greatness comes from their ability to learn the classical positions and to reflect the intent of their choreographers. Musicians who can master the intricacies of string and woodwind instruments are also found in this group but, as with other performers, their skill is very much a function of the expertise and patience of their teachers. All manner of highly skilled and specialized persons are found among the e*f*a*, ranging from the child who grows up in a family of acrobats and becomes a great performer, himself, to the son who goes dutifully and effectively to law, medical, or military school in order to follow in his father's footsteps.

Middle and lower range normal levels may not have the skill or competence of those with high intellectual skill who actually come closer than most to living up to their maximum potential, but they have the imitativeness and dependence on external direction and training. The problem of the middle and lower range groups is that they may be unrealistically self-confident. This series can produce such diverse individuals as highly successful photographic and fashion models to strip-tease artists and well adjusted prostitutes.

Obviously, the background and training of an e*f*a [IcRcAu] * is crucial to determining his adaption. Lack of adaptation or maladjustment in the e*f*a* is very much a function of the extent to which he can live out his life doing what he has learned to do in the milieu from which he has emerged. The more innovation, adaptation, and cultural change he is forced to undergo, the more tense and inoperative he becomes. Aging, particularly as it changes his pattern of his life, can be disabling. Because of the relatively static nature of this adjustment, what may be appropriate for one age level becomes inappropriate at another. In one sense, the e*f*a* keeps his youthfulness longer than any other group; it is the e*f*a* whose apparent age is almost always less than their chronological age, while the e*f*a* and i*f*a* [EcRcUc] reverse this pattern. Moreover, the over age "maiden" who perseverates her coyness and youth apparel in a ludicrous manner, and the over age "youth" who maintains his physical fitness at the expense of his health come most frequently for the e*f*a* cluster. Alcoholism, drug addition, migraine headaches, and pathological passivity with morbid depressions are the primary manifestations of prolonged stress resulting from pressure for change and adaptation from a well-established pattern.