With the Enneagram, we often explore how individuals relate to the world through different centers of intelligence: head, heart, and gut. These centers correspond to how we process the world, make decisions, and interact with others. Each person has one center of intelligence that is dominant, one or two that is supportive, and one that is repressed. Understanding which type you identify with can offer insights into your behaviors, challenges, and potential for growth. Listen to the full episode on this topic here.
How to Determine Your Enneagram Center of Intelligence
When faced with a decision or problem, consider how you respond. Is your first instinct to think things through logically, to feel your way through the situation, or to take immediate action? These reactions can provide clues about which center of intelligence is dominant in your life. When trying to figure out which Enneagram number you are, identifying with more with the thinking, feeling, or doing triad is a good way to narrow down to three numbers.
Thinking triad = Head center of intelligence: If your first instinct is to analyze the situation, weigh options, and make rational decisions, you're likely operating from the thinking triad.
Feeling triad = Heart center of intelligence: If you find yourself focusing on emotions, relationships, and how the situation might make you or others feel, you're likely drawing from the feeling triad.
Doing/instinctual triad = Gut center of intelligence: If you're more inclined to take immediate action or trust your instincts without overthinking, you're likely connected to the doing triad.
It's important to note that if you are in a center of intelligence other than the head, it doesn't mean you aren't smart or don't think when making decisions. If you are outside the heart center, it doesn't mean that you don't have feelings. Remember that this is only to decide which center of intelligence is strongest. As a pre-med student at the time of learning about the Enneagram, I found it difficult to believe that I could be somewhere other than the head center (since surely I think all the time!), but with a lot of self-reflection, I found my home in the gut center.
The Feeling Triad
People in the feeling triad (Enneagram types 2, 3, and 4) experience the world through their emotions and relationships. They are deeply attuned to how others feel, which shapes their interactions with the world.
Anxiety: One key aspect of the feeling triad is the anxiety that stems from their search for love and affirmation. Their drive is to create a world where they feel connected to others. However, this search for validation can sometimes lead to people-pleasing behaviors and a desire to please others at the expense of their own needs.
Empathy: People in this triad often have a deep understanding of the needs of others. This intuitive sense can make them adaptable and caring, but it can also make it difficult for them to express their own needs for fear of disappointing others.
Shame: Many of these individuals create a self-image that is loveable to escape feelings of shame. How they feel about themselves is often tied to their relationships or accomplishments. They may feel that their worth depends on being wanted or needed by others.
The Thinking Triad
The numbers of the thinking triad (types 5, 6, and 7) uses rational thinking as a way to avoid feelings of fear. These individuals rely heavily on logic to navigate the world, often planning ahead to ensure safety and security. Their primary concern is often to avoid situations that might trigger anxiety, and they find comfort in controlling their thoughts and responses.
Preparation: Those in the thinking triad tend to plan ahead, organizing their thoughts and actions to avoid emotional turbulence. This rational thinking provides them with a sense of safety by keeping fear at bay.
Control: By controlling their inner world through structure and logic, these individuals seek to protect themselves from the unpredictable nature of emotions and relationships.
The Instinctual Triad
The instinctual triad (types 1, 3, and 8) places a strong focus on control, accomplishment, and seeking pleasure while ensuring safety. These individuals often focus on tasks and activities that help them maintain control over their environment.
Avoidance: For individuals in the instinctual triad, avoiding anger is a key motivator. They may channel their energy into accomplishing tasks or maintaining order to keep any negative emotions at bay.
Stubbornness: These individuals tend to be determined and very busy, which suits their desire for control. However, they can also become rigid in their thinking, often resisting change or alternative approaches.
Repressed Centers of Intelligence
As we explore the Enneagram, we also learn that each type has a repressed center of intelligence. This is the area where we have the most difficulty accessing and utilizing effectively.
Withdrawing Stance (Doing Repressed): For these Enneagram types (4, 5, and 9), action is repressed. They may struggle to take necessary action, instead withdrawing from challenges or avoiding what needs to be done.
Aggressive/Assertive Stance (Feeling Repressed): For these Enneagram types (3, 7, and 8), emotions are repressed. They avoid feelings when possible and focusing on action or logic instead.
Dependent Stance (Thinking Repressed): For these Enneagram numbers (1, 2, and 6), thinking is repressed. This doesn't mean that these individuals don't think; it just means that their thinking is largely unproductive, and they are more likely to rely more on others for decisions.
Note: there is some thought that Enneagram 1 and 3 should be switched here (so that Enneagram 1 would be in the aggressive stance and 3 in the dependent stance)
Types That Access Their Repressed Centers in Growth
An important concept with the Enneagram is that there is some movement when an individual can take on characteristics of other numbers. You never become another number, but you can use what other numbers can offer as a helpful way to grow or deal with stress. This is done unconsciously, but having awareness of this process can enhance the usefulness of these moves. Each Enneagram number has a predictable movement to another number in stress and another one in growth/security. Some numbers have an easier way to access their repressed centers than others.
Type 1: Accesses the head center in growth/security when they move to 7.
Type 5: Accesses the gut center in growth/security when they move to 8.
Type 8: Accesses the heart center in growth/security when they move to 2.
Type 4: Accesses the gut center in growth/security when they move to 1.
Notice that the repressed center for these numbers are achieved by moving to your growth/security number. We need each of the numbers we move to in growth/security and stress, but these numbers are able to truly unlock a blind spot when moving into growth. However, the other 5 numbers don't have this so easy.
Types That Do Not Move to Access Their Repressed Center
Type 2 and Type 7: Tend to remain fixed in their dominant and supportive centers without accessing their repressed intelligence. Type 2s have a hard time leading with the thinking center of intelligence while type 7s have a hard time leading with the feeling center of intelligence. Neither number has access to these centers with a wing, either. It's just a permanent blind spot that needs to be intentionally focused on. Again, it doesn't mean these numbers don't think or feel, it means that it is not a center that guides them as much as the other two.
Type 3, Type 6, and Type 9: These numbers have the same dominant and repressed centers. So, they don't have to move to access their repressed center! How can a number be dominant and depressed in the same center? This is the heart of the work for these numbers, but they tend to be more balanced with the other two centers of intelligence serving as supportive centers. Think about the subconscious conflict for 3s as "what should I feel? what should I not feel?" and then feelings heavily inform thoughts and actions. The repressed piece: many 3s are disconnected from their feelings but able to identify with the feelings of others. For 6s the conflict is "what should I be thinking about?" and they have a lot of feelings about these thoughts, and their thoughts inform what they do. The repressed piece: much of the 6's thoughts are unproductive and filled with anxiety. For 9s, the conflict is "what should I be doing or not doing?" and actions inform what they think and how they feel. The repressed piece: they deal with a lot of unproductive action that isn't useful and may do things to procrastinate on things they should be doing.
Conclusion
The Enneagram offers a fascinating lens through which we can explore our relationship with thinking, feeling, and doing. By understanding our dominant, supportive, and repressed centers of intelligence, we can gain valuable insights into how we interact with the world and with others. Recognizing the ways in which our center of intelligence shapes our behavior can lead to greater self-awareness, growth, and deeper connections with those around us.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. How can I determine which center of intelligence is dominant in my life?
To figure out your dominant center, pay attention to your instinctive responses when faced with decisions or challenges. Do you tend to think things through (head), feel your way through situations (heart), or act quickly without overthinking (gut)?
2. What does it mean to be in a repressed center of intelligence?
A repressed center refers to the area of intelligence that is less accessible to you or harder to engage with. Each Enneagram type tends to have a repressed center, which means they often struggle to access or use it effectively.
3. Should I focus on my dominant, supportive, or repressed center for personal growth?
It’s helpful to first identify which center feels most natural and dominant in your life and then explore ways you can strengthen your repressed center (which often represents areas of growth). Becoming more aware of your supportive centers can also offer a balanced approach, helping you access a broader range of resources for self-awareness and growth.