For many of us, the internet is integrated so thoroughly into our daily routine that we often fail to realize how much time we really spend online. But what if it were to vanish one day? Would it be no big deal, or would you be ready to jump out of your skin?
How would you handle a day without the internet?
We asked our readers whether they agreed or disagreed with the statement “You would find it very difficult to spend a day without internet,” tallying the responses according to the various personality traits, strategies, and roles. If the answers we received are any indication, there are significant differences in how we would react to an internet-free day, based on how we perceive and interact with the world.
The biggest split between the five traits was in the Identity aspect, with 66.62% of Turbulent types agreeing that a day without internet would be a struggle, while only a minority of Assertive types (47.08%) felt likewise. There were lesser, but still significant, disagreements between the other traits. Below, we examine how these differences make themselves known in each personality strategy and role:
Strategies
Of the four strategies, Constant Improvement types were the most likely to agree that a day without internet would be difficult (67.52% agreeing). Constant Improvers may feel that they benefit more from the internet than the other strategies, as it provides a buffer against the draining effects of social interaction. It also provides a means of gaining control over their identity. Updating a LinkedIn profile may be more comfortable to a Constant Improver than interviewing and handing out resumes in person.
Social Engagers agree almost as much as much as the Constant Improvement strategy that the internet is an important part of their daily lives (65.37% agreeing). Like Constant Improvers, Social Engagers may feel that their perfectionist tendencies are more easily expressed through social media than through face-to-face social interactions. For example, they may feel that an online metric, such as the number of Facebook friends and Twitter followers one has, can be used to gauge, and control, one’s social status.
The Confident Individualism strategy was evenly split (50.19% agreeing) on the question of whether a day without internet would be difficult. Confident Individualists have a high level of self-confidence, preferring to do things on their own. It is hardly surprising that so many might see a dependence on the internet as a fault. However, given the even split on this subject, Confident Individualists might also see the internet as a way to facilitate their own work, calling on written resources and video guides to avoid consulting other people directly.
Finally, those who identify with the People Mastery strategy had a slight minority of respondents who agreed that the internet was too important to spend a day without (45.24%). People Masters may love social media as much as the next person, but they’re confident enough in their interpersonal communication abilities to see the internet as useful and entertaining, not a necessity.
Roles
Although strategies seemed to have the most influence on responses, there were some significant differences among the roles as well. Analysts and Diplomats were the two roles most likely to agree that missing the internet for even a day would be a challenge (65.95% and 60.53% agreeing, respectively). Both Intuitive types, these two roles share a need for novelty and information that may make the endless diversions of the internet too appealing to pass up. Analysts may gravitate toward the informative aspect of the internet, while Diplomats may crave the feeling of constant connection with other humans that the internet offers.
Explorers and Sentinels were more evenly divided on the question of whether they would find it very difficult to spend a day without internet (54.12% and 52.30% agreeing, respectively). Though practical-minded and more interested in the “the real world” than in exploring immaterial possibilities, it’s worth noting that these two Observant roles still had a slight majority agreeing with the statement.
Conclusions
Interestingly, the major difference here seems to be not whether an individual is Extraverted or Introverted, as some might assume, but whether he or she is Assertive or Turbulent. Though heavy internet-users may once have had a stigma of reclusivity, the rise of social media has possibly made it so that Extraverts are almost as attached to their online activities as their Introverted counterparts. Instead of a place of escape from “real life,” the internet is increasingly seen as an extension of one’s life, making those who worry the most about keeping their finger on the pulse of things (Turbulent types) also the ones who fear being disconnected – both literally and figuratively!