The Expert

The Social Role of the Five is that of The Expert. This is born out of the Five's fear of being useless and incapable. To counteract that, they invest their efforts in knowing more than other people about something - usually one or two things only (because if you're going to go in as deep as the Five it simply wouldn't be possible to do it with many things) and they rely on this as a means of being useful, to create a niche for themselves and to feel confident and competent. As a result they are usually sought after for their knowledge about their specialist subject not only because they know so much but because they often have new insights or ways of seeing things that can be refreshing and sometimes groundbreaking.

The issue is that from the average levels downwards they cannot really relate to people outside of their area of knowledge. Though they may know much more than anyone else about it, they can be so focussed on it that other areas of their life drop out of the equation - particularly the practicalities of life. They may be unable to cook a meal, for example, or have much of a social life or a relationship. Physical exercise is often something that Fives feel is a bit alien to them and if they do not do any exercise they may feel very unconfident in their body which can cause them to retreat even further into their heads.

If they continue to spend so much time ignoring important aspects of their lives, they can find themselves isolated and living a rather narrow existence focussed on just a few activities - those that allow them to feel competent and therefore safe.