They make effective targets for others’ projections because they can’t help but be aware of—and voice—the negative aspects that others don’t want to see or own. This is why many Fours become the “identified patient” in their families. And this whole dynamic can work to reinforce the Four’s defenses, which in some ways cause them to take refuge in their “badness” as a way of avoiding the positive aspects of themselves that might lead them to open up to the dangerous prospect of being seen and loved.
