The medical drama The Good Doctor, based on a Korean drama of the same name, exploded onto American television in 2017 to much fanfare. Both seasons have had consistently high ratings and positive reviews from critics. The story of Shaun Murphy, a young autistic savant surgical resident, drew people in. The show and actor Freddie Highmore have been widely praised for the positive and realistic portrayal of living with autism, especially as a savant.
And of course, St. Bonaventure Hospital is full of big personalities, interesting medical challenges, and plenty of drama to get invested in. Here are the MBTIs of all those exciting characters.
Dr. Shaun Murphy — INTJ, The Architect
The star of the show, Shaun Murphy, is a brilliant surgeon in part because he has those strong Intuitive traits. Several times in the show we see his eidetic memory combine with his Intuition to know that something’s not right—and subsequently save someone’s life. He also tends to be very aware when someone’s upset, but struggles to know why, which puts him at Thinking over Feeling.
Taking away Dr Aaron Glassman’s license when he starts to lose his memory is a good example of this. Sometimes Shaun hurts people’s feelings because his Judging traits means he’s rule-oriented, but his compassion helps him make up for it.
Dr. Neil Meléndez — ESTJ, The Executive
Meléndez has very classic Observing and Thinking traits: He is careful and thoughtful, and he likes to make evidence-based decisions. When he first meets Shaun, for instance, he is hesitant to include him in surgery until he’s spent time getting to know him and learning his strengths.
He likes to stick to a plan, as he does while keeping his relationship with Audrey Lim quiet, which is very Judging-based. But he can be more Prospecting when the time is right, so he probably falls around 50/50 on the J/P scale. He is also outgoing and charming, which makes patients like him.
Dr. Claire Browne — ENFP, The Campaigner
Claire’s MBTI shows in four quick letters why she’s a great doctor. Her Extraverted traits make her great with her fellow residents and helps patients trust her. Her Intuitive traits help her dig into an illness to diagnose it. Her Feeling traits help her connect with patients, and her Prospecting traits means she is always looking for helpful solutions.
Claire always looks for the best in people and tries to support and nurture those she cares about, as she does with Shaun. She is great at thinking on her feet and is extremely empathetic, which we witness when she replicates Shaun’s thought process to save someone’s life in season two.
Jared Kalu — ISFP, The Adventurer
Dr. Kalu is a dedicated doctor, going so far as to earn his medical degree without his family’s approval. He is obviously fiercely independent, which is a classic ISFP trait. His Feeling traits can sometimes get him into trouble, as they do when he punches someone and is fired. But that same sensitivity makes him a caring and compassionate medical professional.
The Feeling and Prospecting traits make him curious and imaginative, so surgery is a great path for him. Adventurers need tactile things that they can do rather than think about, so anywhere in the medical field will make someone like Jared happy.
