Introverted Thinking (Ti) vs. Introverted Intuition (Ni): A Closer Look

Greetings fair denizens of our humble blog. Lately, I’ve noticed that there tends to be a lot of confusion surrounding Ti, or Introverted Thinking, and Ni, Introverted Intuition. This usually leads to attributes of one being given to the other and vice versa. Let’s take a closer look at both and see if we can differentiate the two. This article should be especially useful for the potential INTJ, INFJ, ENTJ, ENFJ, ISTP, INTP, ESTP, and ENTP as those are all the high Ni and Ti users. However, those who are lower users (SFPs, SFJs) may find this article helpful as well. In addition, I’ve included some information on Si and Te for the sake of contrasting the way other types internalize and connect information in comparison to the Ni and Ti users.

Overview of Ti and Ni

Before we get into things, it is important to do a quick overview of both Ti and Ni just to get a feel for what we are dealing with.

Introverted Thinking (Ti) –  a thinking trait turned inward. Ti users have a tendency to internalize their thought processes and compare their own thoughts against their other thoughts rather than, say, compare them against someone else’s. In other words, it’s subjective logic. What makes it subjective is that they prioritize making the logic fit with the other information inside their head, rather than the external information around them. They are comparing their thoughts mostly against themselves.

Introverted Intuition (Ni) –  an intuition trait turned inward. Intuition is an information gathering trait; and when it is internalized, it leads to a more impressionistic way of storing information. This, at times, leads to someone remembering the solution to something, but all of the details as to why have been stripped away. This is where the gut feelings and ‘mystical’ sense of knowing things comes into play. While it may be more fun and imaginative to view Ni that way, the boring reality is that at some point in the past the Ni user observed information that led them to that conclusion. They just don’t remember the details like when, where, why, and how the information was picked up.

Note: Ni is NOT a thinking function, which means Ni does not develop strategy… it supplies the information for the strategy.

The Difference

The reason the two get confused so often is because, one: they are both introverted functions which makes them hard to see and distinguish, and two: they are both abstract. Ni collects and stores abstract information, while Ti makes abstract connections and conclusions. What I mean by abstract is that the information cannot be readily explained in a concrete way.

Example 1

1 +1= 2 is completely concrete. The information (1, 1) being Si and the equation (+ =) being Te.

A + B = 2 is abstract information with a straightforward way of getting there. The information (A,B) is abstract and cannot be readily explained, but the equation (+ =) is still straightforward and easily explained.

would be concrete information with an abstract way of getting there. The information is all there (Si), but all the components, or logic (Ti), isn’t straightforward. There isn’t an easily explained way of getting to the solution (2).

would be abstract information and an abstract way of getting there. In the last example, neither the way of getting to the solution nor the information itself is readily clear. Notice though how every equation still ultimately lead to the same answer: 2. Each personality type just has a different way of getting there.

Basically, someone with Ni will struggle to tell you how or why they picked up a piece of information they know. Whereas someone with Ti will struggle to explain how exactly they figured something out, or how they made a connection make sense.

Example 2

Let’s look at it from a different angle. Take a look at the graph below. Note that anything with solid lines is concrete and easily explained, while anything with dotted lines is abstract and isn’t easily explained to others.

 

STPs/NFJs

As you can see, STPs and NFJs are working with both abstract information (Ni) and abstract connections (Ti) which is why they have some of the problems with communicating that Mara covered in this article here. I feel like I should take this moment to reiterate something: just because your function set makes it hard to relay your thoughts into concrete words and concepts doesn’t mean you are smarter or dumber than anyone else. Intelligence is in no way connected to personality type.

However, dealing primarily with abstract thoughts and connections will lead you to having completely different perspectives on problems and situations. The Ni-Ti combination will draw the user to focus on the things that aren’t readily seen and observed; and they will prioritize making connections that, at first, will probably only make sense to them and no one else, instead of dealing first with the tangible information. I often say that Mara (ISTP)  and I (ISTJ) work a problem from opposite directions. This is true because she goes from abstract to concrete, while I start with the concrete and work my way toward the abstract.

NTJs/SFPs

Moving on to the next group, NTJs and SFPs are working with abstract information (Ni), but they are not dealing with abstract connections. These types usually can walk you through what they have figured out or what they believe is going to happen. The part they may struggle to explain is how they derived the information they used to come to that conclusion. This leaves them with the reputation of ‘just knowing’ things, especially if you have witnessed them being right time and time again. The problem here is two fold. Not only is Ni storing all the information they have gathered as abstract impressions, Ni also causes the user to pull things that were abstract to begin with. Ergo, those with Ni end up ‘reading between the lines’. They tend to be more interested in the spirit of what was said rather than what was actually said. For example: his words were saying one thing, but his body language was clearly saying something else. While the body language may have been clear to the Ni user, it may not have been so clear for those who don’t have that trait. It’s like when you walk up to someone, and they have the friendly facade and they speak with you cordially, but after you walk away your friend looks at you and says ‘that guy hates our guts’. While it wasn’t readily obvious, Ni picked up on the abstract details and allowed the user to draw that conclusion.

NTPs/SFJs

Now we have the NTPs and the SFJs. These two are not working with abstract information, but the connections they are making are abstract (Ti). So, while they will be able to explain to you every piece of information that led them to their conclusion, it may be a challenge trying to follow the paths that they took to connect everything together. It’s like those crime boards you see in all the shows where the red lines are connecting pictures and newspaper articles together. All the information is there and is concrete, but unless you have some kind of guide, someone else’s crime board is going to look like nothing but a chaotic nonsensical mess. This is the reason that Ti users can end up looking like intuitives. It is the abstract nature of their thought processes. Unfortunately, people tend to label anything that is abstract as intuition.

STJs/NFPs

Finally, we have the STJs and NFPs. I will only touch on them briefly because they aren’t what this article is about. Notice they have both concrete thoughts and connections. This makes these types the most straightforward and easy to follow, usually. Now, this doesn’t mean that they can’t pick up on things that other people might miss, but the difference lies in how they will do it. These types are going to pick up on tiny specific details that others have glossed over, instead of making abstract connections that are ultimately difficult to explain to someone else. 

In Conclusion

• Both Ti and Ni are abstract functions
• Ni is not a thinking function
• Ni gathers abstract information
• Ti makes abstract connections
• Ti is abstract logic so people try to label it as intuition

Hopefully someone will find some of this information helpful. If you feel anything needs to be furthered clarified or better explained let us know. Your feedback is welcomed and appreciated.