Each Cognitive Function’s Priority

Recently, Ryan and I were working on the Ti vs. Fi article that was requested, and it provoked a lot of different discussions that, to be honest, don’t actually seem to be entirely related now that I think about it. Oh the joys of rabbit trails. For some reason, we started talking about what was driving each personality type… their priority in life, if you will. I’m going to try to relay what we came up with. In the past, we’ve written articles about cognitive function themes, symptoms, and etcetera, but this is taking a slightly different approach, I think. In this article, we’re going to focus on the priority of each cognitive function, to get a better idea of what drives each personality type. So, let’s get a bird’s eye view on the 16 types, shall we?

The Judging Dominants

If you’ve primarily focused on the dichotomies up until this point, perhaps you think that this section is going to talk about all of the J types. However, that is not the case. Not all J types are dominant judgers. The judging functions are the feeling (Fi/Fe) and thinking functions (Ti/Te). Ergo, anyone with one of those functions in their 1st function slot are dominant judgers. To be clear, the list of dominant judgers is as follows: ISTP, INTP, ISFP, INFP, ESTJ, ENTJ, ESFJ, ENFJ. The judging functions are what form our values.

Introverted Feeling (Fi):

People make Fi all about having values, but to be clear, every type has values. They just all value different things. Fi users are concerned with internal emotional consistency or harmony. What does this mean? Well, it does not mean that they are an emotional, weepy storm. It means that they are evaluating how things (situations, beliefs, people, etc.) make them feel. Those feelings give them a quick reference point to make in-the-moment judgements. They do not ignore their feelings, and ergo can trust them to not lead them astray, in a sense. Think of it like pattern recognition. They can use their raw feelings to detect when something runs counter to their being, and thus must be rejected. They have a high enough intelligence in this respect to understand those feelings in the moment, because they are in harmony with themselves. From this awareness of self and synchronization of self with personal feelings, they form their values. Judging new information against self is the main drive of an Fi dominant. When they are confronted with information that they cannot reject yet runs counter to their feelings, they’ll be thrown into a state of confusion prompting intense introspection, in which they may ultimately have to reprogram their feelings to match this new value which logic dictates is necessary to form.

Introverted Thinking (Ti):

Ah Ti, my good ol’ friend. (I say as an ISTP). Ti wants internal logical consistency or harmony. What does this mean? Well, it doesn’t mean that they don’t have emotions, and it doesn’t mean that they are always rational. After all, to ignore one’s own emotions is utterly irrational, since it’s the equivalent of burying your head in the sand. Ti users do not deem emotion to be a valid, tangible form of data, and ergo reject it on that premise. The primary drive of a Ti dominant is to judge every new piece of information against their intricately woven, internal system of data, and to continue to reinforce the threads of connection between what is already there. This information is subjective because if you’ve built a system off of false premises, the entire thing will be false, even if consistent with itself. When a Ti dominant is confronted with a piece of data that they cannot reject, yet is not consistent with their internal system, the entire system collapses, leading to a mental breakdown, of sorts. The entire thing unravels and collapses, leaving a state of pure and utter confusion. They’ll have to start from ground zero to make sense of things again. Ti users will form their values based on this emotionally detached logical system, which means that they’re less likely to deal with emotional backlash upon switching values. (IE: They won’t feel the need to reprogram their feelings to match their values, and they may not have ever been in sync to begin with.)

Extraverted Thinking (Te):

Te values external logical consistency or harmony. While introverted judging dominants are creating order within their head, or “behind the scenes”, extraverted judgers are doing it for all the world to see. Ergo, Te users will be creating order to whatever standard they have personally formed, or judge necessary. This is why Te users are known for being goal oriented, or known for completing their goals. Completing tasks is a form of creating order or structure, establishing control. Te wants to fix things. Te doesn’t want to do things just for the sake of it. They need an endpoint to reach or strive toward. A Te user will be thrown into a state of confusion when they realize that they may have to relinquish control of something they thought they had a handle on or when they try over and over again to control a situation which ultimately ends up uncontrollable, like the metaphor about gripping sand in your fist. The tighter you squeeze, the more it slips through your fingers. This desire for external consistency is what drives a Te user to streamline. Of course, bear in mind, that the standard they judge their external world against is subjective. Some Te users are very tidy, and almost OCD-like. Others less so. The standard is irrelevant. As long as the Te user feels in control and that their personal standard is being met, they are satisfied. New information is judged against that standard and rejected if it fails to adhere.

Extraverted Feeling (Fe):

Fe values external emotional consistency or harmony. Fe users want to be in sync with their social environment. This is why they are known for having group-centric values. They judge new information against how it’ll affect the group or their relationship with the group, and accept or reject based on that. This does not mean that they’re always kind, and good-natured people. We are all capable of darkness. It just means that they will strive to adapt to the group, pretend to adapt to the group, or manipulate the group in order to keep themselves in sync with it. From an external standpoint, they’ll want to appear to be in harmony with the group. They may envision an ideal for what the group should be, and attempt to make that a reality. It’ll be during these times that they may appear to run counter to the group… if they are trying to force change upon it, for (what they perceive to be) the good of the group. Like Te, this is an extraverted judging function, which means that their goal is external social order, so the function will be more visible to others and tangible. Fe users may be thrown into a state of confusion when they are forced to choose between group harmony or personal values. In other words, when their personal values run contrary to the group, and they are forced to decide whether or not to surrender their own values or openly fight against the group (whether to defend/maintain their own values or fight to protect the group from a threat they fail to perceive).

The Perceiving Dominants

These types are information gatherers or sharers, depending on introversion or extraversion. Their primary purpose is to either intake information, or share the information that they have absorbed. Not all of the P types are dominant perceivers. The perceiving functions are the sensing (Si/Se) and intuition functions (Ni/Ne). Ergo, anyone with one of those functions in their 1st function slot are dominant perceivers. To be clear, the list of dominant perceivers is as follows: ESTP, ENTP, ESFP, ENFP, ISTJ, INTJ, ISFJ, INFJ.

Introverted Sensing (Si):

Si values the intake of concrete sensory information for the purpose of planning for the future. Their specific focus is to observe and gather information. This does not mean that they’re incapable of intuition. This doesn’t mean that they can’t learn to utilize their intuition well. It simply means that they will prioritize Si more often than not. In weighty or serious matters, Si will be what they want to lean on, what they will trust to not lead them astray. As information gatherers, they will prioritize gathering as much specific information as possible, for security or whatever their judging function deems important. The what-if scenarios of lower Ne will help point them to what information specifically may be necessary to gather. They will want to cover all of their bases as much as possible.

Introverted Intuition (Ni):

Ni values the intake of abstract, pattern-based information for the purpose of planning for the future. Like the Si users, their specific focus is to observe and gather information, albeit a different type of information. This does not mean that they can’t learn to utilize their sensing well, and will always be doomed to live inside their inner abstract world. This doesn’t mean they are useless in day to day life. It simply means that they will prioritize Ni more often than not. They will trust their Ni information to be accurate and reliable when making decisions via their judging function. Of course, as we’ve explained in other articles, Ni information is essentially external information converted into trends or patterns. In hindsight, they won’t tend to recall details so much as they will recall an overall concept or idea. They will trust this information, and probably won’t need to delve into the details to justify it.

Extraverted Sensing (Se):

Se values information sharing, but this doesn’t necessarily mean information in the sense that you’re thinking. It means that an Se users primary mode is output not input, like the Si and Ni users. They want to perform physical action. They want to create, or impact in a visible manner. They won’t necessarily share verbally, although they might. However, Se is renowned for being action oriented, which subsequently means that Se users are known for teaching by doing, and leading by example. When they run up against a problem, they don’t necessarily want to stop to gather more information before proceeding. Typically, they’ll want to tinker until they figure it out. They’ll want to try something, or take a different approach. They’ll want to trouble shoot. The list could go on. Stopping to gather new information is something that’ll be done more out of necessity, which will then provoke them to dip down into their lower information gathering function. Bear in mind, this does not make them stupid. This just means that they’re prioritizing information sharing or output.

Extraverted Intuition (Ne):

Ne also values information sharing, but they tend to share information in a more classical sense. They tend to focus in on and share possibilities and ideas. Because they also possess low Si, which values gathering specific information related to all of the Ne possibilities, they tend to share a lot of concrete information, with Ne leaps in between. This essentially means that their fantastical Ne function is usually relayed or explained in a very concrete or verbally precise way. Certain Ne types are stereotyped as professors because of this. Ne users tend to have a lot to say about a broad range of subjects. They typically have dabbled in a variety of subjects, and enjoy sharing that information with others. This is also partly why they’re so keen on speculation. It’s just another form of verbal information sharing. As we stated with the Ni users, being a high functioning intuitive does not make them incapable of using their sensing function. They are not worthless in reality, or incapable of taking action. Their Ne-based information sharing or output will just be their priority.

In conclusion…

Ok, now that I’ve gone through all that, let me throw one final monkey wrench into the whole thing. I labelled all this with the dominants specifically in mind, but we each have four functions. This means that in a sense, we all have four priorities. Our dominant will be what we tend to give the highest priority to, followed by our auxiliary, then our tertiary, and then lastly our inferior. We all technically possess two types of values, since we each have two judging functions, although these values may conflict at times. As an ISTP, my Ti will tend to take precedence, but I’ll always have those Fe values in the back of my mind, which I may or may not give enough credence to or choose to outright ignore. Likewise, the high Fi users are going to possess or be aware of Te values as well.

Ryan and I struggled a bit to label the perceiving functions, but I hope overall what we were trying to relay makes sense. Feel free to let us know in the comments!