Nice! I definitely find this one of the more interesting aspects of MBTI... how each type uses each process. I have a book I'd highly recommend (
Amazon.com: Understanding Yourself and Others: An Introduction to the Personality Type Code: Linda V. Berens, Dario Nardi: Books ) that explains how each type uses each of these processes, but I'd to hear it more first-hand.
... Disclaimer: This may be super long.
Type - ISTP
Gender - Female
Age (choose one) - 20-30
Describe the use of your inferior (4th function). Do you use it consciously? Unconsciously? Would you call it "problematic"?
INTP/ISTP - Fe: As I'm only 23, I'm still developing my Fe. I definitely aspire to be more this way, and as of now I have to make a conscious effort to use it. For example, my book says "adhering to socially prescribed roles and engaging in idle chitchat can be very taxing." Very true! I have to
consciously force myself to engage in these things. As an introvert, I've noticed I don't know how to phrase things exactly the way I want to when I'm engaging in a serious conversation. Sometimes I illicit more negative responses than the positive I was hoping for when I do so. However, when I write letters to people trying to communicate what I want, I almost always get positive responses. In an e-mail, I can take the time to say the right words to make that person feel comfortable or influence them. When I see illogical emotional behavior, I'm stumped. I've gotten better over time though. When I use Fe in a more negative sense, however, it's very unconscious. For instance, sometimes I care very much about others' opinions of me ... sometimes I don't. Also, when I get very attached to people or my feelings hurt by others' opinions about me, I lose my ability to objectify things--something very key to how I function. While I aspire to develop this function more, using it negatively can be very problematic for me.
Describe the use of your senex/witch (6th function). Do you use it consciously? Unconsciously? Would you call it "problematic"?
ISFP/ISTP - Si: Like the Fe, I use Si both unconsciously and consciously. As most people do, my 6th function comes out when I'm being critical of someone. Thankfully, that is rare. When it does come out, I probably have a lot of resentment built up over time towards that person and don't feel like I communicated what I wanted to, and still feel very hurt by them. For instance, when I was having a rough time during my parents' divorce, I did not feel like my INTP bf of 3 years was very supportive of me. We've been friends for a while now, but it was definitely a point of contention after we broke up and were trying to figure out if we should stay friends. I would recall instances he did this or that and how I felt so hurt by it, etc, etc. He'd apologize profusely, but I was already in my "Critical Parent" function and I'd begin contradicting everything he said by recalling even the silliest thing he had said 2 years before. My book describes it as "They often prefer to not focus on the past but when stressed can become quite critical of past performances and overuse negative prior negative experiences to inform judgments." I've worked on this a lot, and have gotten better by addressing things sooner before they have time to build up resentment in me. Other times when I use it unconsciously, I'll be reminded of people I miss in my life or people that have hurt me. For instance, when I eat potato chips I instantly am reminded of how my dad (who I no longer have a good relationship with) loved plain potato chips. Although it can make me feel sad about certain things and regret certain actions, I would not really call this function problematic, because I feel more in control of it, especially as I grow older.
Describe the use of your Daemon (8th function). Do you use it consciously? Unconsciously? Would you call it "problematic"?
INTP/ISTP - Fi: This is tied with my 7th function (Ne) as my most problematic function. It is almost always unconscious. I know I use it, but it's very hard for me to pick out when I do. It comes out when I am -extremely- stressed about making a decision (one that usually involves a person). I can sometimes be slow in choosing what's important to me or misjudge the relative importance between things. When really stressed, I'll spend time on things that are my undoing. When I feel overwhelmingly hurt by someone, I will try push them away without even giving them a chance to explain or make amends (when I was younger, I'd succeed. Now, I try to give them a chance). Again, I'll use my parents' divorce as an example. I was feeling very vulnerable and I pushed several friends away when I was hurt by them, when I wouldn't normally do something like that over something silly. Later, I tried to push my INTP bf away when I felt unsupported by him. He pushed back hard enough to make amends with me so we were together for another year or so, and finally I snapped out of my Fi long enough to let him... because I finally realized I'd be completely lost if I pushed everyone close to me out, and he was pretty much the closest to me. So yes... a very problematic function for me indeed.
When you're stressed out, which function appears the most maladaptive? How come? Example please
When stressed, the most problematic functions for me are Ne and Fi (my 7th and 8th function) because I almost always use them in unison. For instance, that happened with two different guys I was very close to in my life. I am at a point where I have wanted to be single and be independent of a relationship for the past few years, but I became very attached to these two regardless. Eventually, I'd get to the point where I couldn't make up whether I wanted to be with them, or if it was about time I walked away so I could be consistent with my principles (keep in mind, both times this happened when other stresses were going on in my life.) Now as an ISTP, I -need- to gather endless data to make a decision. When I was stuck, and didn't feel like I was getting any closer to a decision, I would -push- for it. I'd start asking inappropriate questions, and I'd start interpreting situations in ways that were atypical to me and attributing ill-will where there was none (Ne). I'd spend endless time weighing what was more important: them or my beliefs (Fi)? This would be a positive feedback cycle, because I would just get more and more overwhelmed by the decision, and use Ne and Fi even more... Ugh... when I finally snapped back to my objective self, it was always a huge relief.