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Introverted and extroverted processes, and everything in between

laughingebony

New member
Joined
Jun 8, 2009
Messages
236
MBTI Type
INTP
I proposed this idea in BlackCat's topic, but I realize now that that probably was not the best place to do so.

laughingebony said:
Since extroverted and introverted versions of a function are the same function, just directed toward different things, do you think each function could have different levels of introversion/extroversion? I'll give you a visual. Take the intuition function, for example.

Instead of a strict division...

Ne | Ni

... could it be a continuum...

N e ------------------- i

with the behavior of the function lying anywhere between "e" and "i"?

Since then, I realized that my presentation of this idea was prone to misinterpretation. I will present a couple possible interpretations.

1. A continuum is already implied by the current theory, if you include functions 5-8, by taking the average of the amount of time each version of the function is used over any interval of time. I know, that probably sounds as clear as mud. I'll use intuition as an example again.

Let's say that over two days, a person uses Ne for a total of two hours, and Ni for a total of one hour. Naturally, if you take the average (mean) of Ne vs. Ni used, it will lie between Ne and Ni. This is not the idea to which I am referring.

I am referring to the following possibilities:

2. In "Gifts Differing," Myers has a chapter in which she lists the characteristics of the extroverted versions of the functions in contrast with the introverted versions. However, a person's use of a particular function may be characteristic of the extroverted version in one respect, but characteristic of the introverted in another. Again, if we could take the average (mean) of the characteristics in common with the extroverted version versus the characteristics in common with the introverted version, it would likely fall in between for most people. Using intuition again...

In "Gifts Differing," Myers lays out seven characteristics of extroverted intuition and seven contrasting characteristics of introverted intuition. If a person's use of intuition had five of those characteristics in common with introverted intuition and two of those characteristics in common with extroverted intuition, taking the average (mean) would produce a result between Ne and Ni .

3. At any given moment (instantaneous), a person's use of a function could lie anywhere on the e-i continuum.

For instance, I could say that the intuition I am using right now (at this exact instant!) is somewhere between Ne and Ni.

Thoughts? Experiences? Rude comments?
 
G

garbage

Guest
It makes sense from my own perspective; Ne, Ti, Ni, and Te (well, and Fi) are the functions I identify with the most. I wonder how others identify with functions of the "wrong" attitude (E/I).
 

BlackCat

Shaman
Joined
Nov 19, 2008
Messages
7,038
MBTI Type
ESFP
Enneagram
9w8
Instinctual Variant
sx/sp
Well I've always been under the impression that the functions were in the various places of the brain- but that's a fishy theory. There's been no research, so your theory may indeed for correct. But according to this you'd probably have to "turn off" one function to use the other one temporarily, such as Te -> Fe. That's been my experience with Ti.

brain-regions.gif
 

simulatedworld

Freshman Member
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Nov 7, 2008
Messages
5,552
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ENTP
Enneagram
7w6
Instinctual Variant
sx/so
So Js are left-brained and Ps are right-brained, that's what I'm getting? A tad bit ironic given that Js tend to lean conservative compared to Ps and vice versa!

(And women are apparently no-brained?)
 

redacted

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 28, 2007
Messages
4,223
You copied me!!! I've been saying this for the last year. (Actually, I think I have a thread somewhere about it...edit:http://www.typologycentral.com/forums/mbti-tm-enneagram-other-personality-matrices/8401-functions-xi-vs-xe.html)

Heh, I don't care. Anyway, I do think that's the best way to think of function theory. Eight separate functions is a misleading view. Four functions with values for introversion/extroversion makes much more sense, and can account for all sorts of odd eight function orders. Pure extroversion and pure introversion are useful concepts, but in practice, it never works like that.

Also, check my type calculator; it implements the idea you're mentioning.


P.S. right brain vs. left brain stuff is horribly misleading as well, and should not be mapped on to MBTI (or anything for that matter).
 

Walking Tourist

it's tea time!
Joined
Nov 11, 2008
Messages
1,452
MBTI Type
esfp
Enneagram
7
That is just plain silly. Not enough space is devoted to... ahhh!.... chocolate!!! Plus the chocolate section needs to be broken into subsections... milk chocolate, dark chocolate, orange chocolate, white chocolate, truffles, etc.
Sincerely,
a chocoholic

 

laughingebony

New member
Joined
Jun 8, 2009
Messages
236
MBTI Type
INTP
You copied me!!! I've been saying this for the last year. (Actually, I think I have a thread somewhere about it...edit:http://www.typologycentral.com/forums/mbti-tm-enneagram-other-personality-matrices/8401-functions-xi-vs-xe.html)

I'm going to call preemptive plaigarism on that one.

P.S. I know you were partly joking, but I'm sorry for (unknowingly) copying your idea. I arrived at this "theory" from my own experiences with intuition. (Hence, the use of intuition in the examples.)
 

redacted

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 28, 2007
Messages
4,223
I'm going to call preemptive plaigarism on that one.

P.S. I know you were partly joking, but I'm sorry for (unknowingly) copying your idea. I arrived at this "theory" from my own experiences with intuition. (Hence, the use of intuition in the examples.)

heh, no problem. it's a good idea, yeah?

great minds, blah blah cliche blah.

p.s. i hear you on the preemptive plagarism thing.... i study cognitive science and always come up with tons of theories, only to ask the teacher about them after class and be told that x y or z came up with the idea in 2002 or whatever. it's bullshit!
 
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