Processing Emotions Differences between T and F

[Ghost]

How would you describe your own approach based on your preference of F or T?

I've been thinking about how I deal with emotion, and I realized a good deal of suppression is going on. I compartmentalize things and try to maintain an even keel. Giving over to strong emotions feels like I'd be out of control or I wouldn't be myself.

Last week, I received a bit of seemingly good news. I couldn't really feel much about it. It was like I was watching myself from a distance, and other people were more excited for my sake than I was. As a teenager, there were times I'd try not to feel. Now, it's like there are times when I can't feel. Part of it is to maintain control, and part of it is to keep myself from getting invested and losing something in the process. I guess it's a defense mechanism. If I don't get my hopes up, then I won't experience disappointment.

Articulating the difference between the areas where I feel comfortable exhibiting emotion and those where I don't is difficult. It's like I have a set of scales, and once they tip out of my favor, I have to shut down emotionally. When I've gotten enough distance, I can dissect the problem and things are cool again.

I'm capricious. I'm irritable. I overreact. I'm easily affected. I'm still fairly emotional, and everyone who knows me thinks I'm sensitive. I'll express emotions that have been "vetted" and deemed safe. If something happens, I have to hole up and recover until I can show a normal face. During those times, emotions have to be weathered. I'll think about them another time, but for now I have to regain some kind of mental balance.

Ugh. I'm not even sure this stuff answers the OP. Might've left something out or gone on a tangent.

 

[JocktheMotie]

Here's what I think happens to me, but I'll be honest I don't think about my emotions too much so this could be off base:

I tend to interpret my own emotions and feelings as data without intrinsic value that can be used to determine if things are generally good or if things are generally not good, for me.

Any sort of emotion is just my body telling my mind something about an event. Much as if I am too hot or too cold, they inform as to my current state and then it's up to me to analyze and see what should be done with it.

That said, things can and do sneak up on you. Typically I find this happens to me when I leave too many things "for later" or try to suck something up too much. But in these events, I know full well what's causing an issue and I'm just making a conscious decision to ignore it until I can't any longer.

 

[Tennessee Jed]

I've been thinking about how I deal with emotion, and I realized a good deal of suppression is going on. I compartmentalize things and try to maintain an even keel. Giving over to strong emotions feels like I'd be out of control or I wouldn't be myself.

Last week, I received a bit of seemingly good news. I couldn't really feel much about it. It was like I was watching myself from a distance, and other people were more excited for my sake than I was. As a teenager, there were times I'd try not to feel. Now, it's like there are times when I can't feel. Part of it is to maintain control, and part of it is to keep myself from getting invested and losing something in the process. I guess it's a defense mechanism. If I don't get my hopes up, then I won't experience disappointment.

Articulating the difference between the areas where I feel comfortable exhibiting emotion and those where I don't is difficult. It's like I have a set of scales, and once they tip out of my favor, I have to shut down emotionally. When I've gotten enough distance, I can dissect the problem and things are cool again.

I'm capricious. I'm irritable. I overreact. I'm easily affected. I'm still fairly emotional, and everyone who knows me thinks I'm sensitive. I'll express emotions that have been "vetted" and deemed safe. If something happens, I have to hole up and recover until I can show a normal face. During those times, emotions have to be weathered. I'll think about them another time, but for now I have to regain some kind of mental balance.

Ugh. I'm not even sure this stuff answers the OP. Might've left something out or gone on a tangent.

Heh. All that stuff sounds very familiar. I was very much like that in my teens and twenties (and maybe longer). Always worried that my emotions would get out of control and embarrass me in public, or that I would "jinx" things by being too happy about something, and so on and so on.

Comparing this post to my own (post no. 19): I guess I eventually got a handle on my emotions. I haven't had to worry about that stuff in a long time.

 

[MictlanTeaParty]

Oh man! This is exactly what I've been looking for. I sit in a weird gray area between T and F. I can't choose one or the other when asked which is dominant. Honestly it's a toss up depending on the situation. I don't favor one or the other.

 

[Shaedow]

I find the above simplistic, but can't exclude the possibility that some T types actually do operate this way. I can describe only what I do. To start, I make a big distinction between the experience of an emotion and the expression of it. I place a negative value not so much on emotions themselves, but on their interference with functioning, particularly decision-making, and on their negative expression. I understand, for example, that people feel anger. It's when they let their anger get the better of them and lose control that it becomes a problem.

I don't apply logic to crush the emotion, but I do use it to try to figure out what has caused the emotion. Especially if it is negative, it suggests some problem that needs to be addressed. I identify that and take steps to address it. Usually this is enough to let the emotion itself dissipate. It has done its job. I therefore don't dwell or focus on the emotion itself, but rather on what it is telling me, all the while working to prevent it from disrupting what needs to be done. This last comes more from habits of self-discipline rather than any explicitly logical process. I suppose a by-product of this approach is that I don't have much appreciation or even vocabulary for emotions themselves. I don't bother trying to describe them, or to differentiate much one from the other, or to examine the sensation of having them in the moment.

I should point out that logic and emotion are not opposites, but rather different beasts entirely. Logic is a process, while emotions are data, inputs to the process. Even a T type cannot make decisions completely separate from emotion, or from Feeling as the subjective judgment function. We need these to tell us what is important, what our priorities are. What I try to avoid is having that one data point - how I feel about something - singlehandedly dictate the outcome. I especially avoid kneejerk reactions to things, since that is most likely a raw emotional response, and has not gone through that logical process along with all the other relevant inputs.

Finally, I do try to keep a tight rein on emotional expressions of all sorts, good and bad. I view my emotions as a private and personal matter, and share them primarily with those close to me. They are no one else's business. This is a good example of where Fi vs. Fe might influence what happens.

This is something I find I strongly relate to and also how I deal with emotions.

For me I see them as notifying me of something, letting me know that something is amiss, not ok, or something I may care about. What that thing is is not always clear, especially in the heat of the moment. Many times I have restrained from expression an emotional reaction in favour of understanding it and the source of the discomfort is often found to be an insecurity on my part rather than the outside thing that may have 'set it off'. I find taking a step back can often revel some insight into myself.

One can experience emotion without becoming the emotion.

 

[andresimon]

While the Feeling function is guided by ethics, morality, and reasoning based on subjective systems, the Thinking function values logic, reason, observable and measurable information. Since emotions have a strong subjective component, these are processed differently between the two types of functions. Of course "Feeling" doesn't refer to emotion, so a T or and F preference can have varying degrees of emotional responses in their personality, emotions are viewed and processed differently. How would you describe the differences? How would you describe your own approach based on your preference of F or T?

Sigh.... Your first premise is wrong. Every time you make a definitive statement, you should look back and say, "is that accurate?" Thinking is no more rationale then feeling. Please stop spreading this stereotype. A good chunk of the worlds issues are because T's think they are rationale and logical and often because of that they are the most irrational and most illogical.

What would be accurate is to state that T's focus on the "use of things" and F's focus on the "meaning of things".

T's think in the following way. How can I USE this information? How is this person USEFUL to me or are they not USEFUL to me? They break things down into its component pieces and analyze bite size pieces for USEFULNESS.
F's thinking in the following way. What does this information MEAN? How is this person MEANINGFUL to me? They look at the big picture and the overall MEANING of things.

Keep in mind that T is used both for Use of Data & Details, Use of Actions and Consequences, and Use of principles. So the "T" function for different types will look very different. But one thing that is consistent is the concept of "usefulness."
F's again use F for Meaning of Data & Details, Meaning of Actions and Consequences, and Meaning of principles. So the "F" function for different types will look very different. But one thing that is consistent is the concept of "meaning."

Most people have a very limited and narrow view of both "T" and "F" and what they mean. This prevailing wisdom often spreads and the paradigm and various narratives that exist within it dominate. In my mind and from what I've seen T's end up being more irrational presciently because they are so convinced of their rationality.

Let me clarify one item here. The order of where T falls in the cognitive order is super important. I find although T's do focus on usefulness across the board, the rationality and logic issue I mentioned above isn't the case for all "T" types.