# DATA PRESENTATION: Cognitive Function Demographics



## boblikesoup (Nov 26, 2011)

Some of us have seen letter population demographics, but the meat is in the cognitive functions. So, I have taken data from the official MBTI and calculated this information for us all. Further, I weighted the information, based on preference order, to more accurately gauge how large a role each function plays in society. 










Determining Functions:
"First rule of thumb - The dominant function for Introverts will be an introverted function. The dominant function for extraverts will be an extraverted function.

2nd rule of thumb - The Thinking or Feeling function will always be extraverted for J’s and introverted for P’s. This is because J’s prefer to control their external environment, while P’s are flexible with their outer environment but judging of their internal values.

3rd rule of the thumb - The inferior function is always the opposite of the dominant function. This will always be the opposite expression of one’s dominant preference (extraverted for introverts, and introverted for extraverts; S for those with an N preference, and N for those with an S preference.)

4th rule of thumb - The tertiary function will always be the opposite of the auxiliary function."
-famoustype.com

Definitions:

"Perceiving—how we focus our attention and gather information

Cognitive Process	Basic (Passive) Use	Developed (Active) Use
1. extraverted Sensing (Se)	Notice sensory data in the environment.	Trust your instincts and take action relevant to the moment and current context.
2. introverted Sensing (Si)	Recall tangible data and experiences.	Stabilize a situation by comparing it to what is expected, known and reliable.
3. extraverted Intuiting (Ne)	Notice abstract patterns as they emerge.	Shift a situation's dynamics and explore imaginative potential possibilities.
4. introverted Intuiting (Ni)	Receive "ah-ha" insights and realizations.	Persue a greater level of awareness to transform who you are and how you think.


Judging—how we organize our experiences and make decisions

Cognitive Process	Basic (Passive) Use	Developed (Active) Use
1. extraverted Thinking (Te)	Follow steps, points and time tables.	Create structure, reason by measures and evidence, and implement complex plans.
2. introverted Thinking (Ti)	Adhere to definitions and impersonal principles.	Analyze a problem using a framework, and find an angle or leverage by which to solve it.
3. extraverted Feeling (Fe)	Honor others' needs and preferences.	Connect with people by sharing values and taking on their needs as yours.
4. introverted Feeling (Fi)	Adhere to personal beliefs about what's important.	Evalute situations and choose what you believe is congruent with your personal identity."
-keys2cognition.com


Data

*Function Appearance %* *Total* /Male/Female - *Function Weight %* *Total*/Male/Female
Se *34.75*/37.5/32 - *21.16*/22.3/20.02
Si *65.25*/62.5/68 - *38.2*/36.46/39.94
Ne *65.25*/62.5/68 - *27.05*/26.04/28.06
Ni *34.75*/37.5/32 - *13.59*/15.2/11.98
Total *200*/200/200 - *100*/100/100
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Te *53.9*/58.6/49.2 - *25.9*/30.6/21.2
Ti *46.1*/41.4/50.8 - *20.51*/21.98/19.04
Fe *46.1*/41.4/50.8 - *25.59*/19.42/31.76
Fi *53.9*/58.6/49.2 - *28*/28/28
Total *200*/200/200 *100*/100/100

-boblikesoup (pm me if you'd like excel used)

Findings:
S/N
S/N is prevalent at a 3:2 ratio in society.
Si dominates society, being twice as prevalent as the average of the rest of the functions.
Si is x3 as prevalent as Ni, Ne is x2 as prevalent as Ni.
Functions are fairly balanced across genders, except men have Ni 25% more than women.
Counter-intuitively, there is 28% more Ne than Se.
Not many people have Se, but many have it as their 1st and 2nd functions. Inversely, not many people have Ni, and many who do have it as their 3rd and 4th functions.
Se-Ni has a total 1/2 as much representation in society as Si-Ne!

T/F
T/F is prevalent at a 9:11 ratio in society.
Overall function usage is fairly evenly represented, the largest disparity being 37% more Fi than Ti.
Men and women share Fi equally, but women contribute 65% more Fe than men.
Women cumulatively have 26% more emotions men (Fi + Fe).
Men have 50% more Te than women.



Assumptions:

MBTI info is accurate, up-to-date, and representative
50/50 M/F
We cummulatively use our 1st and 4th functions equally as much as our 2nd and 3rd. Weighted as 4,3,2,1
Each person influences society equally (which we know is not true because @ENTJwillruletheworld)

So, what can you find in the data? What surprised you? Does this spark or affirm any theories?

Please spread this data so we can have more accurate and deeper understandings of society and its relation to Myers Briggs.


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## Miss Scarlet (Jul 26, 2010)

Wow, great math! Thanks for taking initiative and really calculating this stuff! 

I'm not surprised that Si is more common or Ne is more common.

"Se-Ni has a total 1/2 as much representation in society as Si-Ne!" Can you explain that a little more? 

Women cumulatively have 26% more emotions men. < what the hell does that mean? Did you mean Fe? Because you can't measure something like that. 

Overall it was really good!


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## boblikesoup (Nov 26, 2011)

ENTJwillruletheworld said:


> "Se-Ni has a total 1/2 as much representation in society as Si-Ne!" Can you explain that a little more?


Roughly, if you aggregate % of population with (1st function Si & Ne X 4) + (2nd function Si & Ne x3) + (3rd function x2) etc... The total adds up to twice as much as its counterpart, Se-Ni. A VERY big difference with implications that I believe deserve much study.



ENTJwillruletheworld said:


> Women cumulatively have 26% more emotions men. < what the hell does that mean? Did you mean Fe? Because you can't measure something like that.


Roughly same technique as above, but add the weighted male Fe + Fi compared to female, and the female total is 26% higher than the men's.


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## Miss Scarlet (Jul 26, 2010)

boblikesoup said:


> Roughly, if you aggregate % of population with (1st function Si & Ne X 4) + (2nd function Si & Ne x3) + (3rd function x2) etc... The total adds up to twice as much as its counterpart, Se-Ni. A VERY big difference with implications that I believe deserve much study.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Then why not specify that it was Fe+Fi? It seems really sexist.


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## Spades (Aug 31, 2011)

MBTI =/= JCF. MBTI results likely don't match to cognitive function usage because it's a separate instrument. (Mine certainly don't!) Also, a 6:4 ratio is a 3:2 ratio =P

Great work otherwise!


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## boblikesoup (Nov 26, 2011)

ENTJwillruletheworld said:


> Then why not specify that it was Fe+Fi? It seems really sexist.


Good clarification, I changed the page to specify. Didn't mean to seem sexist...it is true though that women are more emotional though (2/3 F's, 1/3 T's). Tried to use the word "cumulatively" to specify that this isn't ALL girls individually, just the sum.


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## pneumoceptor (Aug 25, 2011)

Spades said:


> MBTI =/= JCF. MBTI results likely don't match to cognitive function usage because it's a separate instrument. (Mine certainly don't!) Also, a 6:4 ratio is a 3:2 ratio =P
> 
> Great work otherwise!


So, I have a question. If MBTI tests aren't quantifying cognitive function preferences, then what are they quantifying? It seems to me that the MBTI questions are clearly discerning between S and N, T and F, and so on. Is it that the questions aren't tailored to getting at e.g. Ni vs Ne? Rather, they're getting at the four dichotomies and then spitting out a four-letter type that has cognitive function implications?


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## Rediactor (Jan 15, 2011)

great stuff! Does this mean there are a lot of fi users? I never realised that.


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## pneumoceptor (Aug 25, 2011)

boblikesoup said:


> Good clarification, I changed the page to specify. Didn't mean to seem sexist...it is true though that women are more emotional though (2/3 F's, 1/3 T's). Tried to use the word "cumulatively" to specify that this isn't ALL girls individually, just the sum.


The sexist part is that you're equating Fi and Fe with emotions and women. Fi and Fe are not about emotions. They're about making judgments based on values. (Ti and Te are about making judgments based on logic/systems.) I work with plenty of XNTJ males who display far more emotion than I do.


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## pneumoceptor (Aug 25, 2011)

Troyraven24 said:


> great stuff! Does this mean there are a lot of fi users? I never realised that.


If you add up all the Fi users (meaning somewhere in their functional stack, not just dom or aux) at Estimated Frequencies of Types - CAPT.org, the numbers are higher than Fe users. Surprised me too...


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## boblikesoup (Nov 26, 2011)

@pneumoceptor MBTI "Myers and Briggs attempted to borrow (and grossly oversimplify) Jung's ideas in order to design a quick and easy test to help people get an idea of what career path might fit them best. It asks a series of questions about what you do with your life--that was never Jung's focus. He spent the bulk of his career researching subconscious motivations for human psychological needs and value systems: he was after why we think, feel, and behave the way we do." 
-From a personality nation article

Also I'm sorry to sound sexist but if noting quantifiable differences in aggregated populations is sexist then I guess that's me. Fe and Fi are emotions. These values you speak of are constantly being checked against and reinforced by your emotions when processing information, thus emotions are related in the values. While T's have emotion and use it, it's not the primary go-to source so more of their attention is focused on logical arguments. The emotion might be there just as much, but they don't give it power by listening to it so it's not what gets projected in society by a T decision.


@Troyraven24 It surprised me three. I'd never really thought about which cognitive rationalizing function would be most widespread but Fi makes sense now that I think about it...


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## Spades (Aug 31, 2011)

boblikesoup said:


> Also I'm sorry to sound sexist but if noting quantifiable differences in aggregated populations is sexist then I guess that's me. * Fe and Fi are emotions. These values you speak of are constantly being checked against and reinforced by your emotions when processing information, thus emotions are related in the values.* While T's have emotion and use it, it's not the primary go-to source so more of their attention is focused on logical arguments. The emotion might be there just as much, but they don't give it power by listening to it so it's not what gets projected in society by a T decision.


While I agree with your first paragraph, I disagree entirely with this one. Fi and Fe are value judgements. I don't see at all how emotions come into play here. Besides, I know many, many T's who are controlled by their emotions and not even aware of it. What would that make them? That's right, emotional T's. I really think you should remove the emotion bit, not out of political correctness, but out of correctness in general.


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## Spades (Aug 31, 2011)

pneumoceptor said:


> So, I have a question. If MBTI tests aren't quantifying cognitive function preferences, then what are they quantifying? It seems to me that the MBTI questions are clearly discerning between S and N, T and F, and so on. Is it that the questions aren't tailored to getting at e.g. Ni vs Ne? Rather, they're getting at the four dichotomies and then spitting out a four-letter type that has cognitive function implications?


Yes, they are essentially spitting out four separate letters based on dichotomy preference. I just recently attended an MBTI workshop offered through my school and that is exactly how it was taught, and with focus on career application. The only (brief) mention of cognitive functions is that they exist. The descriptions of the types had little to nothing to do with the functions either. In this way, it's extremely difficult for an organized P or a logical F to get their "real" (JCF) type, for example.


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## Owfin (Oct 15, 2011)

boblikesoup said:


> Assumptions:
> MBTI info is *accurate*, up-to-date, and *representative*


Which is unfortunately an assumption I cannot make.


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## Donovan (Nov 3, 2009)

since one person having a function means that they also have its polar opposite then it becomes common sense that an individual having Ne/Ni would also have Si/Se... why even break it up the way you did? was it to contrast the difference of % of Ne/Si v.s. Ni/Se within the population? if so, i'd say that is just a starting point and further "breaking down" would be needed to follow along with what you're doing (an "accurate" picture of type %'s in the population)--although, it would just lead back to any site that could be picked out of a google lottery (that being "exact" %'s of all types contrasted against each other). 

the way you're interpreting and presenting your data can be misleading. if Ne/Si is more frequent than its counterpart, then people who possess Se/Ni will be less abundant, but that doesn't mean that the number of people who prioritize Se will be fewer than those who prefer Ne just because one is coming from a larger group to begin with--ordering (for whatever good it will do ). 

... also, the emotion part just kills me, lol. i will look for a link to verify what i'm saying (since it will be called into question), but isabel briggs myers herself said that the F function uses the higher level cortical region of the brain to make decisions just as the T's do, and makes no more use of the limbic than their counterpart. like someone else mentioned, it's especially funny to see others who are apparently "emotionless" make decisions or just in general act on their feelings without being aware of it, and are under the impression that since they were able to rationalize what happened (them feeling something, or better yet, why "feeling" didn't come into play), that they somehow skipped over a vital and integral step in the human experience... now, was it really "hopped/skipped" over, or is the person oblivious to the fact that the origins of that experience--the beginning stages of lower, animalistic urges entering into and swaying consciousness in a certain direction--are very similar to their neighbor, and the path/direction that these "urges" take us, or don't, is wholly dependent upon the individual, and not a makeup of lettering. 

anyhow, it was interesting man, keep on keepin' on, taking these Te stabs at the information and make it grow into something--we'd all like to see it.


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## Perspicacious (Feb 18, 2012)

celticstained said:


> ... also, the emotion part just kills me, lol. i will look for a link to verify what i'm saying (since it will be called into question), but isabel briggs myers herself said that the F function uses the higher level cortical region of the brain to make decisions just as the T's do, and makes no more use of the limbic than their counterpart. like someone else mentioned, it's especially funny to see others who are apparently "emotionless" make decisions or just in general act on their feelings without being aware of it, and are under the impression that since they were able to rationalize what happened (them feeling something, or better yet, why "feeling" didn't come into play), that they somehow skipped over a vital and integral step in the human experience... now, was it really "hopped/skipped" over, or is the person oblivious to the fact that the origins of that experience--the beginning stages of lower, animalistic urges entering into and swaying consciousness in a certain direction--are very similar to their neighbor, and the path/direction that these "urges" take us, or don't, is wholly dependent upon the individual, and not a makeup of lettering.


 Recommended reading along these lines - Descartes' Error by Antonio Damasio


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## Miss Scarlet (Jul 26, 2010)

boblikesoup said:


> Good clarification, I changed the page to specify. Didn't mean to seem sexist...it is true though that women are more emotional though (2/3 F's, 1/3 T's). Tried to use the word "cumulatively" to specify that this isn't ALL girls individually, just the sum.


First you're using the F functions as the same thing as emotions, and from what I understand that's not the way it works it at all, which is then being typist. 

Plus a study at vanderbilt showed that men and women FEEL the same amount, it's only that they are okay with expressing it. So please check your biases.

Vanderbilt News:Women more likely than men to put emotions in motion


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## wanderingcat (Nov 16, 2011)

It's unfortunate that Jung didn't use the terms "Thinking/Evaluating" instead of "Thinking/Feeling" in characterizing the dichotomy between the two *rational* functions, because I think that is what he really meant. That would have prevented at least some of the "feeling=emotion" confusion that is commonly seen.


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## boblikesoup (Nov 26, 2011)

Emotions are rational. There are reasoned out complex subconscious models that are being used, vented through emotions. They are not "logical", which is the word most people substitute, in that they don't involve the process of noted sound and cogent arguments, which is what T's "prefer". It is true though, and many studies have been done, that people often create arguments just to justify a course of actions that was already determined by emotions. I think the T/F "dichotomy" is a false one in a large sense, but it still has its uses when trying to model the interaction of abstract psycho-philosophical symbols. I agree though that Thinker might not have been the best work to use. Maybe Logiker


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## boblikesoup (Nov 26, 2011)

celticstained said:


> since one person having a function means that they also have its polar opposite then it becomes common sense that an individual having Ne/Ni would also have Si/Se... why even break it up the way you did?


I broke it up into weighted chunks to account for the different population who have Se/x/x/Ni and X/Se/Ni/x/x etc...



celticstained said:


> the way you're interpreting and presenting your data can be misleading. if Ne/Si is more frequent than its counterpart, then people who possess Se/Ni will be less abundant, but that doesn't mean that the number of people who prioritize Se will be fewer than those who prefer Ne just because one is coming from a larger group to begin with


The second column is aggregated weights based on function order, it's not meant to show % of total population priority (which is factored in but not the only factor). My data in that column isn't trying to claim that the # who possess Se is fewer; that's what the first column is for. 

I like the way I compiled the data because, in society and structuring of the world, somebody's first functions Te will come out more than a couple other people's 4th function Fi. A lot of people reduce this in their heads because it is easier and lose accuracy when understanding populations in this sense. This is why I made the model.


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## LiquidLight (Oct 14, 2011)

> Good clarification, I changed the page to specify. Didn't mean to seem sexist...it is true though that women are more emotional though (2/3 F's, 1/3 T's). Tried to use the word "cumulatively" to specify that this isn't ALL girls individually, just the sum.


Yea as has already been stated both men and women are emotional, but men are socialized to repress their emotions (which is one of the reasons men tend to score as T's on tests and women as F's). Because while Thinking and Feeling do not explicitly deal with emotion, they do address emotion implicitly. Thinking generally tries to downplay emotive content as much as possible in decision making and Feeling tends to rationalize emotional content. 

The problem here is that the MBTI often plays Feeling/Thinking from the standpoint of Emotions vs. Intellect which confuses the matter. Dr. Beebe talks about how he has patients come in all the time talking about how they're this Thinking type and that Thinking type and when you finally get past their persona, they're often the exact opposite of what they claim, due more to identifying with how they've been socialized. (Believe me when I say lots of men have a preference for Feeling over Thinking, but its questionable as to how accurately this would be reflected in test result data). 

The problem with MBTI is its own inconsistency. While on the one hand it claims that types are dictated by cognitive function, it doesn't test for cognitive function choosing to ignore the attitudes and try and determine loose general preferences, which invariably leads to mistypes (especially if the criteria for things like Thinking and Feeling also are not consistent). You can't really read an MBTI from the standpoint of how it sorted you (75% I, 95% S, 50% F, 70% J, etc) because, for example, the results I just gave would be misleading. We couldn't really discern whether this person was really ISFJ or ISTJ because all this tells us is that the person likely leads with Sensation and has high Extraverted Judgment so probably a Si type as the I seems to indicate. But then with a 50/50 T/F score we don't know if the person is ISFJ or ISTJ, and of course Fe/Ti and Te/Fi make a big difference. So the MBTI at best gets you 'close-enough' maybe 70% of the time (assuming there aren't J/P issues which is a whole another conversation). MBTI Foundation recognizes this which is why they have best-fit type, but wouldn't it just be easier to devise something that more accurately sorts cognitive functions rather than happening upon them implicitly?


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## boblikesoup (Nov 26, 2011)

Cognitive Functions Test: Keys 2 Cognition - Cognitive Processes

It's the best test I know of in this field.


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## Donovan (Nov 3, 2009)

boblikesoup said:


> Cognitive Functions Test: Keys 2 Cognition - Cognitive Processes
> 
> It's the best test I know of in this field.


that test does seem better than most but the questions are still misleading. 

take a cognitive function, say Fe, and look at it from only popularly identified facets: really care about others, wear your heart on your sleeve, or, you love to play "host" and have friends over. while these may pertain to Fe, they don't give credit to, or exemplify, the core of what the function is. instead of asking questions that deal with the "core", they ask questions that are derived from the core, and the derivatives or paths can look similar to those of another function entirely--or, they can isolate (again) that one particular facet and leave the test-taker with the thought of, "well, i don't really do that, so i must not have the function that question is looking for". basically, these questions are all so stereotypical that they become far removed from the original goal (which leads to over-generalizations, negative stereotypes, people playing towards a type when that specific behavior isn't their norm, and a whole lot of confusion). 

for instance, i always score as INTP when i take that test because all of the Fe questions make me want to cringe. the test goes, "well, you scored high on your preference for Ti and low on Fe so you must be a Ti-dominant", then it measures my concept/head-in-the-clouds-score against my practical/feet-on-the-ground tendency. (it gives INFJ second, and then somehow it's a toss up between INTJ and ENFJ for third...?)

anyhow, other than that it is a good test (although, its flaws are a major problem so lets just say that it's one of the better tests).


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## wanderingcat (Nov 16, 2011)

celticstained said:


> for instance, i always score as INTP when i take that test because all of the Fe questions make me want to cringe. the test goes, "well, you scored high on your preference for Ti and low on Fe so you must be a Ti-dominant", then it measures my concept/head-in-the-clouds-score against my practical/feet-on-the-ground tendency. (it gives INFJ second, and then somehow it's a toss up between INTJ and ENFJ for third...?)
> 
> anyhow, other than that it is a good test (although, its flaws are a major problem so lets just say that it's one of the better tests).


I agree that the questions on that test regarding Fe seem much too "fluffy," for lack of a better description. I also get consistently typed as INTP on that test, and then it's supposedly a toss-up between ENTP and INFP.


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## Hapalo (Sep 4, 2011)

Interesting data. I like how even the 3rd and 4th functions are included.

Men scored Ni 25% more than women. What is the reasoning behind this?




boblikesoup said:


> Cognitive Functions Test: Keys 2 Cognition - Cognitive Processes
> 
> It's the best test I know of in this field.


Good test.

Cognitive Process	Level of Development (Preference, Skill and Frequency of Use)
extraverted Sensing (Se) ************************** (26.1)
average use
introverted Sensing (Si) ***************************** (29.3)
average use
extraverted Intuiting (Ne) ******************************** (32.2)
good use
introverted Intuiting (Ni) ************************************** (38.2)
excellent use
extraverted Thinking (Te) ******************************************** (44.7)
excellent use
introverted Thinking (Ti) ********************************* (33.2)
good use
extraverted Feeling (Fe) ********* (9.8)
unused
introverted Feeling (Fi) ************************** (26.1)
average use
Summary Analysis of Profile
By focusing on the strongest configuration of cognitive processes, your pattern of responses most closely matches individuals of this type: INTJ


Weird results. Still typed INTJ even though it says I scored more Te.


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## wanderingcat (Nov 16, 2011)

Hapalo said:


> Weird results. Still typed INTJ even though it says I scored more Te.


I'm not getting why it's weird. An INTJ uses Te, right? That would actually seem to confirm the validity of the result in your case.


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## Hapalo (Sep 4, 2011)

wanderingcat said:


> I'm not getting why it's weird. An INTJ uses Te, right? That would actually seem to confirm the validity of the result in your case.


Yes, INTJ's use Te but it is supposed to be Ni>Te>Fi>Se and I got Te>Ni>Ne>Si.
I was just being literal-minded.


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## AbioticPrime (Sep 1, 2011)

An overwhelming majority of males are ST, and females SF. This seems to be highly representative of society.


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## pneumoceptor (Aug 25, 2011)

Hapalo said:


> Yes, INTJ's use Te but it is supposed to be Ni>Te>Fi>Se and I got Te>Ni>Ne>Si.
> I was just being literal-minded.


I'm an INFJ, and I got something similar... Fe>Ni>Ne>Fi>Ti>Se>Si. Not sure why it didn't call me an ENFJ.


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## Hapalo (Sep 4, 2011)

pneumoceptor said:


> I'm an INFJ, and I got something similar... Fe>Ni>Ne>Fi>Ti>Se>Si. Not sure why it didn't call me an ENFJ.


I am not sure but it may be taking in consideration the order of the third and fourth functions plus relating that to your age.


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## pneumoceptor (Aug 25, 2011)

Hapalo said:


> I am not sure but it may be taking in consideration the order of the third and fourth functions plus relating that to your age.


I think you're probably right... for me, it's Ti. Nice call.


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## renna (Jan 28, 2011)

Bravo! Great Job - A superb example of Te at full use


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## counterintuitive (Apr 8, 2011)

*"Se-Ni has a total 1/2 as much representation in society as Si-Ne!"*

Huh, I've noticed this exact thing just going about the world, in just that ratio, too. About twice as many Ne/Si valuers (in either order) than Se/Ni valuers (in either order). There is a whole lot of Ne/Si out there...most of it is Si > Ne though, so lower Ne, but still.

ETA @MessyJessie103 - thought of you, since you like stats? Maybe this will be of interest to you


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## Hottest_Commie_Ever (Nov 11, 2015)

counterintuitive said:


> *"Se-Ni has a total 1/2 as much representation in society as Si-Ne!"*
> 
> Huh, I've noticed this exact thing just going about the world, in just that ratio, too. About twice as many Ne/Si valuers (in either order) than Se/Ni valuers (in either order). There is a whole lot of Ne/Si out there...most of it is Si > Ne though, so lower Ne, but still.
> 
> ETA @MessyJessie103 - thought of you, since you like stats? Maybe this will be of interest to you


I agree with this stat too. Just not in my community, lol. Here, i made a list of my friends' types:

NP/SJ/SP/NJ

ENFP
INFP
ISFJ
ISTP
ESFP
INFJ
INFJ
ENFJ
ENFJ
INFJ

Lol thx for tagging me ^-^


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