# Which NF type is the most opinionated?



## aj1023 (Aug 21, 2012)

I have a roommate who tested exactly xNFP once and he's got to be one of the most opinionated people I've ever met. So opinionated, in fact, that it makes me doubt my type (or his type). He begins what at times feels like half of his sentences with "I feel like...." followed by an opinion that often goes against my political ideology or worldview, despite him knowing that I or the group that we're with disagrees. You also can't talk to him for longer than 5 minutes without him sharing one of his strong opinions, somehow tying them into whatever you're talking about.

While I'm relatively confident that I'm on the Fi/Te axis (and so is he), he seems to be much more aggressive than I am with his opinions, constantly shoving them down other peoples' throats. When I try to explain to him why I and other people find his opinions offensive, however, he acts shocked that his opinions cause offense. He does have good intentions, but I find his constant expression of opinions that attack my culture and heritage pretty draining.

I guess this confuses me because I figured that, going by my current theory that I'm an Fi dom, I would be more likely to exhibit the behaviors he does. Is it possible that he's an ENFP and the tertiary Te + extroversion in general causes him to be more vocal about his opinions? Or are Fe users typically more opinionated? I'd be curious to hear the NF board's thoughts on this.

BONUS QUESTION: does my reaction to his opinionatedness sound like that of an Fe user?


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## Razare (Apr 21, 2009)

I'm guessing INFJ or ENFP. ENFJ's are actually the most opinionated, I think, but his behavior doesn't sound like one as they're more apt to put relationships before opinions in most instances, with most ENFJ's.

INFJ's have strong opinions, but they usually keep them to themselves. However, INFJ's would be prone to share their opinions with another INFP, or they might share opinions without care for the social consequences like an ENFJ would. It's just rare that INFJ's share their opinions so readily.

ENFP's might behave as you're describing. I don't know this type well enough to say.

As for INFP, I don't know... it doesn't sound like one, but INFP's are also very opinionated, but like INFJ's they don't readily share those opinions.

What you shouldn't get confused on here is that NFP's are opinionated and NFJ's aren't. NFJ opinions reside within Ni, while NFP opinions reside in Fi.



> does my reaction to his opinionatedness sound like that of an Fe user?


No, actually, I think it sounds more like a Fi-user to me. As a Fe user, I'm generally not threatened by other people's crazy opinions, because there's generally no internal friction. Fe wants me to have social harmony in the environment, so it's very accommodating to other viewpoints, while I hold my personal opinions apart from what other people believe. Them pressing their viewpoints into the external environment, doesn't create internal discord.

Fi cares a lot more about internal harmony as opposed to external. Meaning, it needs its ideals realized in the external world moreso than the average Fe user. If the ideals are not realized in the external world, it bothers them, they can feel suffocated and trapped.

Fe's may press for a vision of their inner ideal, and they may share this viewpoint more readily... so it's more focused on achieving an ideal in the external world... let's call it their J behavior... where as Fi has to fit-in to an ideal in the environment, so it seeks to find the place in which to experience that ideal... we can call this their P-ness.

It's why I think this person you're talking about sounds more NFJ. They share their opinion, and perhaps confront other viewpoints, but this wouldn't bother an NFJ... Ni ideals aren't generally subject to internal friction, but rather NFJ's feel that friction as an aspect of Fe... just like NFP's feel that friction as an aspect of Fi.

So an NFJ will press their internal vision into the external world, "forcing it upon others". While an NFP will likely complain to those who might be preventing them from achieving their ideal, and they may have to do something abrupt to go find it. Pressing it into reality by forcing it down other people's throats isn't generally what an NFP does, they're more apt to move or change behaviors to achieve it.


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## Adhokk (Nov 13, 2012)

ENFJ, I argue every day with my ENTJ brother, we're the most opinionated people we know. Interestingly enough you wouldnt know unless you were very close to the ENFJ, as they prioritize your feelings before theirs. Now in the case of my brother and I, we have a bonded relationship, so I'll speak my mind to him. My brother would definitely be more opinionated in public/to strangers though.


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## strangestdude (Dec 8, 2011)

I'm and INFP and I've noticed this problem with INFP's, I made a vid about it...


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## Intellectus (Jan 9, 2013)

Everybody is opinionated to a certain degree. The question is largely about "what" and "how". Let's look at the function stack between INFP and INFJ:

INFP
Fi -----
Ne ----
Si ---
Te --

INFJ
Ni ----
Fe ---
Ti --
Se -

Notice how the INFP's judging function is actually proportionally _stronger_ than the INFJ's judging function, while the INFJ's perceiving function is proportionally stronger than the INFP's perceiving function. This is because the "J" tacked onto end there is determined by the most dominant _extroverted_ function. That extroverted function is what the world sees because it is largely how the type encounters the world.

Which brings us full circle. I don't know many INFPs (myself and one other), but we are actually very opinionated. The organization within the Fi is meticulous. But the Fi is precisely that--introverted--so we don't share it except when we're very comfortable with doing so. For example, I myself only share or express opinions when I'm in an academic environment, or when I can turn the environment into something academic. There, ideas can freely be transferred without irrational criticism.

All the Te-systematic-logic business is very much a learned thing for me, but from my perspective, "shoving [ideas] down others' throats" has little to do with expressing an idea, and everything to do with expressing logic. I would perceive someone to be shoving an idea down my throat if a) they were stubbornly illogical about it and not open to discussion about the matter, or b) would not give me enough time to process the new information and cross-contextualize it with my feelings. He essentially is wanting time to express his ideas and be heard.

So here's my advice: when he feels strongly about something, tell him to write it down and thoroughly explain the rationale behind it. Finding the appropriate environment to do so seems to be his downfall, then. If you do want to have a relationship with him (and if it would be healthy for you to have a relationship with him), set up specific boundaries for when he can share those ideas and when he cannot. I think this will ease your problem.


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## aj1023 (Aug 21, 2012)

Looking at this objectively and maturely, I think my accusation of him of "shoving his opinions down my throat" is more of a projection on my part, since I can't see myself behaving as he does unless that were my motive.


Intellectus said:


> If you do want to have a relationship with him (and if it would be healthy for you to have a relationship with him), set up specific boundaries for when he can share those ideas and when he cannot. I think this will ease your problem.


Yeah, I've tried telling him that I don't agree with him, and that I never bring up my more right-of-centre political views around him, so therefore I expect the same out of him. This doesn't stop him from impulsively doing so, however. We used to be pretty good friends, but I've gotten to the point where I avoid being around him at all costs because I find it so draining and I rarely feel like debating him, since he's actually told me I can't change his mind.


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