# which cognitive function is best at reading people



## chad0 (Feb 7, 2015)

which cognitive function is best at reading people?


----------



## Captain Mclain (Feb 22, 2014)

Ni


----------



## Plumedoux (Aug 16, 2015)

I'd say Fe it's the best at reading other need and motivation/goal, Fi to read other feeling and authenticity/fake.


----------



## Scarlet Eyes (May 15, 2015)

Leaning more towards Fe. However, an Fe-Ni or Ni-Fe combination can make an exceptionally good people-reader.


----------



## Ksara (Feb 13, 2014)

Depends what you mean by reading people.
I've noticed my Se dom sister very good at reading people. She picks up on the smallest of body language and can tell if someone is lying to her, or upset, etc. (I use some introverted function) and I can be good at seeing others insecurities or hidden faces. Yet both of us can completely miss read other people in other ways


----------



## aquasoul (Aug 31, 2015)

Ni, a Ni dom friend of mine seems to just know everything about everyone. Fi understands peoples motivations and feelings, a really internal understanding but this doesn't necessarily help them relate socially. Fe gets people in a more superficial sense, Fe doms seem like chameleons who understand and get along with people with great ease, yet they can lack a deep comprehension. Fi an Fe complement each other in than sense. 



Ksara said:


> Depends what you mean by reading people.
> I've noticed my Se dom sister very good at reading people. She picks up on the smallest of body language and can tell if someone is lying to her, or upset, etc. (I use some introverted function) and I can be good at seeing others insecurities or hidden faces. Yet both of us can completely miss read other people in other ways


This is super interesting, I seem to do the same thing. I read into body language to an amazing length but for the most part I feel like I mostly get it wrong, possibly being Ne rather than Se dom I generalise and exaggerate much more.


----------



## Treckasec (Jan 12, 2015)

I feel like my Fi and Ne help me understand people's thoughts and why they are doing that they're doing pretty well.


----------



## PaladinX (Feb 20, 2013)

Each function would have a different approach to reading people.


----------



## Highway Nights (Nov 26, 2014)

Probably Fe-Ni (ENFJs) at actually reading people, Ni-Fe (INFJs) I think often "over reads" and starts to see things that aren't actually there. I think xSTPs and probably ENTPs are better at reading situations and so would make a better bullshit detector. The kind of person you would want when you're trying to buy a used car.


----------



## Despotic Nepotist (Mar 1, 2014)

Fe and Se together, meaning ENFJs and ESTPs would be the _types_ best at reading people as well as acting on their impressions. Fe because they can pick up on the emotions and values of their environment and Se because they can adapt sensory impressions and fit into their environment well.


----------



## Aelthwyn (Oct 27, 2010)

I agree that all functions will have their own way of reading people

Personally I feel like Ne is good at picking up on the possible meaning, intentions, or reasoning behind words and actions without being too stuck on personal biases that could cause misperceptions. 

I think Fi is good at picking up on someone's inner 'essence' and the 'vibe' they give out


----------



## Aer (Apr 12, 2015)

Wouldn't you need a team effort by functions to read people? Ni alone can do nothing without objective information. 

To say group of functions I would say probably Ni Fe. Although, anyone that took the time to watch people would eventually figure it out. 

Sent from my VS980 4G using Tapatalk


----------



## Pinina (Jan 6, 2015)

Honestly, Fi, Fe, Si, Se, Ni and Ne are all usefull for this. Just different approaches.


----------



## Dania (Oct 31, 2009)

chad0 said:


> which cognitive function is best at reading people?


I'd say it would be a combination of Ne and Fi or Ne and Ti.


----------



## Yumiko (Sep 20, 2015)

Fe and Ni, definitely. However, Ni is most likely. Ni is when you pick up "clues" since you you recognize patterns unconsciously. This can be body language, tone, eye contact, wording, etc. Ni is "Huh. I recognize this. This must be happening right now." Fe is the awareness to others' feelings. If the person sounds sad, then they must be sad. Fe is "Oh god, they're not happy at all."

However, I do agree if someone has Se, they can also be good at reading others. Though, Se is more "Hey what's going on right now?" and basically picking up the everything on the ground in front of them. If you have Se, then you have Ni, so in the end, it's Ni that deducts "Wait a minute. There's something going on."


----------



## Inveniet (Aug 21, 2009)

They are equal obviously.
Each gathers info from a different informational plane.
By hyping up any function in particular all you are doing is displaying your cognitive or stereotypical bias.


----------



## The_Wanderer (Jun 13, 2013)

It probably falls most comfortably under the sphere of feeling extraverts. I doubt there is a more specific answer than that.


----------



## FlaviaGemina (May 3, 2012)

Isn't it interesting how lots of people say that their own type is best at reading people?

It all depends on what you mean by 'reading' people. If you mean reading their body language in a particular situation I'd say it's definitely Se. 

When it comes to someones overall psychological make-up, I'd agree that Ni and Ne doms are best at that.

It also depends on what types are interacting with each other. E.g. I'm an INTJ and I used to have an ISFP colleague who was able to_ identify_ my feelings and motivations very accurately. I.e. she would be able to identify the feelings I was actually feeling without me directly saying so. But she would exaggerate the magnitude of those feelings, which totally makes sense given that Fi is her dominant function. So in that sense, she wasn't able to read me 100%. If she was talking to another IXFP she'd be able to read their feelings more correctly.


----------



## chad0 (Feb 7, 2015)

nice


----------



## AlphaLeonis (Jun 13, 2014)

Who's right about what an elephant really looks like?
Why should there be a function better at reading people? 
What does that even mean, to you; and in general? How do you evaluate 'best at'? Subjective or objective standards?
Does this mean you either have it or you don't?
Does this mean that some people inevitably will fall in the category of having received such a prized ability?
Does that mean that others won't, and are doomed to misinterpret things, while others are _naturally_ more accurate because having been given a specific cognitive function? 

(Mostly rhethorical questions, though)


----------



## Nothing1 (Jan 22, 2014)

In general, all introverted functions: Ni, Fi, Si, Ti are subjective and unreliable outside itself. Extroverted functions, however, tend towards objectivity and universally agreed upon standards.

Fi has the habit of projecting it's feelings onto another. This is helpful in therapy or in situations where the other is unsure of their possible feelings, but it's often incorrect. Fi seems to think because it would or does feel ___ in a situation that another person does as well, e.g. "It frustrates me when people walk through a pile of trash I just swept up; therefore, you must be frustrated since I just walked through a pile of trash you just swept up."

Fe picks up on environmental moods/emotions. Fe walks into a room of people and notices no smiling or talking taking place. It picks up on tense, micro expressions of the people in the room and says "it feels stiff, uncomfortable in here." Fe will pick up on micro expressions and respond accordingly. 

According to typology theories, Ni-Fe combination is often said to be best at "reading" people. However, many people with dominate, intuitive enneagrams: 4, 6 and 8 are also good at reading people. Because of this, people are noticing an ISTJ, for example, who is a good "people reader" and aren't realizing it's because of their enneagram and not cognitive functions. 

Also, there are levels to this "reading". For example, I was in a particular situation where it appeared this INTJ was "reading" me when actually, he was "reading" what I was giving him to "read". In other words, my true intentions were hidden behind a subtle, false set of intentions. A true "people reader" would've noticed this subtlety. A true people reader gets to the ultimate, unconscious truth and it takes a subconscious thinker, Ni (Ni, when used to substitute or aid in thinking manipulates time in all directions to draw a single, highly accurate possibility. Mix that with Fe and you have ultimate intentions) to get there (the subconscious is the buffer between consciousness and unconsciousness just in case my "logic" seems confusing, and it is lol).


----------



## heavydirtysoul (Jan 13, 2012)

Fe.


----------



## Wisteria (Apr 2, 2015)

both the F functions, obviously.


----------



## Prada (Sep 10, 2015)

Fe and Ni. Fe has a good perception of feelings of other people and Ni can connect dots. Of course, all functions can be/get good at it but these two have the most natural approach.


----------

