Life Log

Three polarities: attitude, judgement, and perception. Within each of these categories are two sides/parts of the personality that cannot be used at the same time. While perceiving functions are irrational, judging functions are considered rational. Hillman's summary of Jung's definition of a function:

First pair of opposites discussed are perceiving functions: Sensing and iNtuiting. They are both used to gather information. They're a "portal" to the internal and external worlds. Gathering information "and bringing it into our consciousness."

"Sensing is the process of collecting various forms of energy and converting, or translating, them into neural activity. Perceiving is the process of converting this neural activity into a form that can be recognized." Sensing collects data directly through the senses from the internal/external world. It collects more raw and less biased information. Sensors have a type of memory called experiential memory or "common sense." This memory includes sensory information gathered, "practical knowledge" that goes with it, and our "memories of our subjective responses to those experiences." There is some evidence that Sensing is affected by Thinking/Feeling functions before we are consciously aware of the processed information. So it may be more biased than I previously thought. As a dominant function, Sensing collects facts, experiences, and memories of these things. 

Sensors often prefer reality over fantasy and are more concrete when they speak. It may steer the user away from the bigger picture and is very practical when problem solving. 

The other opposite is iNtuiting, which creates insights and shows relationships and possibilities from both internal and external data. Myers describes iNtuiting as, "...indirect perception by the way of the unconscious." "iNtuiting involves the emergence from the unconscious of symbolic images, ideas, and abstract experiences from an object that is not immediately present." Images, relationships, and concepts are stored in the symbolic memory. Retrieval of this memory can be instant, or take a while and result in a sudden "aha!" moment. Meanings, possibilities, and relationships are the focus when iNtuiting is a dominant function. Those with iNtuiting as a dominant function can also be bad with details, and they prefer the imaginary over reality. Very abstract and visionary. They might enjoy dealing with the complex and find creative solutions to theoretical problems. But they are also often impatient and likely to be unable to think in a practical or concrete way. 

Jung's Function-Attitudes Explained by Henry L. Thompson, Ph.D.

Myers and Briggs added the perceiving/judging model. As the last of the four letters in a type (P/J), judging/perceiving tells whether a judging (Thinking/Feeling) or perceiving (Sensing/iNtuition) function is extroverted in a given functional pair. A functional pair has one introverted and one extroverted function, and if the extroverted function is a perceiving function (Sensing/iNtuiting), the orientation is P/perceiving. If the extroverted function is a judging function (Thinking/Feeling), the orientation/last letter is J/judging. Quote from the book:

Example table from the book:

Table 3

Attitude of dominant function	Perceiving function	Judging function	Identifier of extroverted function
E	N	F	P
I	S	T	J