The Devilish Role of Each Myers Briggs Type

In cognitive theory, the devilish role is the 8th function in the functional stack and forms part of the shadow processes. The devilish role manifests under stressful conditions and can be quite negative. In using the process that plays this role, we might become destructive of ourselves or others and engage in behavior that will later be regretted.

Usually, we are unaware of how to use the process that fills this role and feel like it just erupts and imposes itself rather unconsciously. Yet when we are open to the process that plays the devilish role, it becomes transformative. It gives us the motivation to create something new—to make yogurt out of spoiled milk, rather than lament it’s sourness….?

INTP

Devilish Role:
The Nihilist

INTP’s 8th function is Fi. Fi directs an inner focus on personal feelings, preferences, and principles and a concern for exploring and managing personal values and emotions.

In the INTP, Fi may manifest detrimentally in response to stress. The INTP’s utility of Fi is ill-managed and inept and using it often results in ill-conceived principles, poor judgement and harmful choices. Because their own feelings and emotions are often a mystery even to themselves, INTPs are ill-equipped to harness Fi in decision making.

In a state of chronic stress, they may fall into the grip of their 8th function, introverted feeling. When this happens they may become uncharacteristically emotional and furious and will withdraw from others to prevent anyone seeing their lack of emotional stability. They may become hypersensitive about their relationships, perceiving unintended insults and insignificant details as personal attacks while cultivating a belief that others hate or dislike them.

They can develop a “martyr complex” and the sense that they are being persecuted. Physically, they may feel tension headaches, and neck or shoulder aches from tension in their body. Using Fi may result in increased selfishness and a devaluation of others and their time. They may spend excessive time brooding over negative emotions and thinking about things that lead nowhere.  A lack of motivation and loss of  focus and clear goals may develop a sense of purposelessness. Thinking itself seems to become the purpose of life, and not the means to any meaningful end.

The fix:

Don’t repress your feelings. Think about them, process them. Learn how to use Fi effectively to cultivate better emotional awareness and coping mechanisms. Form silent friendships with others. Strive for a consistency between your choices/actions and what you authentically believe. Aim for individuality and self-assurance in your beliefs. Pay attention to what you love or hate and ask yourself why they do.

INTJ

 Devilish Role:
The Tormented

Si is the 8th function in the INTJ functional stack. Si, is concerned with preserving the past. It is conservative and careful and sees clearly defined limits as determined by past precedent.

When under stress, the INTJ’s Si may manifest in the form of chronic fear of failure and depression. They may start to spend a substantial amount of time fighting self-defeating thoughts, and feelings of worthlessness. They will obsess about their mistakes, inadequacies and weaknesses, and suspend progress on a project for fear of failure.

The INTJ may fall into a negative cycle of despair, wallowing in past disappointments and feeling powerless to break the loop. They distance themselves and begin viewing people by how they can use them, much like a sociopath would. Once they have what they came for, they abandon ship. They may get stuck in impressions of how things were and resist change, wasting time reviewing the past.

Heightened sensate awareness may lead to the experience of psychosomatic ailments and imagined internal bodily sensations. Physical stimulation and pleasure may be sought after and lead to over-eating, over-exercising, alcoholism, or buying lots of useless items. They may obsessively clean or re-organize files and engage in otherwise stupid behavior .

The fix:

Think about the past constructively to recall details and information. Don’t try so hard to avoid hard things that happened to you, but rather, confront them with open mind, and allow them to teach you something. Experience things, revisit places that you enjoyed as a kid, or that remind you of fond memories. Be aware that your Si memory is subjective to your internal interpretation of events, and not necessarily a strict record of what actually happened.

ENTP

Devilish Role:
The Hypochondriac

Se is the 8th function in the ENTP functional stack. Si notices relevant facts and occurrences in a sea of data and experiences. It takes in plenty of sensory data from the outside world and is attuned to the details or concrete elements of life.

While under stress ENTPs may become distracted and overwhelmed by their unrefined Se. They may feel, inept, inadequate, and overcome by fear, panic, and anxiety. Their creativity will suffer, drained by depression and dwelling on their past failures.

They often become hypochondriacs, blowing out of proportion the minor bodily changes they notice and dreading the worst. Their psychosomatic afflictions and manipulation of others puts a strain on their relationships. They will excessively seek physical stimulation or follow the urge to do nothing sporadically zeroing in on isolated details, acting impulsively on them in a scattered, unfocused manner.

The fix:

Take some time alone to exercise, go for a run, get a massage, get enough rest. Spend time outside and calm your senses. Notice the physical world around you. Don’t restrict your impulses so much but use moderation and take time to enjoy life in the moment. Do more physical activities –anything that forces you to be completely in your body and aware of it’s movement in your environment.

ENTJ

Devilish Role:
The Tyrant

Fe is the 8th function in the ENTJ function stack. Fe responds according to expressed or even unexpressed wants and needs of others. It often involves a desire to connect with or disconnect from, others and is often indicated by expressions of warmth and self-disclosure.

When their stress-induced Fe emerges, ENTJs become uncharacteristically emotional and furious and withdraw from others to prevent them seeing their lack of emotional stability. When convinced others don’t like, appreciate, or need them, they may over-accommodate others’ needs or become domineering. They may become hypersensitive about their relationships, misinterpreting tiny, trivial details and exhibiting paranoid suspicion that others hate or dislike them. Their insecurities and desire for social affirmation and validation may drive them to desperate and unbecoming measures.

Their underdeveloped Fe makes it a struggle to intentionally contact or understand their emotions. It’s not that they never experience emotions, but only that their emotions seem to possess a mind of their own, coming and going as they please. ENTJs may try to use their Fe to offer the socially-appropriate words, but without experiencing the emotions directly, they often sound clumsy or contrived in their expressions.

The fix:

Take time alone to sort out feelings and explore the emotional character arcs in movies and books. Try to connect with other people emotionally and spread compliments generously. Practice sharing your feelings and discussing your interests with other people. Don’t bottle up your emotions or be passive aggressive when others are not acting according to your standards. Instead, confront them gently about the problem. Talk through your emotions with them.

INFP

Devilish Role:
The Conspiracist

Ti is the 8th function in the INFP function stack. Ti involves an internal reasoning process of deriving subsets of classes and general principles. It is also used in problem solving, analysis, and fine tuning of a product or an idea.

When stressed, an INFP gets lost in internal turbulence. They feel torn between pleasing others and protecting their own sense of integrity and personal interests. Their natural tendency to identify with others, compounded with their self-sacrificial tendencies,  leaves them confused about who they really are. When using Ti, the INFJ may form distorted world views built on their subjective sentiments and attitudes. During stressful times they may develop an air of suspicion and paranoia regarding others intentions and motives.

They may connect dots that shouldn’t be connected and draw conclusions that are specious and logically unsound.  They will do things that are typically out of character and can become obsessed with fixing perceived problems, and righting wrongs. They may blurt out hostile remarks or engage in destructive fantasies directed at just about anyone present. They also may exhibit biting sarcasm and criticism, lambasting others while dwelling on their own overwhelming sense of failure.

Bitterness, and blaming of others for their own misfortunes. sullies their reputation. They may depend too much on others rather than taking care of their own problems. Shouting insults at strangers, they get caught up in pointing out others’ inconsistencies, with a dogmatic tendency to adhere to one principle rather than seeing its distinctions.

The fix:

Figure out how things really work. Take time alone to sort out personal feelings and practice self analysis, striving for a consistent thought pattern. Ask questions where you don’t understand. Look for the why behind everything. Why do I do what I do? Why does this machine work the way it does? etc.

INFJ

Devilish Role:
The Predjudiced

Si is the 8th function in the INFJ functional stack. Si, is concerned with preserving the past. It is conservative and careful and sees clearly defined limits as determined by past precedent.

When stressed, Si prejudice, may lead the INFJ to typecast others dismissively often without realizing it. Snap judgements are formed from surface impressions of people. Most people get categorized as ‘boring’, and thus ignored completely. There may be a tendency for blaming others for whatever is bothering them, and a limited ability to use Ti to see that the fault is in their own thinking. This leads to self absorption, which leads to a distorted image of reality. Being both too pessimistic of others and too optimistic, this illusion of understanding tends to give way to nihilistic world views, with ignorant unrealistic hopes.

During stress they may also engage in self-indulgent, self-destructive habits like binge-eating, drug use, over-exercising, alcoholism, or excessive pornography use. They may feel numb while doing this deriving little pleasure but compelled in a robotic, autonomous manner. After this occurs, they wallow in self-hatred, falling even deeper into guilt over what they’ve done. They may become uncharacteristically truculent and ill-tempered, and irrational. They may become obsessed with perceived internal bodily sensations and psychosomatic maladies and get stuck in impressions of how things were; resisting change and wasting time reviewing the impact of the past

The fix:

Reduce sensory stimulation such as music, TV and other interruptions and think about your past to recall details and information. If you’ve been overly harsh or critical of others, chances are you will feel very guilty about it. Don’t try to avoid negative things that happened to you, but confront them instead and allow them to teach you something. Do things that you loved as a kid. Be aware that your Si memory is subjective to your internal interpretation of events, and not necessarily a strict record of what actually happened.

ENFP

Devilish Role:
The Debaucherer

Se is the 8th function in the ENFP functional stack. Si notices relevant facts and occurrences in a sea of data and experiences. It takes in plenty of sensory data from the outside world and is attuned to the details or concrete elements of life.

Stress as experienced by ENFPs tends to result from overextending themselves, and procrastination, which complicates their lives. When they become stressed, their naturally charming natures become more irritable and over-sensitive. Extroverted sensing (Se) may emerge in response to ENFPs feeling alienated and not at peace within themselves. They become obsessive and depressed while seeking solace through external stimulation. This may lead to a chain of self-indulgent debauchery resulting in subconscious sensory overload or exhaustion that eventually catches up with them.

They may preoccupy themselves with self-destructive habits, like over-eating, over-exercising, alcoholism, or buying lots of useless items. They may obsessively clean or re-organize files. Their thinking may become cloudy and convoluted, feeling as though they are trapped and out of options. They may feel out of control, and unable to sort out priorities, thus becoming inflexible. Some become obsessive about record keeping, cleaning, or other household tasks. They may excessively seek physical stimulation or follow the urge to do nothing; zeroing in on isolated details, and acting impulsively on them.

The fix:

Find time alone to sort out personal feelings. Meditation and exercise often helps and ensure adequate rest. Notice the physical world around you and be in the moment. Don’t restrict your impulses so much but do exercise moderation. Do more physical activities –anything that forces you to be completely in your body and aware of it’s movement in your environment.

ENFJ

Devilish Role:
The Task Master

Te is the 8th function in the ENFJ function stack. Te is concerned with organizing and arranging the external elements in the environment through instruments such as charts, tables, graphs, flow charts, etc.

When an ENFJ experiences stress, they often disassociate themselves from the situation in an attempt to protect their sense of well-being and stability. They may repress unpleasant emotions until they erupt in an uncharacteristic lashing out at others, while obsessing over their mistakes, lack of competence and flaws. Eventually, these criticisms will be directed inward and the ENFJ will withdraw from others to self-analyze. He or she may obsess about  analyzing irrelevant data to identify some ultimate truth or explanation for their stress.

Te in ENFJ may manifest in an obsession with righting wrongs and fixing perceived problems. They may blurt out hostile thoughts or engage in destructive fantasies directed towards just about anyone. They also may have a scathing wit and cynical attitude. They may become aggressively critical of others as well as themselves, dwelling on “facts” that support their overwhelming sense of failure.

The fix:

Organize everything. Compose lists, crossing things off as you complete them. Set deadlines and discipline yourself to meet them. Try to focus on creating something that is useful or on improving systems that are not up to snuff. Aim for efficiency. Speak to people directly, and learn how to delegate and organize people to accomplish something meaningful. Practice leadership, if you must.

ISTJ

Devilish Role:
The Drama King/Queen

Ni is the 8th function in the ISTJ functional stack. Ni involves working out complex concepts or systems of thinking subconsciously through magical flashes of insight.

When laden with stress, ISTJs may fall into “panic mode”, where they see nothing but all the potential things that could go wrong. They may become hard on themselves regarding things they could have been done better, or duties which they failed to perform. They will lose their ability to see things calmly and sensibly, and may become depressed at what they view as a dismal future. Under severe stress, he or she may slip into the grip of their 8th function, introverted intuition, and become a dramatizer of sorts.

They may lose their naturally sanguine, congenial demeanor and begin to develop fearful visions of the future. They may perceive small occurrences as dire omens of impending doom. Negative possibilities and worst outcome scenarios unravel in their heads. They may become preoccupied with existential matters such as the meaning of life and the future of humanity in a way that is typically delusional.

Ni may manifest as a desire to be seen as profound or insightful with respect to abstract subjects, such as spirituality or religion. They may do so by asserting and defending certain dogmas or ideologies and make dire predictions with false certainty mistaking deep symbolism as a guidepost for life.

The fix:

Conceptualize and plan for the future, then work toward a specific set of goals. Zero in on an idea, project or concept to understand it fully and completely. Seek meaning and symbolism in every day life and pay attention to hunches and intuitions about people and situations. Pay close attention to patterns of behavior and try to understand how external patterns are linked to people’s inner lives.

ISFJ

Devilish Role:
The Paranoid

Ni is the 8th function in the ISFJ functional stack. Ni involves working out complex concepts or systems of thinking subconsciously through magical flashes of insight.

When faced with stress, ISFJs become lost in a pit of despair. They begin imagining all the things that could go wrong, and may feel a strong sense of inadequacy. To them everything will seem to doomed to fail, or that they can’t do anything right. If they are in a state of chronic stress, they may fall into the grip of their 8th function, introverted intuition. When this happens they may start acting completely out of character. They may be at odds with normally relied upon facts and details, they may see everything as awful and in jeopardy.

ISFJs when using Ni, can become overly dramatic and exaggerative, promulgating the gloom and doom that the future will hold. They may draw bizarre conclusions from mundane phenomena. Supposed hidden meanings and revelations unveiled through Ni will likely be seen as delusional and preposterous by others. Their dire predictions will likely be met with opposition which may in turn arouse anger and resentment in the ISFJ. This is highly uncharacteristic for an ISFJ, since they are usually very optimistic and friendly people who want to maintain harmony. They may become withdrawn, angry, irritable, and pessimistic. They will probably feel emotionally overwhelmed and find themselves worrying about all types of terrible outcomes.

The fix:

Conceive and draw out a plan for the future, then work toward a specific set of goal. Narrow your focus and zoom in on an idea, project or concept to understand it in-depth, fully and completely. Look for meaning and symbolism in every day life. Pay attention to hunches and suspicions about people and situations. Pay attention to patterns of behavior and try to figure out how outward patterns connect to people’s inner lives.

ESTJ

Devilish Role:
The Codependent

Fe is the 8th function in the ESTJ function stack. Fe responds according to expressed or even unexpressed wants and needs of others. It often involves a desire to connect with or disconnect from, others and is often indicated by expressions of warmth and self-disclosure.

When overwhelmed with stress, ESTJ’s often distant themselves from others. They may feel as though they are misunderstood and undervalued, and that their efforts are taken for granted. They have a hard time verbalizing their feelings and communicating them to others. If they are under severe stress, they may fall into the grip of their 8th function; extroverted feeling. When this happens, they can develop an abiding need for outside approval and validation.

Convinced others don’t like, appreciate, or need them, they may over-accommodate the needs of others. The ESTJ will become uncharacteristically emotional, and effusive, eventually withdrawing from others, and becoming hypersensitive about their relationships and social image. They may misinterpret trivial, insignificant details as personal attacks and may develop physical aches and tension in the neck and shoulders.

The fix:

Try to connect emotionally with other people and give compliments generously without being sycophantic. Practice discussing your feelings and sharing your interests with other folks. Don’t bottle up or repress your feelings or be passive aggressive when others are not acting according to your standards. Instead, confront them directly but gently about the problem. Talk through your emotions with them.

ESFJ

Devilish Role:
The Fault Finder

Te is the 8th function in the ESFJ function stack. Te is concerned with organizing and arranging the external elements in the environment through instruments such as charts, tables, graphs, flow charts, etc.

When faced with stress, ESFJ’s can become overly sensitive and petty, often imagining bad intentions where there were none. Often being insecure, they may focus much of their attention on pleasing those who make them feel secure. They can become quite critical when under stress, finding fault with almost everything.

If they are under severe stress, they may fall into the grip of their 8th function; extroverted thinking. This can cause them to take on the form of a sanctimonious critic, focusing on everyone’s flaws and all the ways they have been hurt by them and how those flaws go against their belief system and how things ought to be according to them.

They may become harsh and condemnatory of others, obsessing over their mistakes, and others incompetence. They may have an intense urge to fix perceived problems or rectify wrongs, but this often only exacerbates the situation. Opposition from others will lead them to lash out in an uncharacteristic manner.

The fix:

Organize everything around you. Write lists and check things off as you complete them. Set deadlines for yourself and hold yourself accountable to meet them. Try to aim your efforts toward creating something that is meaningful or on improving systems that are not up to standard. Be efficient and speak directly to people, and learn how to delegate and organize them to accomplish a projected goal. Practice leadership, if you must.

ISTP

Devilish Role:
The Vindicator

ISTP’s 8th function is Fi. Fi directs an inner focus on personal feelings, preferences, and principles and a concern for exploring and managing personal values and emotions.

When ISTPs are overcome with stress, they may try to respond by lashing out against whatever is causing it. They may flout rules and regulations that they feel are too restrictive and controlling. They may feel a need to “get even” and become obsessed with the logic of their argument in the service of proving a point. In the process they may find themselves disorganized and losing objects or misplacing them.

Under severe stress, they may fall into the grip of their 8th function; introverted feeling. When this occurs, they can develop a “martyr complex”. The ISTP will become uncharacteristically emotional, withdrawing from others, and becoming hypersensitive about their relationships, and public image. They may misinterpret petty, trifling details as egregious personal attacks. Physically, they may experience bodily aches, tension and anxiety. They will feel persecuted and paranoid about other people’s thoughts, and question everything. They may spend money and time on things that are unimportant and care little about the value of things.

The fix:

Don’t repress your feelings. Think about them, process them. Form silent friendships with others. Strive for a consistency between your choices/actions and what you authentically believe. Aim for individuality and self-assurance in your beliefs. Pay attention to what you love or hate and ask yourself why they do.

ISFP

Devilish Role:
The Condemner

Ti is the 8th function in the ISFP function stack. Ti involves an internal reasoning process of deriving subsets of classes and general principles. It is also used in problem solving, analysis, and fine tuning of a product or an idea.

When under stress, ISFPs can often become passive aggressive, restless, and defiant. If stress continues to mount, ISFPs may become self-destructive and careless of their own well-being in an effort to restore excitement or affirmation in their life. If an ISFP is in a state of intense stress, they may slip into the grip of their 8th function, introverted thinking. It can lead them to take on the guise of “the condemner”, focusing on everyone’s flaws and all the ways they have been hurt by them and how those flaws go against their belief system and how things “should be”.

They allow the world to affect themselves too much, not realizing that its irrational. They get very paranoid, and form crazy theories about every gesture and perceived slight. Caught up in pointing out others’ inconsistencies, with a dogmatic tendency to adhere to one principle rather than seeing its distinctions .

The fix:

Develop an understanding of how things actually work. Practice self analysis and strive for a consistent value system. Ask questions where you don’t understand. Look for the why behind everything. Why do I do what I do? Why does this machine work the way it does? etc.

ESTP

Devilish Role:
The Neurotic

Ne is the 8th function in the ESTP functional stack. It involves noticing hidden meanings and interpreting them, often considering a wealth of possibilities from just one idea or evaluating the meaning behind people’s behavior.

When faced with stress, ESTPs tend to feel hapless and empty inside. Their first impulse may be to seek retribution for the source of their stress. They may do this by mocking and belittling other people’s values, or becoming increasingly anti-social and contemptuous of others. They may be guilty of over-reading between the lines, often misinterpreting someone’s actions and seeing negative intentions where there are none.

If they experience severe stress, they may fall into the throes of their 8th function, extroverted intuition, and become a conspiracist of sorts. When using their Ni, they may do things that are completely out of character. Their naturally easy going, agreeable nature may give way to neuroticism and fearful fantasies disaster and bad omens. Impending doom may loom heavy over their heads like a guillotine blade. They may begin to assign significance to small occurrences, and become preoccupied with existential questions such as meaning of life and the future of humanity and the universe.

The fix:

Look for patterns of behavior found in movies, and books. Expose yourself to a diverse array of genres and try learning how to mind-map to make connections between seemingly disconnected subjects and things. Look for symbolism and meaning in everyday life. Do anything creative, and be open to ideas and perspectives of other people

ESFP

Devilish Role:
The Deceiver

Ne is the 8th function in the ESFP functional stack. It involves noticing hidden meanings and interpreting them, often considering a wealth of possibilities from just one idea or evaluating the meaning behind people’s behavior.

When ESFPs experience stress, they may become passively resistant, feeling bored and empty inside. They may try to annoy or irritate the people who are causing them stress as a form of retaliation. When experiencing excess stress, they may turn self-destructive, regressing emotionally, and acting in an immature manner.

Under chronic stress, ESFPs may fall into their 8th function; extroverted intuition. When this happens, the ESFP can become highly dramatic and exaggerating. They may engage in gossip and scuttlebutt, speculating on other people’s affairs and may participate in the spreading of untruths. They can have difficulty with objectivity and struggle with accurately representing what people say rather than embellishing it with their own spin. This is highly uncharacteristic for an ESFP, since they are usually very optimistic and friendly people who want to maintain harmony.

The fix:

Try to make rational connections between disparate subjects and things. Look for symbolism and meaning in everyday life. Work on creative projects, be it art, music, writing, etc. Stop following instruction manuals so much and try to figure things out on your own. Open your perspective on people and ideas so that it’s broad and non-biased.

Related Posts:

• The Moral Compass of Each MBTI Type
• The Trickster Role Of Each Myers Briggs Type
• The Opposing Role of Each Myers Briggs Type
• The Critical Parent Role of Each Myers Briggs Type
• Secrets About Each MBTI Type
• How Each MBTI Type Processes Emotions
• What Each MBTI Type Seeks In A Soulmate
• The Fatal Flaw of Each MBTI Type In Relationships
• The Hidden Superpower of Each MBTI Type

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Jetta Moon

Jetta Moon is an artist, writer and astrology blogger. This site gives him an excuse to explore, learn and write about the world of psychology, astrology and various personality type systems.

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