In Jungian terms, the third function is the potential mediator with the inferior function; i.e., one approaches the inferior safely by going through the tertiary, not by apprehending it directly. In terms of individual growth (Jaccobi, 1963), one apprehends one's unconscious and the Self by a sequence going from the dominant to the auxiliary to the tertiary to the inferior. The danger of directly confronting the inferior function rather than using the mediating or tertiary function is that this is more likely to produce ego-inflation—i.e., when unconscious energy is brought into the conscious sphere but is controlled by the ego rather than by the Self. Further, one obtains strong transference reactions towards whoever is the change agent involved, and the inferior function will not be easily integrated [i.e., it will not “stick” (Jung, 1971)].
One application of this in the organizational world seems to have occurred with the human relations movement. This example may be completely wrong, but nevertheless serves as an explanatory vehicle for how the path through the tertiary would work. On the assumption that the dominant mode in this world is that of thinking supported by a sensing auxiliary, the drive in the human relations field to get people in touch with their feelings represented an attempt to go straight for the inferior function. This was usually attempted in order to balance out the overly task-driven dominant thinking mode.
However, one of the most common complaints of that era in organizational training was that the individual, once out of the fully supportive atmosphere and conditions set up for the individual to get in touch with his or her feelings, returned quickly to past patterns of attitude and behavior with others. They were unable to act out their new-found selves in the “real” world. This is precisely what one would expect if the inferior function had been tackled directly rather than going through the tertiary, although other explanations of this phenomenon would equally suffice. Nevertheless, it is interesting to note the trend in the last 5-10 years of encouraging intuition, representing the business world's tertiary function.
Unresolved Issues with the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, Anna-Maria Garden
https://intpmusings.files.wordpress.com/2012/06/unresolved-issues-with-the-mbti.pdf
The article can be summed as arguing that development and lasting growth comes not from directly focusing on the inferior(which would cause ego inflation, and only be a temporary change) but by integrating through the tertiary.
