The first part of the series Individual Differences And Interpersonal Interactions ...
People
may differ among each other in terms of introversion and extraversion.
Introverts like to keep to themselves; they are self-involved, restraint, and
at times highly sensitive. They have a tendency to turn inwards and explore
their feelings and experiences. Extraverts, on the other hand, are energetic,
enthusiastic, and impulsive. They are more externally oriented.
A
major way in which individuals differ in terms of introversion and extraversion
is their biological structure. Introverts have high brain activity, which makes
them highly aroused, especially in socially stimulating situations. In
contrast, extraverts have low level brain activity, which gives them a high threshold
for stimulation and effortful in being aroused.
This
level of brain arousal plays an important role in the activities of introverts
and extraverts, including the nature of their interpersonal interactions.
Introverts, being easily aroused, can find it discomforting to be in highly
socially stimulating situations for too much of time. This is why they prefer
to keep to themselves or have few interpersonal interactions.
It
is not that introverts do not like to interact with others; they just find too
much of interactions to be draining out their energy. This is why even when
introverts do interact with people, they prefer to have few meaningful
interactions that involve deep conversations rather than having a shallow talk.
In
contrast, extraverts, due to having a low level brain arousal, always have the
need to be stimulated. This leads to them to being highly energetic and wanting
to be out with a lot of people. Unlike introverts, they always like to interact
in groups. For them, being alone is not stimulating enough, which is why they
require to be with a group of friends or associates.
As
mentioned above, introverts not interacting with many people does always not
mean that they do not like it. They get mentally and physically drained out,
and due to this, at times they prefer to avoid social interactions. This does
not also mean that they lack in social or interpersonal skills. Being involved in
interpersonal interactions is more of a choice for introverts, rather than a
lack in any kind of skills.
Introverts,
in fact, can be very adept in social and interpersonal skills. A major aspect
of any kind of interpersonal interaction is empathy. Research suggests that
introverts are highly empathic. Introverts, due to their physiological
structure, are more introspective, which makes them more self-aware. Being
self-aware makes them more comfortable within themselves, which in turn, makes
them more observant and thus, more conscious of others’ needs.
The
high brain arousal of introverts also makes them very sensitive. They can
easily pick up subtle cues from their surroundings such as slight changes in
mood, emotional reactions, or body posture, of others. They use these subtle
cues and react accordingly in interpersonal interactions.
There
can, however, be a downside to this high sensitivity. Introverts, due to being
highly sensitive, often get easily hurt by others. This becomes a deterrent for
them to be involved in future interactions. An inherent discomfort in social
situations coupled with a possibility of being hurt and embarrassed, increases
the likelihood of avoiding being in too many interactions.
It
is largely due to this that introverts prefer to interact only with few people.
They like to spend more time with likeminded people, with whom they can talk on
topics that they are interested in, and with who they can be themselves. This is
why, even though they may prefer to interact with few people, their
interactions are deep and their relationships are more long lasting.
If
introverts are drained out by having too many interactions, extraverts derive
their energy levels from these interactions. They, in a way, thrive on having
many interpersonal interactions.
For
extraverts, more than deep interactions, varied interactions become important. They
feel like being with many people, and being excited and enthusiastic comes easily
to them. This tends to make them more likeable among others as they can easily
create a fun-filled environment and be entertaining for others.
Being
able to interact with many people enables them to have a large social network, giving
them an increased sense of social support that turns out to be very comforting
for them.
Extraverts
being highly energetic around people are quite the opposite of what introverts
can be. Introverts are highly restrained in their body language and
expressions. When meeting people, even though they may be excited and really
happy, they might just give a simple smile. This can be interpreted as not
being interested or a lack of enthusiasm, but it is actually not the case.
Such
instances prove to be advantageous for extraverts as they are very expressive
and can easily reflect enthusiasm and excitement. They are not at all
restrained in their emotional expression, which works very well for them in
terms of interpersonal interactions. However, this unrestrained emotional
expression can be a problem for shy extraverts.
There
is a myth that extraverts are always bold and cannot be shy. Shyness is a temperament,
which is associated with the amygdala – the brain area responsible for the fight
and flight responses, and also known as the seat of emotions. A sensitive
amygdala interprets regular situations, including normal social interactions,
as fearful and anxiety arousing, causing the person to avoid it.
An extravert, that is, a person with low brain arousal leading him/her to be outgoing and seeking out
social interactions, but at the same time having a sensitive amygdala that
makes him/her avoid social situations, can turn out to be very problematic. Shy extraverts,
thus, can face difficulties when it comes to interpersonal interactions. Over the
years, they need to somehow learn to strike a balance between the two
contradictions.
On
the whole, individual differences with respect to introversion and extraversion
have a strong influence on the nature of interpersonal interactions. Both
introverts and extraverts like to interact with people, and find it beneficial,
but they have their own ways of having such interactions.
2 comments:
very nice article. i could especially relate to the sentence "can easily pick up subtle cues from their surroundings".
Yeah, I believe every introvert will relate to that :)
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