Indiana University Southeast Shyness Research Institute
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What is the distinction between shyness and other conditions, such as social anxiety?
In contrast to individuals with social anxiety, shy individuals will go to social functions but have difficulty talking to or engaging others, particularly those individuals they find attractive or in a position of authority.
Social anxiety is a medical condition defined by a general fear of being evaluated by others to the point that the individual will avoid social situations. In contrast to individuals with social anxiety, shy individuals will go to social functions but have difficulty talking to or engaging others, particularly those individuals they find attractive or in a position of authority.
Since shyness is not a disease, mental disorder, character flaw, or personality deficit, shy people do not have to change who they are. More specifically, there is nothing wrong with being a shy person. The real problem with shyness is what it does to shy people. What shyness does to shy people is it serves as a personal barrier by controlling their thoughts, feelings, and behavior in a manner that holds them back. It holds them back in terms of their careers, educational goals, and love lives.
To help shy individuals to deal effectively with their shyness, they have to learn how to control their shyness instead of their shyness controlling them. And the key to controlling shyness is to understand the nature and the dynamics of shyness. Thus, the focus of my efforts in the study of shyness is to help shy individuals understand their shyness and to use this understanding to take control of their shyness. Taking control of shyness is about taking control of your shyness by changing what you think and do, not about changing who you are. So, this is what I mean when I say, “I’d rather understand shy people than change them.”
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Shyness – Is being introverted the same of being shy? – Psychology
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REFERENCES:
- Carducci, B. J. Shyness: A Bold New Approach. (Harper-Collins, 200).
