The Introvert

Introverts the Introduction | February 12, 2010

Lost in Thought

“Solitude is fine, but you need someone to tell
you that solitude is fine.” – Honore de Balzac

Dictionary definition
Introvert:

1. a shy person
2. Psychology. a person characterized by concern primarily with his or her own thoughts and feelings (opposed to extrovert)
3. Zoology. a part that is or can be introverted

This word doesn’t have a good connotation, does it? The dry dictionary definition makes it sound like introverts are selfish and timid. Well, there is some truth to the definition. For one, introverts are generally quite and prefer solitude over companionship. This explains where “shy” comes from. However, shyness has more to do with anxiety and social fear, which is not the underlying idea behind introversion. Second, most introverts find chit chat talk boring and useless. This leads
a lot of people to believe that an introvert is “concern[ed] primarily with his or her own thoughts and feelings“.

Psychological view

The terms introvert and extrovert were coined by Carl Gustav Jung in 1913. An interesting fact about Carl is that he went on an expedition to East Africa in 1925 hoping to learn about “primitive psychology” of indigenous tribes. However, most of his discoveries from the trip had to do with himself and psychology of civilized society, and had little to do with indigenous tribes. Since 1913, all of the major personality models have adopted the terms of extroversion and introversion.

The way psychologists measure introversion is by means of a questionnaires. It is not a perfect indicator, as a person who is taking the test may misjudge his or her response to certain questions or may lack self-knowledge.

Psychology says that  introverted people draw energy from within, while extroverts’ energy comes from outside. Psychologists are uncertain where the division between the two personality types comes from. Sibling studies suggest that genetics influences personality type development. This study further concludes that introverts have better blood flow in their frontal lobes which are responsible for processing and problem solving. There are some, though a minority, who believe that introversion is simply a consequence of environmental factors.

What introvert means for me?

For myself, being an introvert means that I prefer to hang out with small groups (2-3 people), rather than large gatherings like big parties and night clubs. Loud music is not for me, and drinking or smoking is not my thing either. I enjoy spending time all by myself, be it working on some project or simply being lost in thought. Introversion also means that I take my time in adjusting to new people. It is hard to sincerely connect with someone I just met. However, if I feel comfortable around a person, a lively talk about nothing is perfectly fine, though it does come somewhat unnaturally. An introvert is often passionate about something (or in my case many things), but doesn’t like to talk about it to strangers. Introvert often rehears things before saying them. I need to know exactly what I’m saying if I’m calling a stranger. It often happens that after a phone
conversation I will realize that I should have said something differently, or that I forgot to say something important. Lastly, having the habit to think before talking makes me pretty vulnerable to not finding a quick come back if someone makes a joke.

What else is there? There are thousands of little things that characterize an introvert, and listing all of them here is not my intent.

P.S. I’m looking for inspirational introvert quotes. So if you have some I would appreciate hearing from you.