Extroverts (also spelled extraverts[1]) tend to be gregarious, assertive, and interested in seeking

out excitement. Introverts, in contrast, tend to be more reserved, less outgoing, and less sociable.
They are not necessarily loners but they tend to be satisfied with having fewer friends.
Introversion does not describe social discomfort but rather social preference: an introvert may
not be shy but may merely prefer less social activities. Ambiversion is a balance of extrovert and
introvert characteristics.

The terms introversion and extroversion were first popularized by Carl Jung.[2] Virtually all
comprehensive models of personality include these concepts. Examples include Jung's analytical
psychology, Eysenck's three-factor model, Cattell's 16 personality factors, the Big Five
personality traits, the four temperaments, the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory, the
Myers Briggs Type Indicator, and Socionics.

Extroversion and introversion are typically viewed as a single continuum. Thus, to be high on
one is necessarily to be low on the other. Carl Jung and the authors of the Myers-Briggs provide
a different perspective and suggest that everyone has both an extroverted side and an introverted
side, with one being more dominant than the other. In any case, people fluctuate in their behavior
all the time, and even extreme introverts and extroverts do not always act according to their type.

Contents
[hide]

 1 Varieties
o 1.1 Extroversion
o 1.2 Introversion
o 1.3 Ambiversion
 2 Measurement
 3 Causes
o 3.1 Jungian theory
o 3.2 Eysenck's theory
o 3.3 Biological factors
 4 Behavior
 5 Implications
 6 Geography
 7 See also
 8 References
 9 External links

[edit] Varieties
[edit] Extroversion
Extroversion is "the act, state, or habit of being predominantly concerned with and obtaining
gratification from what is outside the self".[3] Extroverts tend to enjoy human interactions and are
generally enthusiastic, talkative, assertive, and gregarious in social situations. They take pleasure
in activities that involve large social gatherings such as: parties, community activities, public
demonstrations, business, and political groups. Politics, teaching, sales, managing and brokering
are fields that favor extroversion. An extroverted person enjoys and becomes energized by larger
groups of people while time alone is less enjoyable and boring to them. Extroverts aren't
necessarily unintelligent or uncaring but tend to speak or act before putting much thought into
what they do; not entirely realizing the lasting effects of their decisions.

[edit] Introversion

Introversion is "the state of or tendency toward being wholly or predominantly concerned with
and interested in one's own mental life".[3] Introverts are people whose energy tends to expand
through reflection and dwindle during interaction.[4] Introverts tend to be more reserved and less
outspoken in large groups. They often take pleasure in solitary activities such as reading, writing,
music, drawing, tinkering, playing video games, watching movies and plays, and using
computers, along with some more reserved outdoor activities such as fishing and hiking. In fact,
social networking sites have been a thriving home for introverts in the 21st century, where
introverts are free from the formalities of social conduct and may become more comfortable
blogging about personal feelings they would not otherwise disclose. The archetypal artist, writer,
sculptor, engineer, composer, and inventor are all highly introverted. An introvert is likely to
enjoy time spent alone and find less reward in time spent with large groups of people, though he
or she may better enjoy interactions with a small group of close friends. Trust is usually an issue
of significance—a virtue of utmost importance—to an introvert choosing a worthy companion.
They prefer to concentrate on a single activity at a time and like to observe situations before they
participate, especially observed in developing children and adolescents.[5] Introverts are easily
overwhelmed by too much stimulation from social gatherings and engagement. They are more
analytical before speaking.[6]

Introversion is not necessarily the same as shyness or the social outcast. Introverts choose
solitary over social activities by preference. Whereas shy people—who may be extroverts at
heart—avoid social encounters out of fear[7] and the social “outcast” not by choice, but because
no one will invite them to social activities or befriend them so that they can be social.

[edit] Ambiversion

Although many people view being introverted or extroverted as a question with only two
possible answers, most contemporary trait theories (e.g. the Big Five) measure levels of
extroversion-introversion as part of a single, continuous dimension of personality, with some
scores near one end, and others near the half-way mark.[8] Ambiversion is a term used to describe
people who fall more or less directly in the middle and exhibit tendencies of both groups.[3][9] An
ambivert is normally comfortable with groups and enjoys social interaction, but also relishes
time alone and away from the crowd.

[edit] Measurement
 This article's tone or style may not be appropriate for Wikipedia. Specific concerns
may be found on the talk page. See Wikipedia's guide to writing better articles for
suggestions. (September 2010)

Extroversion-introversion is normally measured by self-report. A questionnaire might ask if the

test-taker agrees or disagrees with statements such as I am the life of the party or I think before I
talk.

Imagine a questionnaire consisting of ten "agree or disagree" statements. For the first five
questions, agreement indicates a tendency towards extroversion, while for the last five questions,
agreement indicates introversion. Five people take this questionnaire and answer as follows:

Ben Caitlyn Mark Thomas Sarah

I am the life of the party. Agree Agree Agree Disagree Disagree
I enjoy being the center of
Agree Disagree Agree Disagree Disagree
attention.
I am skilled in handling
Agree Agree Agree Disagree Disagree
social situations.
I like to be where the action
Agree Agree Disagree Agree Disagree
is.
I make new friends easily. Agree Agree Disagree Agree Disagree
I am quiet around
Disagree Disagree Agree Disagree Agree
strangers.
I don't like to draw attention
Disagree Agree Agree Agree Agree
to myself.
I don't like to party on the
Disagree Disagree Agree Agree Agree
weekends.
I like to work independently. Disagree Agree Disagree Agree Agree
I often enjoy spending time
Disagree Disagree Disagree Agree Agree
by myself.
50%
Extrovert
100% 70% 70% 100%
Score 50%
Extrovert Extrovert Introvert Introvert
Introvert
(Ambivert)

In this example, Ben and Caitlyn are extroverted, Sarah and Thomas are introverted, and Mark is
ambiverted.

Self-report questionnaires have obvious limitations in that people may misrepresent themselves
either intentionally or through lack of self-knowledge. It is also common to use peer report or
observation.

Another approach is to present test-takers with various sets of adjectives (for example:
thoughtful, talkative, energetic, independent) and ask which describes them most and least.
Psychological measures of this trait may break it down into subfactors including warmth,
affiliation, positive affect, excitement seeking, and assertiveness/dominance seeking.

[edit] Causes
[edit] Jungian theory

According to Carl Jung, introversion and extroversion refer to the direction of psychic energy. If
a person’s psychic energy usually flows outwards then he or she is an extrovert, while if the
energy usually flows inwards, the person is an introvert.[10] Extroverts feel an increase of
perceived energy when interacting with a large group of people, but a decrease of energy when
left alone. Conversely, introverts feel an increase of energy when alone, but a decrease of energy
when surrounded by a large group of people.

[edit] Eysenck's theory

Hans Eysenck described extroversion-introversion as the degree to which a person is outgoing

and interactive with other people. These behavioral differences are presumed to be the result of
underlying differences in brain physiology.[11] Extroverts seek excitement and social activity in
an effort to heighten their arousal level, whereas introverts tend to avoid social situations in an
effort to keep such arousal to a minimum. Eysenck designated extroversion as one of three major
traits in his P-E-N model of personality, which also includes psychoticism and neuroticism.

Eysenck originally suggested that extroversion was a combination of two major tendencies,
impulsiveness and sociability. He later added several other more specific traits, namely
liveliness, activity level, and excitability. These traits are further linked in his personality
hierarchy to even more specific habitual responses, such as partying on the weekend.

Eysenck compared this trait to the four temperaments of ancient medicine, with choleric and
sanguine temperaments equating to extroversion, and melancholic and phlegmatic temperaments
equating to introversion.[12]

Twin studies find that extroversion/introversion has a genetic component.

[edit] Biological factors

The relative importance of nature versus environment in determining the level of extroversion is
controversial and the focus of many studies. Twin studies find a genetic component of 39% to
58%. In terms of the environmental component, the shared family environment appears to be far
less important than individual environmental factors that are not shared between siblings.[13]

Eysenck proposed that extroversion was caused by variability in cortical arousal. He

hypothesized that introverts are characterized by higher levels of activity than extroverts and so
are chronically more cortically aroused than extroverts. The fact that extroverts require more
external stimulation than introverts has been interpreted as evidence for this hypothesis. Other
evidence of the "stimulation" hypothesis is that introverts salivate more than extroverts in
response to a drop of lemon juice.[14]

Extroversion has been linked to higher sensitivity of the mesolimbic dopamine system to
potentially rewarding stimuli.[15] This in part explains the high levels of positive affect found in
extroverts, since they will more intensely feel the excitement of a potential reward. One
consequence of this is that extroverts can more easily learn the contingencies for positive
reinforcement, since the reward itself is experienced as greater.

One study found that introverts have more blood flow in the frontal lobes of their brain and the
anterior or frontal thalamus, which are areas dealing with internal processing, such as planning
and problem solving. Extroverts have more blood flow in the anterior cingulate gyrus, temporal
lobes, and posterior thalamus, which are involved in sensory and emotional experience.[16] This
study and other research indicates that introversion-extroversion is related to individual
differences in brain function.

[edit] Behavior
Extroverts and introverts have a variety of behavioral differences. According to one study,
extroverts tend to wear more decorative clothing, whereas introverts prefer practical, comfortable
clothes.[17] Extroverts are likely to prefer more upbeat, conventional, and energetic music than
introverts.[18] Personality also influences how people arrange their work areas. In general,
extroverts decorate their offices more, keep their doors open, keep extra chairs nearby, and are
more likely to put dishes of candy on their desks. These are attempts to invite co-workers and
encourage interaction. Introverts, in contrast, decorate less and tend to arrange their workspace to
discourage social interaction.[19]

Although extroverts and introverts have real personality and behavior differences, it is important
to avoid pigeonholing or stereotyping by personality. Humans are complex and unique, and
because extroversion varies along a continuum, they may have a mixture of both orientations. A
person who acts introverted in one scenario may act extroverted in another, and people can learn
to act “against type” in certain situations. Jung's theory states that when someone's primary
function is extroverted, his secondary function is always introverted (and vice versa).[2]
Extraversion vs. Introversion
 
Explanations > Preferences > Extraversion vs. Introversion
Extraversion | Introversion | So what?
 

Extraversion and Introversion are one of the preferences used in the Jungian Type Inventory.
The naming is unfortunately a bit archaic as extraversion is not about being loud and
introversion is not about being shy. It is about where people get their energy and motivation
from: other people or within themselves.

Extraversion
The energy of extraverts is outward, towards people and things. They need a lot of stimulation
and often express emotions. They get their motivation from other people.

Their often want to change the world (rather than think about it). Extraverts like variety, action
and achievement. They do well at school but may find University more difficult.

Their attitude is often relaxed and confident. They are understandable and accessible. They
tend to act first and think later.

At work, they seeks variety and action and like working with other people. They prefer work
that has breadth rather than depth.

Introverts may see them as being shallow and pushy.

Introversion
The energy of introverts is inward toward concepts and ideas. They need little external
stimulation - and in fact they can easily be over-stimulated. it is possible that they focus more
on their inner worlds because they suffer from sensory overload if they spend too much time
outside and focusing on other people. They thus bottle up their own emotions, which can
explode if pushed too far.

Rather than trying to change the world, they just want to understand it. They think deeply
about things and often do better at University than they did at school.

Their attitude is reserved and questioning and they can seem subtle and impenetrable. They
tend to think before they act.
At work they like to work alone and often seek quiet for concentration. They tend to prefer
work that has depth rather than breadth.

Extraverts may see them as egocentric and passive.

 There is a view that introverts may act as they do because they are more easily overwhelmed
by external stimuli, as opposed to extraverts who have a higher basic stimulation threshold and
need the more visceral external stimulation to avoid boredom.

So what?

With extraverts:

 Show energy and enthusiasm.

 Respond quickly without long pauses to think.
 Allow talking out loud without definite conclusions.
 Communicate openly - do not censure.
 Focus on the external world, the people and the things.
 Allow time for bouncing around ideas.
 Take words at face value.
 Do not assume commitment or decisions made.

With introverts:

 Include introduction time to get to know you and trust you.

 Encourage responses with questions as, “What do you think?”
 Use polling techniques for input and decision making.
 Allow time for thinking before responding and decision-making.
 Make use of written responses where practical.
 Concentrate on one-on-one activities.
 Do not assume lack of interest.

Extraverted (E)   or  Introverted (I)

Extraversion is a preference to focus on the world Introversion is a preference to focus on the world
outside the self. Extraverts enjoy social interactions inside the self. Introverts tend to be quiet, peaceful and
and tend to be enthusiastic, verbal, assertive, and deliberate and are not attracted to social interactions.
animated. They enjoy large social gatherings, such as They prefer activities they can do alone or with one
parties and any kind of group activity. Extraverts are other close friend, activities such as reading, writing,
likely to enjoy time spent with people and find thinking, and inventing. Introverts find social gatherings
themselves energized by social interaction. draining.

Extravert Characteristics Introvert Characteristics

 Gregarious  Energized by time alone

 Assertive  Private
 Talkative  Keeps to self
 Social/outgoing  Quiet
 Likes groups, parties, etc.  Deliberate
 Energized by interaction  Internally aware
 Expressive & enthusiastic  Fewer friends
 Volunteers personal information  Prefer smaller groups
 Distractable  Independent
 Has many friends  Not socially inclined
 Easy to approach  Enjoys solitude
 Thinks before speaking
Extraverted Personality Types
Introverted Personality Types
 ESTJ - Overseer
 ESTP - Persuader  ISTJ - Examiner
 ESFJ - Supporter  ISTP - Craftsman
 ESFP - Entertainer  ISFJ - Defender
 ENTJ - Chief  ISFP - Artist
 ENTP - Originator  INTJ - Strategist
 ENFJ - Mentor  INTP - Engineer
 ENFP - Advocate  INFJ - Confidant
 INFP - Dreamer