The notion
of “shyness” is something most of us know quite well. In fact, according to prevalence studies,
somewhere around 40-50% of American adults have first-hand experience on what
it’s like to be chronically shy (1).
Although differing from the Big Five personality trait of introversion,
in that shy people are in fact fearful of social interaction while introverts
merely prefer solitary environments, chronic shyness is often categorized as a
characteristic trait (2). The precursor
for this shyness trait is frequently cited as the temperament of behavioral