Science:What Everyone Gets Wrong About Introverts — including why they are not antisocial or lazy and a word on 'ambiverts' which most are...

   
Science:
What everyone gets wrong about introverts — including why they are not antisocial or lazy:

    * Some people think introverts avoid social situations.
    * This isn't actually true; they just need more time to recharge after a lot of social stimulation.
    * It's because they have a low threshold for dopamine, so they are easily overwhelmed.
    * In contrast, extroverts have a very high threshold so can keep going for longer.
    * Introverts can learn to use their differences as a skill, rather than a hindrance.

When you hear the term "introvert," you might imagine someone who's quiet and insular, who likes to spend most of their time alone, avoiding social situations.

But being an introvert isn't really anything to do with how much you like spending time with other people. In fact, introverts can have some of the deepest and most meaningful friendships.

The difference between introverts and extroverts is actually biological, and it comes down to how they unwind after social situations.

Doctor of psychology Perpetua Neo told us that in terms of their brain chemistry, introverts have a lower threshold of dopamine sensitivity than extroverts (dopamine is a chemical associated with reward because it makes us feel good). Essentially, the lower your dopamine threshold, the more easily stimulated you are.

"As an introvert, you are more energised by spending time on your own, or in very small intimate groups of people you trust," Neo said. "So when you are out in a social environment that is very highly stimulating, what happens is that while the extrovert gets more and more incandescent and magnetic, the introvert starts shrinking and shrinking away."
Introverts have different brain chemistry

The pathway that an introvert's or extrovert's brain takes when they are in social contexts differs. While extroverts have a very short pathway, for introverts it is called the Long Acetylcholine Pathway. It's much longer, which means that a stimulus goes through many different parts of the brain.

One is the right frontal insular cortex, the part of the brain that notices errors. Introverts notice all sorts of details, which makes them self-conscious about the mistakes they are making. Another is the frontal lobe, which evaluates outcomes. This means an introvert has a really busy mind worrying about what's going to happen. They also tend to draw very strongly from their long-term memory bank when speaking.

Basically, for an introvert an event is never just an event. While extroverts can just immediately respond and react to environments, introverts cannot because so much is going on in their head.

"That's why they are vulnerable for being a bit more anxious in a social context, or what people might call a bit more 'neurotic,'" Neo said. "But that's just because the brain is wired that way. So essentially what happens is after too much social stimulation, whether we're talking about small groups, or a noisy overstimulated context, an introvert's nervous system is overwhelmed."
The 'introvert hangover'

Because of this, introverts need to spend time alone to withdraw and recharge, known as their "introvert hangover." This activates a different pathway in the brain that stimulates the parasympathetic nervous system— responsible for "rest and digest" functions. Introverts like this pathway because it helps them wind down when they've had a lot of cortisol and adrenaline has been coursing through them.

"When we can actually spend time recharging, whether its sitting at home, cleaning your house, or watching Netflix, or lying down and reading a really good book, updatin a journal or blog, your acetylcholine pathway kicks in," Neo said. "Essentially this calms your body down and makes you quite happy."

How introverted or extroverted you are — and you're likely to be somewhere in the middle— is simply your neurodiversity. It has nothing to do with how shy or socially anxious you are.

"Social anxiety is where you have fear and this need to avoid social situations because you are so scared of how you are going to perform," Neo said.

"You think you're stupid, or people will laugh at you, or you'll never measure up. So there's a bit of that fraudster, imposter syndrome in that... Within that event itself your brain is always looking for errors and scolding yourself."

After the event, she added, a socially anxious person will rewind the whole thing in their mind on a loop with all the things they shouldn't have done, or feel bad about, ignoring all the good things. This leads them to want to avoid any future social interactions, because it feels so exhaustingly uncomfortable.

"A lot of people conflate introversion with social anxiety, and that's just not true," Neo said. "You can be an extrovert and have social anxiety, or be painfully shy, or socially awkward and withdrawn. The difference is an introvert will tend to recharge on their own and an extrovert needs busy surroundings and busy situations in order to recharge."
Introverts hate small talk

Introverts thrive on social interaction, just as many people do. They just do it in a different way to people who are more extroverted. For instance, a "social butterfly" extrovert may like to meet 50 people at an event, and get a buzz from talking to as many people as possible. Meanwhile, an introvert probably aims to get to know just two new people, but they will hope to foster the beginnings of a deeper relationship.

This is one reason introverts often hate small talk, which Neo calls "small-talk disorder." It also means they will consistently be overwhelmed and need to rest afterward, sometimes sleeping for up to 18 hours at a time.

Introversion is not an insult; it's just a different way of living with other people. And wherever you are on the introversion-extroversion spectrum, the most important thing is learning how to use your differences to your advantage.

"When you spend time having fun or resting in your introvert hangovers, you can accelerate your professional and personal growth," Neo said. "The more comfortable you are with telling people: 'I have an introvert hangover; this is the time for myself. I'm blocking these chunks of time dedicated to me,' the more you are able to own yourself as an introvert — rather than thinking there's something wrong with you."

Strategy
Most people might not be extroverts or introverts but 'ambiverts' — here's what it means to be one:

    * As well as extroverts and introverts, there are "ambiverts" who lie somewhere in the middle.
    * Researchers predict about two thirds of us are ambiverts.
    * They are people who sometimes like to socialise but other times they want to be alone.
    * As with all personality types, there are benefits and drawbacks.

People often categorise themselves into one of two types: an extrovert or an introvert.

Stereotypically, extroverts are the life of the party, and like nothing more than socialising with friends and meeting new people. Introverts are happier going home alone and curling up with a book.

But as research has shown, extroversion and introversion lie on a spectrum. In fact, it might not be a case of being one or the other, but a mixture of both. These people are called "ambiverts," and one study predicts up to two thirds of us could be labeled as this instead.

For example, when I'm in the mood I can be the last person standing at a party. But there are also days I'd prefer to go home early and spend some time alone. People like me don't fit into the rigid categories of extrovert or introvert, because sometimes I'll be one, and the next day I'll be the other.

The study, published in the journal Psychological Science in 2013, highlighted some of the traits of ambiverts, by looking at how they sold products. The results showed that out of everyone, ambiverts made the best sales people.

According to the author Adam Grant, an organisational psychologist from the University of Pennsylvania, this could be because ambiverts are better at understanding other people's emotions. Rather than talking too much, or too little, ambiverts managed to do just the right amount — and make more sales as a result.

"Ambiverts achieve greater sales productivity than extroverts or introverts do," the study concludes. "Because they naturally engage in a flexible pattern of talking and listening, ambiverts are likely to express sufficient assertiveness and enthusiasm to persuade and close a sale but are more inclined to listen to customers' interests and less vulnerable to appearing too excited or overconfident."

As Grant told the Wall Street Journal: "Ambiverts are like Goldilocks — they offer neither too much nor too little."

However, they have drawbacks too. Ambiverts can find it difficult to know which side of their personality to lead in certain situations. While extroverts and introverts are fairly sure what they prefer, and what situations they thrive in, ambiverts may struggle to decide.

Because of this, they might find themselves demotivated but not understanding why. They might not realise they need to change their approach to a situation to feel more motivated.

The idea of an ambivert has been around for a while, since psychiatrist Carl Jung brought the concepts of extroversion and introversion into the mainstream in the 1920s. He theorised there was a middle group, but psychologists didn't start using the term ambivert until the 1940s.

If you want to find out if you're an ambivert, there's a test you can take developed by Daniel Pink, an author who writes about human behaviour. You can try it here.