Running head: SHYNESS AND INTERNET USAGE
Poster session presented at the annual meeting of the
American Psychological Association,
Boston, MA, August 21, 1999
Shyness, Internet Usage, and Electronic Extroversion:
Patterns and Consequences
Bernardo J. Carducci, Kirk W. Klaphaak
Shyness Research Institute, Computer Services
Indiana University Southeast
Amelia Stephenson
Arlington, VA
Address all correspondence to: Beranrdo J. Carducci, Shyness Research Institute, Indiana University Southeast, New Albany, IN 47150 or E-mail: bcarducc@ius.indiana.edu.
Abstract
The
present study assessed the pattern and consequences of Internet usage by shy
individuals as a self-selected strategy for dealing with their shyness. The
participants were 3154 individuals who responded voluntarily to a
shyness/Internet usage survey appearing on the Internet web site of USA
Weekend. The results suggest that a principal purpose of Internet usage by shy
individuals is to meet new people and pursue social relationships. The results
are discussed in terms of Internet usage for seeking social relationships as
creating opportunities for identity misrepresentation, unrealistic expectations
for relationship development, and the displacement of more real-life social
activities.
Shyness,
Internet Usage, and Electronic Extroversion: Patterns and Consequences
Previous research has investigated the nature of the
self-selected strategies shy individuals use to deal with their shyness
(Carducci et al., 1997). The most
frequent strategy utilized by shy individuals was identified as self-induced
extroversion. Self-induced
extroversion involves shy individuals placing themselves in the physical proximity
of others in social situations (e.g., going to parties or bars) in the hopes of
fostering social interactions.
Recent advancements in computer technology have created the possibility
of another form of forced extroversion--electronic extroversion. Electronic extroversion is the use of
Internet chat rooms, newsgroups, and other forms of multi-user formats that can
place shy individuals in the "electronic proximity" of others for the
purpose of fostering social relationships. However, there seems to be some debate as to whether
Internet usage can serve as a facilitating (Roberts, Smith, & Pollock,
1997) or inhibiting (Carducci & Zimbardo, 1995) agent for helping shy
individuals develop social relationships.
The purpose of the present study was to assess the pattern and
consequences of Internet usage by shy individuals as a self-selected strategy
for dealing with their shyness.
Method
Participants: The participants were 3154 individuals who responded voluntarily to a
survey appearing on the Internet at the web site of USA Weekend.
Procedures: A feature story titled "Why So Shy?" appeared in the
September 19-21, 1997 issue of USA Weekend, which is a weekly magazine
appearing in newspapers nationwide.
The article, written by a staff writer for the general public, focused
on the biological bases of shyness, particularly in infancy, and offered some
self-help tips for dealing with shyness. After reading the article, readers were encouraged to visit
the USA Weekend Web site for additional material related to the article. One piece of material was a five-item
survey titled "Do You Use the Internet to Hide Your Shyness?" The survey, created by a staff writer
at USA Weekend and the senior author of this paper, was designed to give
readers an additional opportunity to examine some social aspects of their
shyness. Because of space
constraints on the USA Weekend web site allocated to this story, the
Shyness/Internet survey was limited to the following five questions, with their
corresponding response alternatives given in parentheses: How many hours a week
do you spend on the Internet chatting, exchanging e-mail, otherwise interacting
with others? (0 to 5 hours; 6-10
hours; 11 or more hours), What is your principal purpose for socializing on the
Internet? (Seek new information; Meet new people; Develop personal
relationships), What topics do you discuss with others during live chats, with
e-mail, or Usenet newsgroups? (General topics; Personal topics; Intimate
topics), How much of your true identity do you reveal while interacting with
others on the Internet? (Completely true; Somewhat true; Not at all true), and
Do you believe you will develop in-person, or "in-real-life,"
relationships with people you meet online? (No, not at all; Possibly; Yes, definitely).
Results
The survey responses analyzed in the present study represent the first 3154 individuals who responded to the Shyness/Internet survey on the USA Weekend web site during the first two months after the survey appeared. And, because of the voluminous nature of the results, only the major findings will be presented with this abstract. In response to the question "How many hours a week do you spend on the Internet chatting, exchanging e-mail, or otherwise interacting with others?" 58.7% (n = 1852) of the respondents indicated 0-5 hours per week, 20.4% (n = 644) indicated 6 to 10 hours, and 20.9% (n = 658) indicated 11 or more hours. In response to the question "What is your principal purpose for socializing on the Internet?" 70.6% (n = 2228) indicated to seek new information, 19.2% (n = 606) indicated to meet new people, and 10.1% (n = 320) indicated to develop personal relationships. When asked "What topics do you discuss with others during live chats, with e-mail, or Usenet newsgroups?" 34.1% (n = 1077) indicated general topics (such as current events or business interactions), 47.0% (n = 1481) indicated personal topics (hobbies and other special interests), and 18.9% (n = 596) indicated intimate topics (details about your life or family). When asked "How much of your true identity do you reveal white interacting with others on the Internet?" 43.2% (n = 1362) said they are completely true, 44.9% (n = 1415) said they are somewhat true, and 12.0% (n = 377) said they are not at all true. In response to the question "Do you believe you will develop in-person, or 'in-real-life,' relationships with people you meet online?" 57.4% (n = 1809) indicated not at all, 36.5% (n = 1152) indicated possibly, and 6.1% (n =193) indicated definitely.
Correlational analysis (all reported r's significant
at p < .001) indicate the more hours an individual spent on the Internet a
week, the more social their Internet usage becomes (r = .312), the more
intimate the topics they are willing to discuss on the Internet become (r =
.283), and the more they tend to believe that they are going to develop
in-person or "in-real-life" relationships with others they meet on
the Internet (r = .297). The
results also indicate the more individuals believe they will develop in-person
or "in-real-life" relationships with people they meet on-line, the
more likely they are to use the Internet to meet new people and develop
personal relationships (r = .347), the more willing they are to discuss
intimate topics (r = .312), and the less willing they are to reveal their true
identity while interacting with others on the Internet
(r
= -.176). Finally, the more
individuals use the Internet for the principal purpose of meeting new people
and developing personal relationships, the more willing they are to talk about
personal or intimate topics (r = .405).
Discussion
The
results of the present study suggest that over 40% of the shy individuals
surveyed spend between 6 and 11 or more hours on the internet per week and that
a principal objective for over 30% of them is to pursue social
relationships. While the previous
research (cf. Roberts, Smith, & Pollock, 1997) has suggested that the
Internet may serve as a vehicle for shy individuals to develop social
relationships by allowing them to become less inhibited and less conservative,
the present results suggest that the use of this strategy by shy individuals
has its liabilities. More
specifically, as shy individuals become more involved in these relationships
(e.g., invest a greater amount of time and effort in them), the more these
individuals are willing to disclose personal information about themselves. According to the literature of intimate
relationships, the corresponding increase in self-disclosure and relationship development
is an expression of trust and openness (cf. Brehm, 1992). However, the results of present study
suggest that while increases in on-line relationship investment are associated
with increases in the intimacy of topic disclosured, shy individuals also tend
to be less truthful about revealing their true identity. Thus, while the anonymity of the
Internet may make it possible for shy individuals to be less inhibited and, as
a result, develop more intimate on-line social relationships, it seems to do so
by allowing shy individuals to hide their true identity. Such misrepresentations of one's
identity can serve as a barrier to the shy individual pursuing the relationship
in real-life where such identity misrepresentation is more difficult.
A second liability created by such Internet usage is that the more time shy individuals spend on the Internet trying to develop social and personal relationships, the more they come to believe that such actions will actually create the possibility of in-real-life relationships. In reality, previous research with other more systematic and professional approaches to using mass communications to facilitate relationship development (e.g., computerized dating services), where individuals pay large sums of money to join and are introduced to individuals who live in the proximity of other members of the dating service, typically report that individuals utilizing them have only a 10% success rate of developing a long-term romantic relationship with someone they met through the service (Adelman & Ahuvia, 1991). Thus, given that individuals on the Internet are not typically in proximity to the shy individual with whom they are corresponding, and, as a result, are probably less likely to tell the truth about themselves (Scharlott & Christ, 1995), the chances are even less likely that the time and effort shy individuals spend pursuing social and intimate relationships on the Internet will actually result in the formation of a real-life relationships. Because time spent on the Internet may displace time spent on real-life social activities (cf. Kraut et al, 1998), the time and effort invested by these shy individuals on the Internet could be better spent pursuing relationships in real life, which have a better chance of producing a meaningful personal relationship.
The results of the present study have implications
for helping shy individuals to employ more effective strategies in their
efforts to develop personal and social relationships. More specifically, future research should examine the
intrapersonal (e.g., excessive self-consciousness) and interpersonal (e.g.,
lack of conversational skills) factors that influence the selection of the
Internet by shy individuals over other strategies to deal with their shyness. Identifying such determining factors
will make it possible to provide shy individuals with the type of information
(e.g., likelihood of success) and training (e.g., how to enter into an on-going
conversation) that serve as the basis of establishing the initial contact that
shy individuals report being the most common barrier to developing personal
relationships (Carducci et at., 1998).
Finally, in addition this poster will also discuss a few general
methodological issues related to the emerging trend of conducting research on
the internet, including the benefits and liabilities of collaborating with a
national news service provider as a means of helping other researchers to
foster such relationships.
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