Running head: SHYNESS IN ADOLESCENTS

Address all correspondence to: Bernardo J. Carducci, Shyness Research Institute, Indiana University Southeast, New Albany, IN 47150 or bcarducc@ius.edu.

How Shy Teens Deal with Shyness: Strategic and Gender Differences

Research from varying sources over the past 20 years indicates that approximately 40% of adults and adolescents surveyed currently consider themselves to be shy (Carducci, 2000a; Carducci & Clark, 1993; Carducci & Ragains, 2002; Carducci & Zimbardo, 1995; Crozier, 1982; Zimbardo, 1977). In addition, past research has also consistently demonstrated that there are certain situations, such as interacting with authority figures and members of the opposite sex, that are more likely to elicit shyness than others for both adults and adolescents (Carducci & Clark, 1993; Carducci & Ragains, 2002; Zimbardo, 1977). In attempt to cope with their shyness 85% of adults (Carducci & Clark, 1993) and 72.5% of adolescents (Carducci & Ragains, 2002) surveyed indicated they were willing to do something about their shyness. While the previous research has investigated a variety of the self-selected strategies used by adults to deal with their shyness (Carducci, 2000c; Carducci et al., 1997), such research is lacking in the study of shyness in adolescents. Given the developmental significance associated with peer relationships during adolescents (cf. Atwater, 1996), the study of shyness as a barrier to such interpersonal relations is of critical importance (Cheek & Krasnoperova, 1999). In the spirit of replication research (Rosenthal, 1990), the purpose of the present study is to examine the self-selected strategies shy adolescents employ to deal with their shyness.

Method

Participants

Participants were 162 high school students (75 males and 87 females), ranging in age from 14 to 19 (M = 16.34, selected from a population of 494 students attending a suburban public high school located in an eastern metropolitan city.

In their respective English classrooms, all 494 students in grades 9 to 12 were asked to complete the Social Interaction Survey consisting of 30 fixed-format self-report items, with 19 items examining general demographic, academic, and social information and 11 items examining various aspects of shyness, such as the shyness-provoking situations, self-perceived causes of shyness, and self-selected strategies for dealing with shyness.

Results

Since the research dealt with the reactions of shy individuals, the responses from only those 162 individuals who responded “yes” to the survey question: Do you consider yourself to be a shy person?” were included in the present analysis. Because of the voluminous nature of the data, only the responses for the self-selected strategies are presented.

Overall Analysis

The first column of Table 1 summarizes the percentage of all shy teens who employed various self-selected strategies to deal with their shyness. As indicated, the most frequent self-selected strategy was an individualistic response characterized by the shy teen trying to make conversation with others (69.1%). The second most-frequent self-selected strategy was a cluster of affiliative responses characterized by the shy teen joining group activities outside of (45.7%) and in (44.4%) school. The third most-frequent self-selected strategy was another individualist response characterized by the shy teen trying to go to public places to meet people (38.9%). The forth most-frequent self-selected strategy was an individualistic response characterized by the shy teen using alcohol or drugs (21.6%). The least frequent self-selected strategy was a cluster of responses characterized by receiving assistance from mental health professionals (4.9%) or information from self-help books (2.5%).

Analysis of Gender Differences

The second and third columns of Table 1 summarize the percentage of shy females and males, respectively, self-selecting the various strategies to deal with their shyness. The pattern of results indicates that the males were more likely than the females to self-select the individualistic-type strategies of trying to make conversation with others (72.0% vs. 66.7%), tying to go to public places (44.0% vs. 34.5%), and using alcohol and drugs (24.0% vs. 19.5%) while females were more likely than males to self-select the affiliative responses characterized by joining group activities both in (50.6% vs. 37.3%) and outside (51.7% vs. 38.7%) of school. Although the percentage of both groups was rather low, the males were more likely than the females to receive assistance from mental health processionals (8.0% vs. 2.3%) or information from self-help books (4.0% vs. 1.1%).

Discussion

The present study replicates and extends the findings of previous research investigating the self-selected strategies of shy individuals to deal with their shyness. More specifically, consistent with previous results investigating the self-selected strategies of shy adults to deal with their shyness (cf. Carducci, 2000c), the most-frequently utilized self-selected strategies by shy adolescents were characterized by “forced extraversion” (i.e., trying to make social contact with others through individualistic or affiliative responses). A rather troubling finding among the present results was the tendency for shy teens to utilize alcohol and drugs (21.6%) to a greater degree than previously identified with shy adults (12.7%) as a self-selected strategy (Carducci, 2000c). Finally, in contrast to previous research (Carducci, 2000c), shy teens were less likely than shy adults to seek assistance from mental health professionals (4.9% vs. 14.6%) and self-help books (2.5% vs. 15.2%).

The results of the present study extend previous research by examining gender differences in the self-selected strategies used by shy individuals to deal with their shyness. The pattern of results indicates that shy females are more likely than shy males to deal with their shyness by selecting strategies that involve turning to others while shy males are more likely than shy females to select strategies that involve taking actions by themselves. Such a pattern of results is consistent with the more general “tend-and-befriend” response to stress in females characterized by seeking and providing social support (Taylor et al., 2000). Because social norms favor males as the initiator of social contact, shy males may be more inclined to select strategies that are more proactive, public, and done without social support. Such strategies are also more likely to carry a greater risk of rejection and public embarrassment for shy males should their individualistic efforts to initiate social contact fail.

The results of the present study have a number of treatment implications for parents, teachers, and mental health professionals to help shy teens deal with their shyness. In support of the benefits of the “tend-and-befriend” response, parents and teachers should encourage shy teens, especially shy males, to become more involved in social clubs and activities as a means of establishing a social support network. For example, service learning programs through the school and other community volunteer activities have been proposed as offering shy individuals non-threatening opportunities for practicing and developing their social skills in a semi-structured social environment while minimizing feelings of social anxiety and self-consciousness (Carducci, 2000b). In addition, to help shy teens in their efforts to make conversation with others, teachers should consider including in the general curriculum information on such topics as the basic elements and protocol for approaching and engaging others in social conversation (cf. Carducci, 1999). Finally, because some shy teens, especially shy males (cf. Page, 1990), use alcohol and drugs to deal with their shyness, parents, teachers, and mental health professionals should also be sensitive to the possibility of substance abuse issues.

Finally, the study of adolescent shyness has implications for understanding some of the more extreme examples of adolescent violence as exhibited by recent high school shootings perpetrated by shy, socially isolated, angry adolescents labeled as “cynically shy” (Carducci, 2000b) and the development of strategies for reducing the social isolation experienced by such socially disenfranchised adolescents (cf. Aronson, 2001).

References

Aronson, E. (2001). Nobody left to hate: Teaching compassion after Columbine. New York: W. H. Freeman.

Atwater, E. (1996). Adolescence (4th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Carducci, B. J. (1999). The pocket guide to making successful small talk: How to talk to anyone anytime anywhere about anything. New Albany, IN: Pocket Guide Publishing.

Carducci, B. J. (2000a). Shyness: A bold new approach. New York: HarperPerennial.

Carducci, B. J. (2000b). Shyness: The new solution. Psychology Today, 33, 38-40, 42-45, & 78.

Carducci, B. J. (2000c). What shy individuals do to cope with their shyness: A content analysis. In W. R. Crozier (Ed.), Shyness: Development, consolidation, change (pp. 171-185). New York: Routledge.

Carducci, B. J., & Clark, D. L. (1993, August). Behavioral, cognitive, and affective tendencies of chronically and transitionally shy individuals. Poster presentation at the meeting of the American Psychological Association, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Carducci, B. J., Marion, C. R., Lynch, D., Dosch, M. M., & Boley, A. L. (1997, August). Top-ten self-selected strategies to overcome shyness: A content analysis. Poster presentation at the meeting of the American Psychological Association, Chicago.

Carducci, B. J., & Ragains, K. (2002, August). The personal and situational pervasive of shyness in adolescents. Poster presentation at the meeting of the American Psychological Association, Chicago.

Carducci, B. J. & Zimbardo, P. G., (1995 November/December). Are you shy? Psychology Today, 34-41. 64, 68, 70, 78, 82.

Crozier, W. R. (1982). Explanations of social shyness. Current Psychological Reviews, 2, 47-60.

Cheek, J. M., & Krasnoperova, E. N. (1999). Varieties of shyness in adolescence and adulthood. In L. A. Schmidt & J. Schulkin (Eds.), Extreme fear, shyness, and social phobia: Origins, biological mechanisms, and clinical outcomes (pp. 224-250). New York: Oxford University Press.

Page, R. M. (1990). Shyness and sociability: A dangerous combination for illicit substances use in adolescent males? Adolescence, 25, 803-806.

Rosenthal, R. (1990). Replication in behavioral research. Journal of Social Behavior and Personality, 5, 1-30.

Taylor, S. E., Klein, L. C., Lewis, B. P., Gruenewald, T. L., Gurung, R. A. R. & Updegraff, J. A. (2000). Biobehavioral responses to stress in females: Tend-and befriend, not fight-or-flight. Psychological Review, 107, 411-429.

Zimbardo, P. G. (1977). Shyness: What is it, what to do about it. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.

Table 1

Percentage of Self-Selected Strategies used by Shy Teens to Overcome Shyness^*

____________________________________________________________________________

All Shy Teens Shy Females Shy Males

Self-Selected Strategies n = 162 n = 87 n = 75

_________________________________ ________________________________________

Tried going to public places

(e.g., mall, dances, park) to meet people 38.9 (63) 34.5 (30) 44.0 (33)

Tried making conversation with people

I would like to know 69.1 (112) 66.7 (58) 72.0 (54)

Read Self-Help Books 2.5 (4) 1.1 (1) 4.0 (3)

Used Alcohol or Drugs 21.6 (35) 19.5 (17) 24.0 (18)

Had individual therapy/counseling 4.9 (8) 2.3 (2) 8.0 (6)

Joined clubs or extracurricular

activities in school 44.4 (72) 50.6 (44) 37.3 (28)

Joined activities outside school 45.7 (74) 51.7 (45) 38.7 (29)

____________________________________________________________________________

*Number of participants selecting each strategy given in parentheses