Temperamental shyness is a trait characterized by fear and avoidance in response to situations of social novelty and/or perceived social-evaluation. Although there has been an abundance of research examining the psychosocial correlates of childhood shyness, we know considerably less about the developmental and biological origins of shyness and its subtypes. Chapters 2 to 5 of this dissertation include empirical studies that examine the developmental and biological foundations of temperamental shyness in general, and Chapter 6 examines subtypes of shyness in particular. In Chapter 2, I found that individuals who were born extremely premature and also exposed to exogenous corticosteroids prenatally displayed a stable trajectory of high shyness from childhood to adulthood, possibly due to the programming of threat sensitivity. In Chapter 3, I found that children who had greater relative right frontal brain activity at rest (a neural correlate of fear and avoidance) demonstrated increases in shyness across the early school age years. In Chapters 4 and 5, I examined patterns of autonomic physiology among shy children during two types of social threat processing. I demonstrated that shy children show stability in autonomic arousal while viewing socio-affective threat from age 6 to 7.5 years (Chapter 4), and that shy children show arousal and excessive regulation on autonomic and affective levels during the anticipation of socio-evaluative threat (Chapter 5). Finally, Chapter 6 reports that the developmental onset of shyness is associated with distinct behavioral and biological correlates in shy children. Children with early-developing shyness showed greater relative right frontal brain activity at rest, while children with later-developing shyness showed greater salivary cortisol production to a socio-evaluative task. Collectively, the studies and findings from this dissertation highlight that shyness is related to distinct developmental and biological processes associated with avoidance and threat processing, which may underlie fear in novel social contexts. / Dissertation / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) / Shyness is a trait that is characterized by fear and nervousness during new social situations or in situations of perceived social evaluation. Although there has been an abundance of research examining the psychosocial correlates of childhood shyness, we know considerably less about the developmental and biological origins of shyness. In this dissertation, I examined individual differences in the biology, developmental onset, and developmental trajectory of shyness. This work illustrated that shyness is a heterogenous phenomenon, with individual differences in the developmental onset and developmental course. As well, this work provided evidence that shy children tend to be more sensitive to perceiving threat in social situations, and their brain and body may be “primed” to overreact when they are faced with this perceived social threat. Shy children may have a biological profile associated with avoidance and threat processing, which may be one factor underling their fear in new social contexts.

M.A. / Shyness is an individual difference variable that has the potential to impact on the processes that facilitate the development of emotional intimacy. There has been little research that has focussed on shyness within the conext of close relationships, providing an opportunity for further research. Reis and Shaver (1988) and Reis and Patrick (1996) described the interpersonal process model of intimacy, which provides comprehensive and integrated model from which to examine emotional intimacy. The model is supported by research within the field of interpersonal relationship studies. Emotional intimacy is believed to experienced as a subjective sense of connectedness, which is the outcome of an interpersonal, transactional and dynamic process that consists of self-disclosure and partner responsiveness. The model incoporates the notion that individual difference variable can interfere with the development of emotional intimacy as the level of these processes of self-disclosure and partner responsiveness.

Students’ evaluations of teaching (SETs) have been used as a primary means of evaluating the teaching quality at postsecondary institutions for a number of years. The research in this area has been consistently expanding in an effort to validate its use and efficacy. To date, there has been little consensus regarding the validity of these evaluations, especially with regards to the possible impact of extraneous factors. Researchers have previously found evidence of a link between the self-serving bias and grade expectations. The present study used an experimental design to examine the validity of SETs in the context of the self-serving bias. According to the self-serving bias, individuals will be more likely to attribute success internally but attribute failure externally. Specifically, the present study examined whether there were differences in the presence of the self-serving bias in relation to self-reported narcissism and shyness. Students at a large university aged 17 - 46 (N = 563) were asked to write a short essay on euthanasia and were randomly assigned to one of two conditions. In the first condition, students were assigned a low grade; in the second condition, they were assigned a high grade. When they were given their essay grade back, students had an opportunity to rate their evaluator. Results indicated that students were more likely to externalize their essay grade when in the negative condition whereby they attributed their grade to reasons outside their control versus the positive condition, irrespective of their level of self-reported narcissism or shyness. These results suggest that the self-serving bias does exist within SETs and calls into question the validity of these evaluations. The findings from this study highlight the need for further research into the role that student characteristics play with regards to SETs.

The objective of this dissertation was to examine the relation between shyness and quality of life (QoL) among adults with schizophrenia in a series of three studies. I first began by understanding whether commonly used measures of shyness and sociability were reliable in this population (Study 1). Next, I examined two moderating variables related to stress-responses subserved by the central (Study 2) and peripheral (Study 3) nervous systems. Study 1, used self-report questionnaires of shyness and sociability to determine whether individuals with schizophrenia responded to these questionnaires in the same way as healthy controls. Studies 2 and 3 used linear regression analyses to determine whether passive neural responses (ERP’s) to social stimuli (emotional faces) and hormonal levels (baseline salivary cortisol and testosterone), respectively, moderated the relation between shyness and QoL. I found that individuals with schizophrenia responded to self-reported shyness and sociability items in a similar way as their nonclinical peers, suggesting that self-reported shyness and sociability are equivalent across populations (Study 1). Study 2, found that individuals who were shy and displayed a hyposensitivity to the processing of fearful faces displayed the lowest QoL. Those who were shy and took longer to process happy faces also demonstrated hindered QoL. Finally, individuals who were shy and had relatively lower baseline salivary cortisol levels also had the lowest QoL. In all circumstances, individuals who were relatively less shy were not susceptible to factors relating to the central and peripheral nervous system. The results of these three studies show that interpretations of findings using self-reported measures of shyness and sociability can be made with confidence in this population. The results also provide support that factors related to processing stressful stimuli can influence the relation between shyness and QoL, thereby further increasing our understanding of this nuanced relation. Theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed. / Dissertation / Candidate in Philosophy / Individuals with schizophrenia have been shown to experience reduced quality of life (QoL). Many studies have tried to understand what factors lead to reduced QoL, with one of them being individual differences in personality. This dissertation focused on the personality trait of shyness and addressed two main questions: 1. Are we correctly measuring shyness in people with schizophrenia? 2. What other factors influence the relation between shyness and QoL among individuals with schizophrenia? I first examined whether the meaning of shyness was equivalent between adults with schizophrenia and nonclinical controls. I then examined two different biological factors (i.e., neural and hormonal) related to stress responses to see if they influenced the relation between shyness and QoL in adults with schizophrenia. The answers to these questions have theoretical and practical implications for helping us understand who is at increased and decreased risk for experiencing hindered QoL, and possible targets for intervention.

In our technologically ever-advancing world, cell phones can either help us remain socially connected or can contribute to social isolation by substituting for face-to-face contact. This study examines the levels of social isolation in terms of the state of loneliness and trait of shyness and their correlations with academic achievement in 206 community college and university students to examine the connection between social isolation, GPA and cell phone use in college students. Two instruments used in the collection of data were the Revised Cheek and Buss Shyness Scale (RCBS) and the DeJong Gierveld Loneliness Scale. Correlational analysis was used to examine the relationships between variables. Hypothesis 1 proposed a significant negative relationship between higher levels of cell phone use and academic achievement as measured by self-reported GPA. This was partially supported by the research findings. Hypothesis 2 proposed a significant negative relationship between shyness and higher levels of cell phone use. This was also partially supported by the research findings. Hypothesis 3 proposed a significant positive relationship between loneliness and higher levels of cell phone use. This was not supported by research findings. Implications for further research include examining non-college populations for greater generalization of results and examining additional personality traits.

Shy children often have difficulty communicating; however, it is not clear whether these difficulties stem from a skills deficit or from an anxiety-driven performance deficit. Therefore, the present study examined how shy children’s communication skills differed from those of average, non-shy children, using the Internet as a medium for social communication. It was hypothesized that shy children may be more reticent than average children to initiate conversation in a novel situation. However, over time shy children were expected to become more comfortable in discussions with their on-line partner and to become less anxious as they acknowledge the anonymity of chat groups. This study also investigated potential changes in negative effects associated with shyness over time. Fifteen shy children (Mean shyness score=72.3; SD=6.43) and 15 average children (Mean shyness score=53.7; SD=5.6) participated in the 10 MSN conversation groups. Children were also given a series of questionnaires prior to and after the 10 sessions. Results from this study suggest that shy children communicate in a similar manner to their average partners when online. Results also suggest that shy children had higher levels of social anxiety than average children before beginning an online conversation with an unknown partner. However, by the end of the 10 sessions, their anxiety had been significantly reduced. No other changes or differences in psychological functioning were noted between shy and average children.

Thesis advisor: Donnah Canavan / This study examines the relationship between shyness/social phobia and other personality traits, as manifested in college students. Very few studies have compared shyness and social phobia, and even fewer have contrasted them. However, we believe that there are several important differences between the two. Mainly, one hypothesis is that social phobics long to be more extroverted and, thus, are more conflicted in many aspects of their personalities. Moreover, very few studies have found a conclusive link between shyness or social phobia and self-esteem. One of our main hypotheses is that there is a link between shyness/social phobia and low social self-esteem, although not necessarily overall self-esteem. We sought support for these hypotheses and others in the analysis of data obtained through a survey, composed of several standard questionnaires, as well as original material covering areas of self-image, behaviors, emotions, and personality traits. The results did indicate substantial differences between shyness and social phobia, with social phobics having higher levels of extraversion and, overall, more conflict within themselves. / Thesis (BA) — Boston College, 2006. / Submitted to: Boston College. College of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Psychology. / Discipline: College Honors Program.

Shy children often have difficulty communicating; however, it is not clear whether these difficulties stem from a skills deficit or from an anxiety-driven performance deficit. Therefore, the present study examined how shy children’s communication skills differed from those of average, non-shy children, using the Internet as a medium for social communication. It was hypothesized that shy children may be more reticent than average children to initiate conversation in a novel situation. However, over time shy children were expected to become more comfortable in discussions with their on-line partner and to become less anxious as they acknowledge the anonymity of chat groups. This study also investigated potential changes in negative effects associated with shyness over time. Fifteen shy children (Mean shyness score=72.3; SD=6.43) and 15 average children (Mean shyness score=53.7; SD=5.6) participated in the 10 MSN conversation groups. Children were also given a series of questionnaires prior to and after the 10 sessions. Results from this study suggest that shy children communicate in a similar manner to their average partners when online. Results also suggest that shy children had higher levels of social anxiety than average children before beginning an online conversation with an unknown partner. However, by the end of the 10 sessions, their anxiety had been significantly reduced. No other changes or differences in psychological functioning were noted between shy and average children.

Shy children often have difficulty communicating; however, it is not clear whether these difficulties stem from a skills deficit or from an anxiety-driven performance deficit. Therefore, the present study examined how shy children’s communication skills differed from those of average, non-shy children, using the Internet as a medium for social communication. It was hypothesized that shy children may be more reticent than average children to initiate conversation in a novel situation. However, over time shy children were expected to become more comfortable in discussions with their on-line partner and to become less anxious as they acknowledge the anonymity of chat groups. This study also investigated potential changes in negative effects associated with shyness over time. Fifteen shy children (Mean shyness score=72.3; SD=6.43) and 15 average children (Mean shyness score=53.7; SD=5.6) participated in the 10 MSN conversation groups. Children were also given a series of questionnaires prior to and after the 10 sessions. Results from this study suggest that shy children communicate in a similar manner to their average partners when online. Results also suggest that shy children had higher levels of social anxiety than average children before beginning an online conversation with an unknown partner. However, by the end of the 10 sessions, their anxiety had been significantly reduced. No other changes or differences in psychological functioning were noted between shy and average children.

This study investigated how emotion-regulation would moderate the relationship between shyness and joint engagement and how joint engagement would mediate the relationship between shyness and language skills. Fifty-three mother-child dyads were observed in the laboratory according to the Communication Play Protocol (Adamson & Bakeman, 1999) when the toddlers were 24 and 30 months of age. Mothers completed the Temperament Behavior Assessment Questionnaire-Revised (Rothbart & Goldsmith, unpublished). Toddlers also completed the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-III (PPVT-III; Dunn & Dunn, 1997) and Expressive Vocabulary Test (EVT; Williams, 1997). The relationship between shyness and the percentage of time spent in non-symbol-infused coordinated joint engagement was moderated by a toddler’s ability to self-soothe. Shyer toddlers had significantly lower receptive language scores than less shy toddlers, and this relationship was partially mediated by the percentage of time toddlers spent in symbol-infused supported and coordinated joint engagement states. INDEX WORDS: Temperament, Shyness, Emotion-regulation, Language Skills, Joint Engagement