What are the stereotypes about shy people?

Answer 1

There are several stereotypes about shy people, most of which are the result of a lack of understanding what "shyness" is. In and of itself, shyness is not a trait; it is a symptom of a trait that has been all but ignored (and thus not understood) by Western psychology. That trait is Sensory Perception Sensitivity.

Before defining SPS, some of the stereotypes include: Anti-social, aloof, disconnected, arrogant, stuck-up, rude, and afraid, just to name a few.

Most shy people are sensory sensitive, which means they are receiving input (or information) through all five of their senses (as well as their "sixth sense") at the rate of a fire hydrant, while non-shy people are receiving input at the rate of a kitchen faucet.

As a result, SPS people notice things that non-SPS people don't notice, are aware of things that non-SPS people aren't aware of, pick up on things that non-SPS people don't pick up on, and sense things that non-SPS people don't sense.

As a result of this constant flood of information, an SPS person's brain is far busier than a non-SPS's brain, sorting and categorizing information at an almost impossible rate. As a result, they are "quiet" simply because they are busy "processing."

But most shy people don't even realize that this is what is going on, as they have been brain-washed by Western society; due to all the negative names and connotations that come with "shy," shy people are led to believe that there is something "wrong" with them, when in fact, an SPS can have many advantages over a non-SPS in certain situations.

Regardless, it's interesting to note that in Eastern cultures, it has been found that "shy" kids are the most popular kids in school, while in Western cultures, they are the least popular. This is because Eastern cultures have taken the time to understand and respect "shy," people, recognizing the fact that (due to their insightfulness) SPS's are often the scholars, teachers, counselors and judges.

Dr. Elaine Aron calls the trait "HSP," which she calls "Highly Sensitive Person," and in fact, her first book, based on years of research, is called, "The Highly Sensitive Person." She also wrote "The Highly Sensitive Person in Love," and "The Highly Sensitive Child." Others have followed in Dr. Aron's work, and have written books with similar titles (all containing the words "highly sensitive person").

It should also be noted that 20% of the entire human population is SPS. Interestingly enough, 20% of more than 100 species is SPS, from fruit flies and fish, to cats, dogs and horses.