Text Book

PEOPLE’S CHARACTER AND BODY LANGUAGE

ARE YOU A DOER OR A THINKER?

Although there are over 4000 words in the English language, which describe different aspects of personality, psychologists have managed to narrow down the really significant ways in which people differ from each other to a tiny fraction of this number. For practical purposes, the most important thing to find out about someone - whether it's yourself or somebody else -- is where they fall on the personality dimension known as introversion-extroversion, because this will affect virtually every aspect of their life.

The list of ways in which introverts and extroverts differ from each other goes on almost indefinitely, but why are they so different? The answer lies in the chemistry of the brain. Scientists have found that the more introverted a person is, the more active and aroused their brain is naturally, that is regardless of what's going on around them. If you are an extreme extrovert, on the other hand, this means there is relatively little spontaneous activity in your nervous system. If we assume there is an ideal level of activity at which the human brain functions best, then it becomes obvious why introverts and extroverts behave so differently. They are trying to reach this ideal state of affairs in the brain from opposite directions.

So extroverts go in for wild parties, fast cars, and plenty of variety in their sex lives because they need all the extra stimulation they can get from the world to make up for their lack of natural internal excitement.

Introverts,.on the other hand, have quite enough going on inside their skulls without artificial excitement, so they're happier at home in front of the TV than out at the disco, and risky situations or flamboyant clothes make them feel positively twitchy, because they become over aroused.

This basic physiological difference between the introvert and extrovert brain also explains why introverts are more susceptible to pain and better at hearing quiet sounds (high internal arousal magnifies all stimulation from the outside world), but less affected by alcohol and in need of a larger dose of sedatives to put them to sleep.

Knowing yourself

So are you an introvert or extrovert? Most probably neither, because no more than one person in five can be called truly introvert or extrovert. The rest fall somewhere between the two extremes. However, your position on the continuum between the two extremes has a crucial effect on how you think, feel and act, so let's see where you stand. You can get a rough idea by answering the following six questions.

• Do you prefer action to planning for action?

• Do you usually take the initiation in making new friends?

• Would you call yourself lively?

• Would you be miserable if you couldn't meet lots of people?

• Are you generally quick and sure in your actions?

• Are you happiest when you're involved in a project, which calls for rapid action?

You must answer yes or no. The more yeses you have given, the more extroverted you are, and the more likely it is that you have a relatively low level of spontaneous activity in your nervous system, which explains why you are such a sensation seeker and get bored so easily.

If your partner's answers to the questions turn out to be rather different from yours don't be surprised or alarmed. Research shows that that's not to say that people can't cohabit happily. In fact, the introvert-extrovert combination makes good domestic sense once you realize that extroverts tend to be evening types, while introverts are brighter earlier on.

1. Make sure you know the words:

Manage

Fraction

Dimension

Introvert

Extrovert

Differ from

Regardless of

Extreme

Spontaneous

Assume

Obvious

Go in for

Excitement

Flamboyant clothes

Twitch

Over aroused

Susceptible (to)

Magnify

Affected by

Sedative

Crucial

Rough

Rapid

Initiation

Average

cohabit