How Shy Are You, Really?
Shyness is not the same thing as liking your own company
Shy and introverted get used as synonyms, and the research that pulled them apart found two different things. Shyness is tension and self-watching around people; sociability is how much you want to be around them in the first place. You can love company and still find it nerve-racking, or be completely at ease and simply prefer a quiet evening. This test scores three sides of shyness and, separately, how much you enjoy company.
Before you start There are no right answers. Pick what is usually true for you, not what sounds best.
Think about ordinary situations over the last year - work, family, friends of friends - not about one especially bad or especially good evening.
What it measures
Three facets of shyness found in studies of the Revised Cheek and Buss Shyness Scale - general unease in social situations, shyness with strangers, and difficulty speaking up - plus sociability, the separate preference for company. Unlike the introversion test on this site, the first three bars measure discomfort, not preference; unlike the boundaries test, the third bar is about nerves, not about saying no.
Based on: Revised Cheek and Buss Shyness Scale (Cheek, 1983; facets from Hopko et al., 2005) and sociability (Cheek & Buss, 1981)
Possible results
Social unease
How tense and self-conscious you feel in ordinary social situations.
Shyness with strangers
How hard first meetings and rooms full of new faces feel.
Difficulty speaking up
How much nerve it takes you to ask, object or disagree out loud.
Liking company
How much you prefer being with people to being on your own.
Common questions
Is shyness the same as introversion?
No. Introversion is about preference and energy - how much company and stimulation you want. Shyness is about discomfort - feeling tense or inhibited even when you would like to join in. Cheek and Buss found the two only moderately related, which is why there are shy extroverts and perfectly relaxed introverts.
Is shyness the same as social anxiety?
They sit on the same continuum but are not the same thing. Shyness is very common and usually eases as a situation becomes familiar; social anxiety disorder is a clinical condition in which fear and avoidance seriously interfere with daily life. A questionnaire like this cannot tell them apart, and it is not meant to - a professional can.
Can shyness change?
Yes, especially the behaviour. Shyness tends to ease with age and with repeated contact with the situations that trigger it, while avoiding them tends to keep it going. Small, regular steps - one question in a meeting, a chat with a neighbour - work better than forcing yourself through one big ordeal.
Sources
- Cheek, J. M., & Buss, A. H. (1981). Shyness and sociability. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.41.2.330
- Hopko, D. R., Stowell, J., Jones, W. H., Armento, M. E. A., & Cheek, J. M. (2005). Psychometric properties of the Revised Cheek and Buss Shyness Scale. Journal of Personality Assessment. doi:10.1207/s15327752jpa8402_08
An honest note The questions are Quinthea's own wording adapted from the Revised Cheek and Buss Shyness Scale, so your scores cannot be compared with its published norms. The published scale gives a single shyness score; the three facets come from a factor analysis in one student sample, and sociability is a separate scale. Shyness is a normal trait, not a diagnosis. If fear of social situations is stopping you from working, studying or seeing people, talk to a doctor or psychologist.