Quiet flourishing: Exploring beliefs about introversion-extraversion, and identifying pathways to optimal well-being in trait introverts

Abstract

Introversion-extraversion is a fundamental, socially consequential personality trait. Introverts are typically described as “quiet”, “reserved”, and “withdrawn”, and contemporary theories and models of personality traits regard introversion as merely a lack of extraversion. Introverts generally have lower levels of well-being than their extraverted counterparts and this has typically been attributed to direct effects of temperament, whereby extraverts are more dispositionally inclined to engage positively with the world. However, some recent evidence suggests that, in individualistic Western cultures that value personal agency and expressiveness, the positive relationship between trait ex..