Introvert vs extrovert (and ambiverts): what the research says

What extraversion actually measures

Extraversion is one of the five broad traits found when researchers analyse how people describe each other.^[6] Typical questionnaire items include “I am the life of the party” and “I start conversations”, while introverted responses agree with items such as “I keep in the background” or “I don’t talk a lot”. Detailed inventories split the trait into six facets: friendliness, gregariousness, assertiveness, activity level, excitement-seeking and cheerfulness.^[7]

Some popular claims go beyond the evidence. For example, the idea that introverts get their energy from being alone and extraverts from people is an intuitive summary rather than a well-tested mechanism. What is well established is the pattern of behaviour and emotion that the trait describes.

Introversion is not shyness or social anxiety

Introversion means less drive toward social contact and excitement. Shyness and social anxiety involve fear of being judged. Big Five research treats these as different dimensions: worry, nervousness and being easily upset belong to Neuroticism, which is separate from Extraversion.^[6] A person can be introverted and completely relaxed in company, or extraverted and anxious about how they come across.

The distinction matters because the remedies differ. A calm introvert does not need fixing. Social anxiety, by contrast, is linked to the neuroticism domain, and the trait most associated with anxiety disorders is neuroticism, not introversion, although social phobia does also show lower extraversion.^[8] Our emotional stability guide covers that side.

Ambiverts: most people are in the middle

When MBTI score distributions were analysed carefully, they turned out to be center-weighted, with most people near the midpoint, and not split into two camps.^[1] The same is true of Big Five Extraversion. In the roughly 19,700 public responses that 64 Types uses as its norm sample, Extraversion scores form a single hump centred close to the middle of the scale (see our science page).

“Ambivert” is not a separate category; it is a name for the moderate scorers who make up a large share of the population. Practically, it means you can shift between talking and listening, socialising and recharging, without either feeling unnatural.

There is some evidence that being in the middle can be an advantage. In a study of 340 call-centre sales representatives, revenue followed an inverted U: moderately extraverted reps out-sold both strong introverts and strong extraverts. The author suggested that ambiverts balance assertiveness with listening.^[9]

Are extraverts happier?

On average, yes, somewhat. A meta-analysis found moderate to strong correlations between extraversion and pleasant affect, smaller when mood is measured moment-to-moment rather than by global self-report.^[2] Part of the link seems to come from the quality of social experience. In one set of studies, the sense of making a contribution to one’s social world explained much of why extraverted behaviour felt good.^[10]

Can introverts get the same benefit by acting extraverted? The evidence is mixed and interesting:

• In everyday experience-sampling studies, people felt more positive emotion in moments when they were acting more extraverted, and this was true for introverts as well as extraverts.^[3]
• In lab experiments, introverts asked to act extraverted showed increased positive emotion without a rise in negative emotion.^[4]
• In a one-week randomised controlled trial in daily life, acting extraverted raised positive emotion and feelings of authenticity overall. But more introverted participants gained less, and they reported more negative emotion, more tiredness and less authenticity.^[5]

Extraversion at work

Extraversion predicts job performance mainly in roles built on social influence. In a classic meta-analysis it was a valid predictor for managers and salespeople, while conscientiousness predicted performance across all occupational groups.^[11] Extraversion is the most consistent personality correlate of leadership, both of emerging as a leader and of being rated effective (a meta-analytic correlation of .31).^[12] It also relates to job satisfaction (about .25).^[13]

There are limits. In field and lab studies, extraverted leaders got worse results than more introverted leaders when their teams were proactive and full of ideas, apparently because they were less receptive to suggestions.^[14] And the sales study above suggests that more extraversion is not always better.^[9]

Friends and relationships

Extraverts tend to make friends faster. In a study that tracked new university students through their first year, those higher in extraversion nominated more people as friends.^[15] In another longitudinal study of students, extraversion predicted the number of peer relationships and the likelihood of falling in love, while relationship experiences did not change personality over the 18 months.^[16]

In romantic relationships, a meta-analysis found that people whose partners were higher in extraversion were somewhat more satisfied, alongside partners’ lower neuroticism and higher agreeableness and conscientiousness.^[17] Whether two partners are similar in extraversion explains very little.^[18] See personality and relationships and personality and friendship.

Can an introvert become more extraverted?

Somewhat, and often naturally. Social dominance (the assertive side of extraversion) tends to increase in young adulthood, while social vitality (the lively, sociable side) rises in adolescence and declines in old age.^[19] Deliberate change is possible too: people who set goals to become more extraverted showed measurable increases over 16 weeks,^[20] and extraversion was the second most changed trait in a review of therapy and other interventions.^[21] Whether you want to change is a separate question. Introversion is not a deficit.

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