Looking for a simple explanation for why some people are introverts and others are extroverts? Then don’t read Susan Cain’s book Quiet. Her explanation has not one, not two, not three, but four factors: our inborn temperament, environment, free will, and how these interact at any given time. She also describes why introverts sometimes act like extroverts, and the price they pay for doing so. Cain supports her ideas by citing research, interviewing experts, and drawing on her own experience. Her engaging style has a surprisingly light touch with complex ideas, which makes this book a joy to read.
Susan Cain, Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking (New York: Random House, Inc., Crown Publishers, 2012), 107.
I’m interested in the connections between behavior and emotional needs. Every behavior has more than one cause because every human is more than one type of emotional need. I think you can change behaviors if you meet the emotional need that triggers the behavior. The research shows that most decisions are much more influenced by emotion than by rational deliberation. I guess this is the kind of line of thinking that makes introverts tingle and extroverts jumpy.