The benefits of extroversion are clear and compelling. But I find the experiment and instruction to “simply act more extroverted”
simplistic. Just instructing “be more talkative and outgoing” to someone who isn’t, imo needs more coaching on how to get from point A to B. Are there ways you’ve utilized to do that or have read about? Still, I will mull this study over and enjoyed the newsletter.
You make a really good point. Of course, the researchers did remind the extraverted cohort to act as such three times during the week as well as asked them to do a planning exercise. So a little "coaching" as you suggest. Still an amazing result given how minimal it was.
That said, I'm now reading Ellen Langer's The Mindful Body, and the broader point of the book is that simply being "mindful" of something can help move you in a the direction you want to go. For example, she did experiments asking people with chronic pain to notice if there are times of the day or moments after some activity when the pain is less. She found that those who were asked to be mindful of their pain reporting less pain than those who were not mindful. If I remember correctly, this result was replicated with depression and other ailments.
So could it be that simply asking people to be more mindful of being extraverted made them more extraverted?
This is a great finding Joe! These days it's nice to get the reminder to stay spontaneous and social. I remember growing up as a kid and was painfully shy...dating was terrible at first. Extraversion practice makes a world of difference
The benefits of extroversion are clear and compelling. But I find the experiment and instruction to “simply act more extroverted”
simplistic. Just instructing “be more talkative and outgoing” to someone who isn’t, imo needs more coaching on how to get from point A to B. Are there ways you’ve utilized to do that or have read about? Still, I will mull this study over and enjoyed the newsletter.
You make a really good point. Of course, the researchers did remind the extraverted cohort to act as such three times during the week as well as asked them to do a planning exercise. So a little "coaching" as you suggest. Still an amazing result given how minimal it was.
That said, I'm now reading Ellen Langer's The Mindful Body, and the broader point of the book is that simply being "mindful" of something can help move you in a the direction you want to go. For example, she did experiments asking people with chronic pain to notice if there are times of the day or moments after some activity when the pain is less. She found that those who were asked to be mindful of their pain reporting less pain than those who were not mindful. If I remember correctly, this result was replicated with depression and other ailments.
So could it be that simply asking people to be more mindful of being extraverted made them more extraverted?
This is a great finding Joe! These days it's nice to get the reminder to stay spontaneous and social. I remember growing up as a kid and was painfully shy...dating was terrible at first. Extraversion practice makes a world of difference