Introversion

Science suggests that introversion has a lot to do with the chemistry in the brain, and the traits that come with introversion are linked to the process in which they relate to themselves and the world. They may seem anti-social, reserved and quiet but that is because they literally have a whole other world going on in their mind, hence any outside stimulation can become overwhelming to say the least.

Introverted brain's are wired differently and influence different behaviours than that of an extrovert, although everyone can fluctuate between the extremes at times. This differential of wiring dictates and directs a major component of our personality and the studies have shown that the introverted brain takes a completely different pathway when processing information and stimuli. In simplified terms, when an introvert is in a social situation or processing outside information it can take longer to process, the information goes on a little journey through different regions of the brain compared to say that of an extrovert. Hence it can take longer for an introvert to respond, act or make decisions. Another major difference is in the way dopamine is used and restored. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that is linked to the pleasure and reward system and gives us that rush of feeling good.

Extroverts are generally under stimulated hence they get their energy top up, stimulus, rewards and pleasure from outside events, engaging in social interactions, large groups of people, and basically anything that can stimulate their senses. They tend to live in the now more often than that of an introvert, get excited more easily and are generally more eager to take risks, collaborate with others, and attend social gatherings.

Introverts on the other hand are quite easily over stimulated when put in any of the above situations. Their stimulation levels are already almost at their peak, therefore they are at the level of let's say full throttle before they even go out into the world, once in the world they start to process all of the extra stimulus on top of an already higly stimulated mind, usually leading to depleted energy levels and needing time alone to recharge and bring the stimulation levels back down. Introverts regain energy by being alone, or in a calm quiet environment with very few people, and thats not to say the introvert doesn't enjoy external pleasures, but for the most part his internal world and being alone with his thoughts and imagination is already on the high end of the scale of the pleasure and reward spectrum, so the need for external stimuli is low.

An excerpt from an article by Lecia Bushak In Medical Daily states,

"A 2012 study completed by Randy Buckner of Harvard University discovered that introverts tended to have larger, thicker gray matter in their prefrontal cortex — a region of the brain that is linked to abstract thought and decision-making — while extroverts had less gray matter. Buckner concluded that this might be accountable for introverts’ tendencies to sit in a corner and ponder things thoroughly before making a decision, and extroverts’ ability to live in the moment and take risks without fully thinking everything through (which has its cons and benefits, of course)."

So let's assume that stimuli runs on a vertical ruler from 0 to 100 and normal levels are 75 percent. The extrovert say naturally rests at 40 percent, needing to engage in social activities to activate their dopamine upwards until reaching the 75 percent stimulation required for those feel good pleasure and rewards from that beast of a neurotransmitter. Now the introverts stimulation naturally rests at around 70 percent, needing very little outside noise or activities to reach the desired level of stimulation, and is generally pretty happy and content without external pleasures. The above analogy is only a way to explain the differences, and in fact Introverts and extroverts actually have the same amount of dopamine available, the differences lay in the activity of the reward network. And it's not all about dopamine, there is also a another neurotransmitter called acetylcholine which like dopamine is also linked to pleasure. There is also different preferences in regards to which side of the nervous system is used by introverts and extroverts, but it is not as clear cut as different preferences being the deciding factor between introversion and extroversion, and like anything there are many variations. The introvert preferences using acetylcholine, which in effect makes them feel good by turning inward rather than outward, the use of this transmitter ignites deeper thinking, pondering, reflecting, and a more intense form of focus for longer periods, which makes sense when you look at many introverts whom make great artists, musicians, poets, philosophers and writers, they tend to be more creative and only thrive when in solitude.

Extroversion and Introversion are not concrete personality types and can interchange. An introvert can be a social butterfly at times, be out going and the comedian type, although usually only when in small groups they feel comfortable with, and extroverts do need alone time and can also become over stimulated at times. Anyone can be anywhere on the scale between extroversion and introversion or could find themselves in the middle as an ambivert. Even Carl Jung spoke on them as an archetypal trait, and we all have many different archetypes inside of us, its just that some are more protruding than others, but can of course interchange with many of the others. Like anything intangible, we don't quite understand it completely, hence the mystery of the self keeps inspecting itself. I'm just happy that there is a valid reason for my need to be very introverted and perhaps even socially awkward!