Extroversion
Why is being an extrovert seen as a privilege?
DEFINITION
Extroversion is a personality trait where an individual generates their energy from other people. Extroverts are often considered outgoing and talkative. Introversion, on the other hand, is where an individual builds their energy from being alone. Introverts are often considered reserved and process their thoughts internally.
Why is extroversion seen as a privilege?
The assumption is that extroverts are sociable, easy to get along with and trustworthy. Finding work and progressing in work, is considered easier for extroverts because it often relies on networking. If we think about job interviews, the process is set up in a way that favours extroversion due to the requirement of speaking on the spot and being sociable.
There is also an assumption that introverts are reserved and not as sociable, due to the fact that they enjoy spending time alone and are often more productive when they are given time to prepare. Given an introvert’s personality trait of thinking before speaking, they are often perceived as slower to respond and therefore less capable at their work.
What is your privilege?
- I enjoy the company of others for long periods of time
- Networking, i.e. mixing with people comes easily to me, so I have a large network
- Creative meetings where we have to communicate our ideas on the spot comes naturally to me
The stats don’t lie
- Myers-Briggs show that introverts make up 50.7% and extroverts 49.3% of the United States. (Myers, McCaulley, Quenk, & Hammer (1998) )
- 79% of introverts use intuition to make decisions, whereas 50% of extroverts make knee-jerk decisions
