Colonnesi Cristina, Napoleone Elisa, Bögels Susan M
Research Institute of Child Development and Education, University of Amsterdam.
J Pers Soc Psychol. 2014 Apr;106(4):624-37. doi: 10.1037/a0035561. Epub 2014 Feb 24.
Shyness has generally been investigated as a negative and unpleasant emotional state, strongly related to social anxiety and loneliness. However, recent evidence has suggested that shyness may have a positive and socially adaptive form. We examined whether the positive expression of shyness differs from the negative expression of shyness during toddlerhood, and whether a negative relation to anxiety exists. Participants were 30-month-old children (N=102; 56 girls) who were asked to mimic animal sounds with a novel person (performance) and then to watch their performance (self-watching). Their expression of pleasure (positive reactions) and distress (negative reactions), as well as their positive and negative expressions of shyness, were coded. Children's temperamental level of shyness, sociability, and anxiety were measured with parent-reported questionnaires. Toddlers produced more positive and negative displays of shyness in the performance task than in the self-watching task. Children's positive expression of shyness was associated with lower parent-reported anxiety and higher sociability. Negative reactions, but not negative shyness, were related to children's higher anxiety levels and lower sociability. Multiple linear regression analyses confirmed a negative predictive role of the positive expression of shyness on anxiety. These results suggest that the positive expression of shyness can regulate early anxiety symptoms and already serves a social function in interpersonal interactions in early childhood.
害羞通常被视为一种消极且令人不悦的情绪状态，与社交焦虑和孤独感密切相关。然而，最近有证据表明，害羞可能存在一种积极且具有社会适应性的形式。我们研究了在幼儿期，害羞的积极表现与消极表现是否存在差异，以及害羞与焦虑之间是否存在负相关关系。研究参与者为30个月大的儿童（N = 102；56名女孩），他们被要求与一个陌生人一起模仿动物声音（表演），然后观看自己的表演（自我观看）。对他们的愉悦表达（积极反应）、苦恼表达（消极反应）以及害羞的积极和消极表现进行了编码。通过家长报告的问卷测量了儿童的气质性害羞、社交能力和焦虑水平。在表演任务中，幼儿表现出的害羞的积极和消极表现比在自我观看任务中更多。儿童害羞的积极表现与家长报告的较低焦虑水平和较高社交能力相关。消极反应，而非消极害羞，与儿童较高的焦虑水平和较低的社交能力有关。多元线性回归分析证实了害羞的积极表现在焦虑方面的负向预测作用。这些结果表明，害羞的积极表现可以调节早期焦虑症状，并且在幼儿期的人际互动中已经发挥了社会功能。
