Optimism and self-efficacy mediate the association between shyness and subjective well-being among Chinese working adults.

Conghui Liu,Guoliang Yu,Jie Liu,Anna S C Hsu,Ying Cheng,Chuansheng Chen,Francesca Chiesi

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0194559

Conghui Liu, Guoliang Yu + Show 5 more

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https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0194559

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Abstract

The aim of the current study was to investigate whether optimism and self-efficacy mediated the association between shyness and subjective well-being in a sample of Chinese working adults. Two hundred and eight participants completed the Revised Cheek and Buss Shyness Scale, Life Orientation Rest-Revised, Satisfaction with Life Scale, and Positive and Negative Affect Scale. Structural equation modeling results showed that optimism mediated the relationship between shyness and measures of subjective well-being (life satisfaction, positive and negative affect). Self-efficacy mediated the association between shyness and positive subjective well-being (life satisfaction and positive affect). These results suggest that optimism and self-efficacy play unique mediating roles in the relationship between shyness and subjective well-being. They also have important implications for the development of intervention programs aimed at promoting subjective well-being of Chinese working adults through enhancing self-efficacy and optimism.

Highlights

Subjective well-being (SWB) is a predominant variable in the emerging field of positive psychology [1,2,3]
Several studies [11,12,13] found that the association between shyness and SWB was mediated by general self-efficacy (GSE), emotional intelligence (EI), and social support
Based on findings from previous studies, we proposed two hypotheses: (1) Shyness would be negatively associated with SWB and (2) Dispositional optimism and GSE would mediate the association between shyness and SWB

Summary

Introduction

Subjective well-being (SWB) is a predominant variable in the emerging field of positive psychology [1,2,3]. Many studies have examined the association between shyness and the cognitive and affective components of SWB [6,7,8,9,10,11]. Results from these studies showed that shy individuals usually report more negative affect, less positive affect, and lower life satisfaction than individuals who are less shy. Several studies [11,12,13] found that the association between shyness and SWB was mediated by general self-efficacy (GSE), emotional intelligence (EI), and social support. Shy individuals were shown to have lower self-evaluations of their own abilities, lower emotional intelligence, and less perceived social support, which in turn, led to lower SWB

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