Neurotic Introverts Research Articles

Dysregulation in High-Anxious Female Prisoners: Attentionally Mediated?

Psychopathy is associated with specific information processing anomalies that hamper self-regulation (e.g., poor passive avoidance) in male offenders, but recent studies have found that anxiety—rather than psychopathy—appears to predict poor passive avoidance in female offenders. To clarify the association between attention and dysregulation in anxious offenders, this study used a computerized picture–word task to test 2 competing perspectives on how anxiety moderates attention to distracting cues in female inmates. The 3-pathway model (J. P. Newman & J. F. Wallace, 1993) hypothesizes that anxious individuals (identified as neurotic introverts) will show narrowed attention to relevant task cues and thus will show less interference due to irrelevant distractors. The second perspective, derived from substantial evidence that anxious individuals are vigilant to threat cues, suggests that neurotic introverts will show vigilance to irrelevant distractors only if they are threatening. Results suggest a synthesis between the two perspectives that clarifies both the attentional mechanisms involved in anxiety and their relation to dysregulation.

Eysenck's BIG THREE and communication traits: three correlational studies

Over the past decade, communication scholars have increasingly considered biological contributions to the ways in which we communicate. One approach to exploring the links between biology and communication involves analysis of relationships between communication variables and variables containing strong biological underpinnings. The present study was designed to provide an examination of the relationship between Eysenck's personality dimensions and communication variables. This essay reports the results of three separate studies that encompass more than a dozen communication variables. The results seem to indicate that non-neurotic extraverts are not shy or apprehensive about touch, tend to perceive themselves as more competent, view themselves as assertive and responsive, and express greater degrees of self-acceptance. Neurotic introverts report apprehension about communication, perceive themselves as less immediate, rate themselves as having a lower affect orientation, and somewhat higher levels of verbal aggressiveness. Neurotic participants report less self-acceptance. Neurotic non-psychotics report a greater degree of affect orientation, more apprehension about communication, and lower verbal aggression. Neurotic psychotic extraverts tend to be compulsive communicators and report greater tolerance for disagreement. Psychotics are non-responsive, and tend to report higher levels of verbal aggressiveness, argumentativeness and assertiveness. Finally, psychotic non-neurotics tend to have a greater tolerance for disagreement and are less likely to identify themselves as compulsive communicators. Possible directions for future research are suggested.

Personality traits and psychological factors in voice pathology: a foundation for future research.

It has been argued that personality, emotions, and psychological problems contribute to or are primary causes of voice disorders and that voice disorders in turn create psychological problems and personality effects. This article (a) briefly reviews the literature surrounding the role of psychological and personality processes in individuals with functional dysphonia (FD), vocal nodules (VN), and spasmodic dysphonia (SD); (b) provides an overview of recent concepts in personality and trait structure; and (c) summarizes the fundamental tenets of a theoretical synthesis proposed by Roy and Bless (2000) to explain the dispositional bases of FD and VN. This theory links FD and VN to the signal sensitivities and behavioral response biases of neurotic introverts and neurotic extraverts, respectively. In a companion article, the merits of the Roy and Bless theory are evaluated.

Passive avoidance learning in extraverted females

Abstract The aim of this study was to investigate the mechanisms underlying passive avoidance learning in females in order to contrast Newman's (disinhibition as a consequence of BAS hyperactivity) with Gray's perspective (disinhibition can also appear as a consequence of BIS hypoactivity). Two computerized versions of the go/no-go discrimination task used by Newman et al. [Newman, J. P., Widom, C. S., & Nathan, S. (1985). Passive avoidance in syndromes of disinhibition: psychopathy and extraversion. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 48, 1316–1327]. were administered to groups classified according to extraversion and neuroticism. The results showed that, unlike the work with males, condition R+P (situation involving cues for both reward and punishment) did not produce differences in passive avoidance errors (PAEs) between (neurotic) extraverts and (stable) introverts. In contrast, neurotic introverts tended to make more PAEs than the other groups but only when condition R+P was performed first. With regard to condition P (situation involving only cues for punishment), results showed that stable extraverts tended to display behavioural disinhibition when condition P was performed in second place. These results suggest that disinhibition is a complex phenomenon that may be mediated by either BIS hypoactivity, BAS hyperactivity or even BIS hyperactivity, and by the interaction of all these mechanisms with the involvement of some of the variables such as gender, personality, motivation, task and subject's anxiety state.

Extraversion and behavioral impulsivity

Previous research demonstrates low correlations between paper-and-pencil and behavioral measures of impulsivity in normal volunteer subjects. These low correlations may be due to laboratory testing conducted under low arousal conditions that allows impulsive subjects to restrain their impulsive behaviors. It was hypothesized that a mental stressor will increase impulsive behaviors in extraverts. 41 subjects underwent a negative (speech about negative aspects of oneself) and a positive (speech about a happy time in their life) mental stressor and 12 subjects underwent a neutral mood induction. Analyses of affective changes indicated that the mental stressors were effective in changing mood. Analyses of impulsive behaviors (indexed by errors of commission in the Go/No Go task) showed that extraverts demonstrate greater errors of commission than introverts and neurotic introverts demonstrate greater errors of omission than other subjects. The mental stressors were not effective in increasing impulsive behaviors. A plausible explanation is that the monetary reward in the Go/No Go task masked any effect mental stressors may have had on errors of commission.

Extraversion and behavioral impulsivity

Previous research demonstrates low correlations between paper-and-pencil and behavioral measures of impulsivity in normal volunteer subjects. These low correlations may be due to laboratory testing conducted under low arousal conditions that allows impulsive subjects to restrain their impulsive behaviors. It was hypothesized that a mental stressor will increase impulsive behaviors in extraverts. 41 subjects underwent a negative (speech about negative aspects of oneself) and a positive (speech about a happy time in their life) mental stressor and 12 subjects underwent a neutral mood induction. Analyses of affective changes indicated that the mental stressors were effective in changing mood. Analyses of impulsive behaviors (indexed by errors of commission in the Go/No Go task) showed that extraverts demonstrate greater errors of commission than introverts and neurotic introverts demonstrate greater errors of omission than other subjects. The mental stressors were not effective in increasing impulsive behaviors. A plausible explanation is that the monetary reward in the Go/No Go task masked any effect mental stressors may have had on errors of commission.

Sensitivity to Conditioned or Unconditioned Stimuli: What Is the Mechanism Underlying Passive Avoidance Deficits in Extraverts?

The most important discrepancy between Gray′s (1981) and Newman′s (1987) approaches to passive avoidance was based on the role played by the Behavioral Inhibition System (BIS): Gray, but not Newman, predicted that passive avoidance deficits could be mediated by an underactive BIS and hence that these deficits could be found in strictly aversive contexts. Two different studies have been conducted to investigate these issues. In the first, two versions (one involving reward and punishment and the second punishment only) of the successive go/no go discrimination task used by Newman, Widom, and Nathan (1985) were administrated to groups classified according to extraversion and neuroticism. Results, in accordance with Newman′s hypotheses, showed more passive avoidance and less omission errors in (neurotic) extraverts as compared to (stable) introverts in mixed incentive contexts. In addition, consistent with Gray′s model, more passive avoidance and less omission errors were also found in stable extraverts as compared to neurotic introverts in solely aversive contexts. In Study 2, multiple choice exams were used considering each question an approach-avoidance conflict (similar in some aspects to the reward-punishment task in Study 1). Once effects of knowledge were controlled, extraverts had a greater tendency to approach than introverts in these exams. Finally, a third study confirmed that passive avoidance errors both in the reward-and-punishment task of Study 1 and in multiple choice were correlated. Different mechanisms leading to disinhibition in extraverts that are dependent on the functioning of both the BIS and Behavioral Activation System (BAS) and the contribution of sensitivity to unconditioned and conditioned stimuli are discussed.

Temperament and Response Processing: Facilitatory and Inhibitory Consequences of Positive and Negative Motivational States

Individual differences in response facilitation and inhibition were assessed through a modified go/no go task presented in alternating positive (where points could be gained) and negative (where points could be lost) incentive blocks. Neurotic extraverts showed enhanced facilitation on positive blocks following positive feedback. Neurotic introverts and individuals high in STAI trait anxiety showed enhanced inhibition on negative blocks. Individuals high in I 7 impulsiveness showed generally low inhibition. These results support models proposing that positive incentive motivation and its facilitatory response consequences peak in neurotic extraverts, whereas negative incentive motivation and its inhibitory effects peak in neurotic introverts. However, neurotic introverts were also relatively fast in responding following negative feedback, which confirms recent reports of "anxious impulsivity."

Extraversion, Neuroticism, and Face-Name Learning

Previous research has attempted to relate personality traits to paired-associate learning. We tested name recall as a function of extraversion and neuroticism (as assessed by the Eysenck Personality Inventory) and task difficulty. Face photographs were paired with one of three levels of information: names only (an easy task); names and occupations; or names, occupations, and interests (a difficult task). On the easy and difficult tasks, extraverted subjects recalled more names than did subjects scoring at the median or below on that trait. Contrary to expectations, subjects scoring high on neuroticism recalled more names than did subjects scoring low on that trait. Neither trait was significantly related to recall on the moderately difficult task. There was no interaction between traits for name recall, but there was for interests: Neurotic introverts were significantly impaired at recalling interests, whereas the other subjects recalled interests better than names. These findings thus differ from those of paired-associate learning tasks using words and nonsense syllables.

Effects of personality, stress and lifestyle on hypertension: An Australian twin study

This study investigated the association of personality, stress and lifestyle with self-reported hypertension (validated by actual use of antihypertensive medication, and separately by cross-twin reporting). Subjects were 4870 female and 2746 male twins from the 1980–1982 Australian Twin Registry. Personality and stress variables were measured by the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire and the Delusions-Symptoms-States Inventory. Alcohol intake, cigarette consumption and monthly exercise activity represented lifestyle variables. Hypothesis 1 predicted that predominant personality types among hypertensives are neurotic introverts and extraverts low on psychoticism; Hypothesis 2, that personality and stress are better predictors than lifestyle variables in the genesis of hypertension; Hypothesis 3, that these variables act synergistically. Results showed that neurotic introverts and extraverts low on psychoticism, and high on the Lie scale were prevalent among male hypertensives, while in female hypertensives neurotic introverts low on psychoticism, and high on the Lie scale predominated. Across gender, lifestyle variables were the best predictors. In accord with Hypothesis 3, effects on hypertension were magnified when personality, stress and lifestyle variables acted synergistically.

Anxiety and academic achievement: Further Furneaux factor findings

The investigation examined the relationship between neuroticism, anxiety and academic achievement in a sample of 108 Modular Degree Students and found that neuroticism correlated positively with degree marks ( P < 0.01) only for students with high superego strength. This replicated the finding of a neuroticism-superego interaction or Furneaux Factor in a previous study by McKenzie (1989a; Personality and Individual Differences, 10, 509–515). Correlations between measures of anxiety, obtained by resolving the vector sum of the neuroticism and extraversion scores, and degree marks were even higher ( P < 0.005) than for neuroticism. The correlations were also higher at degree as opposed to diploma and certificate levels, which supported the contentions, by Eysenck and Eysenck (1985; Personality and Individual Differences. London: Plenum Press), that neuroticism only correlates positively with achievement in groups that have been highly selected and, by McKenzie (1989a), that the Furneaux Factor is more apparent in more academically rigorous programmes of study. The results of a zone analysis revealed low, negative correlations between verbal ability and achievement for neurotic introverts only, which confirmed the relevance of applying drive theory to the relationship between anxiety and academic achievement advanced by Furneaux (1980; Personality and Academic Performance. Guildford: SRHE). Very high positive correlations ( P < 0.001) between verbal ability and degree marks were found for stable introverts only, which places the role of intelligence in its proper context.

The personality of Icelandic prisoners: some normative data

Several psychologic tests relevant to criminal behaviour were administered to 80 Icelandic prisoners. These were the Standard Progressive Matrices, the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire, the Gough Socialisation Scale, the Arrow-Dot Test, the Gudjonsson Blame Attribution Inventory, and two Deception questionnaires. As predicted, Icelandic prisoners had elevated scores on EPQ Psychoticism (P) and Neuroticism (N), but the hypothesis was not confirmed with regard to Extraversion (E). The sample scored low on the Gough Socialisation Scale, similar to American prisoners. The sample as a whole did not have elevated Arrow-Dot impulsivity scores. Attribution of blame for the crime had some significant correlations with personality. High P scorers tended to blame their crime on external factors, such as provocation, and neurotic introverts reported the greatest amount of guilt for their offence.

Differential effects of reward and punishment cues on response speed in anxious and impulsive individuals

Four groups of subjects—neurotic extraverts, stable extraverts, neurotic introverts, and stable introverts—were instructed to trace a circle template as slowly as possible. The tracing task was performed under one of three conditions: Condition Rw entailed the presence of reward cues, Condition Pn entailed the presence of punishment cues, and Condition G(while involving the presence of goal stimulus) entailed neither type of conditioned stimulus. As predicted, high impulsive (neurotic extravert) subjects exhibited inappropriately rapid tracing speeds (i.e. behaved impulsively) to a greater extent than did low impulsive (stable introvert) subjects in Conditions Rw. Although, as expected, high anxious (neurotic introvert) subjects manifested the fastest tracing speeds among the four subject groups in the presence of punishment cues (i.e. in Condition Pn), they did not trace significantly faster than low anxious (stable extravert) subjects. Finally, replicating earlier research in which the presence of a salient goal stimulus was sufficient to engender rapid responding, high impulsive subjects traced significantly faster than did low impulsives in Condition G. These results are discussed in the context of a model of impulsive behavior that is primarily a synthesis of Eysenck's ( The biological basis of personality, 1967) personality theory and Gray's ( Elements of a two-process theory of learning, 1975) three arousal model. This synthesis maps the extraversion dimension onto the relative strengths of Gray's behavioral activation and inhibition systems, and identifies the neuroticism dimension with Gray's nonspecific arousal system.

Nightmare in the Mirror: Adolescence and the Death of Difference

The teenager is an orphan among cultural representations. Nobody wants him. For decades now, of course, he has caused a nervous culture one embarrassment after another. Youths wild in the streets, werewolves, longhairs, lunatic bikers, slavering idiots unable to do arithmetic or find Mississippi on a map. . .thirty years of such images have spewed from the culture industry's maw. Now, however, a new twist has appeared. Instead of the adolescent rampaging against adult society, we have the adolescent as dull neurotic introvert, a gnawing problem even to himself. Angst and bouts of suicidal despair distinguish this gloomy figure; terror, taunts, and insecurities are the seasoning on modern salad days. Adolescence has become unbearable. Who needs this horrible interim of self-doubt? And how did it get to be so bad? One expects a certain clarity to come from admitting that the teenager is a representation: adolescence is a fake. The rhetoric of its sublime liminality merely drowns out the clatter of its making. A marginal moment when the subject stands between two worlds, poised with innocence on the one hand and experience on the other none of this has the universal validity it claims. The teen years are an invented transition between two carefully constructed norms, childhood and adulthood: adolescence as we know it is not ontological and invariable, a permanent feature of the human animal, but a relative category created to organize an otherwise inchoate experience. It is a construct generated largely during the last two centuries, defined and regularized by cultural needs and discursive operations. The social requirements behind its construction, the reasons beneath its contradictions, should ideally become clearer in the course of recognizing it as such. What happens, though, is the opposite: new questions arise, about why the image of the teenager is still promulgated, still driven home. That image seems to have no purpose. The artificiality of isolating a four-to six-year period as adolescence, quarantining a quadrennium under a category, imposing on it an identity and a prescribed range of behaviors: there is no clear reason why all this continues. Exactly what function does the teenager still serve? Suicidal kids in movies or on TV all wonder what it means to be a teen; through their ventriloquial voices, one may speculate, culture as a whole is pondering the same thing.

Susceptibility to distraction as a function of personality

Susceptibility to distraction as a function of personality was investigated in groups of neurotic introverts and stable extraverts. They were given two versions of a letter-transformation task (low and high complexity) at one of three levels of white noise intensity. There was a significant interaction between personality and distraction condition: the performance of neurotic introverts was more adversely affected than that of stable extraverts by distracting stimuli resembling task stimuli, but the groups did not differ in performance when the distracting stimuli did not resemble task stimuli. Theoretical implications of these findings are discussed with reference to the literature on trait anxiety and distractibility.

Is globus hystericus?

Forty-six patients, 9 male, 37 female, presenting to an ear, nose and throat department with a principal complaint of globus sensation were investigated by radiology, manometry, endoscopy and prolonged ambulatory pH monitoring to exclude a physical basis for their symptoms. Patients also underwent assessment by the Eysenck Personality Inventory (EPI) and General Health Questionnaire (GHQ). The only organic abnormalities detected were an abnormal degree of oesophageal acid exposure (seven patients) and oesophageal spasm (one patient). Female patients were neurotic introverts on EPI testing; males were stable ambiverts. High GHQ scores were present in 13 females (35%) and one male and there was a significant correlation between N scores (in the EPI) and GHQ scores. We propose that globus is a useful, single-symptom model for the study of conversion disorders.

Introversion, neuroticism, empathy and embarrassibility

Previous research suggests that actors particularly susceptible to embarrassment are likely to be sensitive to others (especially to others' views), inhibited and overconcerned with their public image. That is, they are likely to be empathic, but neurotic introverts. This experiment was designed to investigate this possibility. The EPQ, Hogan Empathy Scale (HES) and Embarrassibility Scale (ES) were administered to over 100 Ss. The factor structures obtained in the present study for the latter two scales were compared with those obtained in previous studies and revealed a close correspondence. There was a predicted significant negative correlation between E and embarrassibility and a significant positive correlation between N and embarrassibility. Contrary to expectation, empathy was significantly negatively correlated with embarrassibility, although this was largely accounted for by the Social Self-confidence and Nonconformity subscales of the HES. Three aspects of the results are discussed: the multidimensionality of the HES; whether the ES is uni- or multidimensional and implications of the results for our understanding of embarrassibility.

The influence of personality on induced depressive mood

An experimental group ( n = 40) of normal female undergraduates underwent a Velten type of depressive mood-induction procedure (DMIP) and was compared with a control group ( n = 40) which underwent a neutral mood-induction procedure (NMIP). Ss were selected on the basis of scores on the EPI to give a composition in each group of 10 neurotic introverts (NI), 10 neurotic extraverts (NE), 10 stable introverts (SI) and 10 stable extraverts (SE). Depressive mood was assessed before and after each MIP using a measure of psychomotor retardation (writing speed). An ANOVA applied to residualized change scores on the writing-speed measure showed that the DMIP produced a significantly greater depressive effect on mood than the NMIP and that neurotic Ss displayed a significantly greater degree of depressive deficit than stable Ss regardless of type of MIP undertaken. However, a significant interaction between neuroticism and type of MIP showed that neurotic Ss were especially prone to depressive deficits in the DMIP. No effects of extraversion/introversion on susceptibility to depressed mood were detected. The results are discussed in terms of Eysenck and Gray's theory of personality predisposition to depression and it is suggested that the Velten technique may have limitations for the induction of depressed mood.

Personality, hypnotic susceptibility and EEG responses: preliminary study.

22 men and women, students in psychology, were given the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire, also percent theta, alpha and beta EEG spectral powers were evaluated during an hypnotic induction induced according to Barber's method. The EEG performance was compared with two baseline eyes-open, eyes-closed conditions and with a neutral control situation of listening to a weather report. No relation was found between Extraversion-Introversion scores and scores on the Barber Suggestibility Scale. The difference in EEG powers was nonsignificant for groups high and low in suggestibility, while a significant interaction was found for eyes open or closed X suggestibility groups when extreme scores of Extraversion-Introversion and Neuroticism were considered according to Eysenck's (1966) method. The right theta power of the stable extraverts and neurotic introverts, high in susceptibility in eyes-open condition was higher than the neurotic extraverts, and stable introverts who were low in susceptibility to hypnosis. The right theta power of the neurotic extraverts and stable introverts who were low in susceptibility to hypnosis showed a tendency to increase in eyes-closed conditions, while an opposite observation was made for the stable extraverts and neurotic introverts, subjects who were high in susceptibility. It is interesting to notice, according to Galbraith, et al. (1970) that it was the eyes-open condition which yielded the best EEG predictor of hypnotic susceptibility.

Social desirability in the Eysenck Personality Inventory

To investigate the extent to which the social desirability of test items can bias Eysenck Personality Inventory (EPI) score profiles, a group of subjects was asked to rate the items of the EPI in terms of their social desirability. Three further groups were asked to complete the inventory honestly, or in such a way as to give a good or bad impression of themselves. Test items measuring extraversion were rated as socially undesirable, whereas those measuring neuroticism were rated as undesirable. Compared with subjects asked to respond honestly, subjects attempting to give a good impression tended to endorse items rated as socially desirable and hence to respond in the direction of stable extraversion. Similarly, subjects asked to give a bad impression tended to give socially undesirable responses and hence tended to appear as neurotic introverts. The lie scale did not effectively discriminate faking subjects from honest subjects. It is concluded that a social desirability response set can consistently bias subjects’ scores on the EPI and this is not detected by the lie scale.