Shy Groups Research Articles

Relationships between boldness and fecal steroid hormone levels in captive alpine musk deer (Moschus chrysogaster) in China

Animals adapt to environmental changes through behavioral and physiological regulation, and there are individual differences in their ability to adapt to the environment, which are associated with individual personality. Boldness is a fundamental axis of animal personality, characterizing an animal's response to unfamiliar environments and threats. From June 1 to July 28, 2023, a personality assessment experiment utilizing a novel stimulus test with an unfamiliar human was conducted on 39 captive alpine musk deer (Moschus chrysogaster) at the Zhuanglang Musk Farm in Gansu Province, China. We recorded avoidance reaction indicators of musk deer in the presence of an unfamiliar human, and measured the level of the musk deer's boldness, influencing factors, and the relationships with fecal steroid hormone levels. Based on cluster analysis, 39 captive musk deer could be divided into bold (boldness score, BSS = 0.994 ± 0.008, n = 3) and shy groups (BSS = 0.327 ± 0.145, n = 36) and the average BSS in 39 musk deer was 0.378 ± 0.228. Factors such as age, sex, and density of enclosures did not have a significant effect on the boldness of musk deer. There was a significant negative correlation between the musk deer's boldness and the level of fecal cortisol metabolites. However, the correlations between boldness and testosterone levels in males and estradiol levels in females were not significant. Based on the results of our study, in the practice of musk deer farming, the measurement of the boldness can help predict the individual's adaptation to environmental stress, and it can also provide a new research perspective for the study of the boldness of solitary animals that are forced to live in groups.

Identity Theft: Social Withdrawal as a Risk Factor in Identity Development

During emerging adulthood, identity development may be facilitated through a myriad of social interactions, especially in settings such as college. However, some social withdrawal motivations may impede an individual from engaging with others, and consequently, may stifle identity exploration and commitment. The objective of this study was to examine differences between social withdrawal subtypes on levels of identity development in a variety of domains among college emerging adults. Participants for this study consisted of 792 undergraduate students (547 women, 69% European American). Distinct social withdrawal motivation groups were created (shy, unsocial, avoidant) and then compared using multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA). Results indicated the shy group struggled with identity commitment generally, the avoidant group struggled with identity exploration and commitment in multiple domains, and the unsocial and mixed withdrawn groups showed comparable levels of identity exploration and commitment to the non-withdrawn group both generally and across identity domains.

Beneficial role of gut microbes in maintenance of pace-of-life traits in Phrynocephalus vlangalii

The pace-of-life syndrome theory suggests that species, populations, and individuals are positioned along a slow–fast pace-of-life continuum. However, whether and how individuals maintain a fast pace of life in a slow pace of life population remains unknown. In this study, the boldness and foraging behavior of Phrynocephalus vlangalii from Maduo (4250 m above sea level), a typical slow-paced population, were screened frequently. Both behaviors of P. vlangalii were significantly recurrent and linked with one another. Based on boldness and foraging behavior, the lizards were divided into positive and shy groups, and their gut microbial diversity were studied using 16S rRNA gene sequencing. No significant difference in α diversity was observed; however, a significant difference existed in the β diversity of gut microbes between the two groups. Principal coordinate analysis indicated that the gut microbes in the two groups were distinct. Linear discriminant analysis effect size determined that the shy group contained a more significant proportion of Rikenellaceae and Clostridia. In contrast, the positive group had a higher proportion of Verrucomicrobiota, Verrucomicrobiae, and Akkermansiaceae. Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes pathway analysis revealed that biodegradation and metabolism, including lipid metabolism and glycan biosynthesis, were higher in the positive group; on the contrary, nucleotide metabolism and enzyme families were significantly higher in the shy group. The results showed that positive lizards had more beneficial intestinal microflora for lipid and glucose metabolism to satisfy their high metabolic energy demand, whereas shy lizards had more beneficial intestinal microflora for maintaining an elevated fasting blood glucose, a long life span, and a more stable metabolism to sustain their slow pace of life. In this study, we validate a strong relationship between the individual’s pace-of-life traits and intestinal microbiota in P. vlangalii. Further, we demonstrate that gut microorganisms are essential in sustaining the energy-intensive personality traits at high altitudes.

Shyer fish are superior swimmers in Siberian sturgeon (Acipenser baerii)

Differences in individual personality are common amongst animals, which can play an ecological and evolutionary role given links to fitness. Personality affects animal life processes and outputs (e.g., behavior, life history, growth, survival, reproduction), and has become a common theme in animal behavioral ecology research. In the present study, we used Siberian Sturgeon to explore how personality traits of boldness and shyness are related to swimming performance, post exercise recovery and phenotypic morphology. Firstly, our results indicated that the Siberian sturgeon juveniles of shyness were better swimmers, validating evolutionary biology trade-off theory. The critical swimming speed (Ucrit) of the shy groups was higher than that of the bold groups. Secondly, the shy groups were more resilient after exercise fatigue. The swimming fatigue recovery ability, the glucose and lactic acid concentration recovery ability of shy groups were greater than that of bold groups. Thirdly, the shy groups were more streamlined. Compared with bold groups, shy groups had smaller caudate stalk lengths, caudate stalk heights, superior caudal lobes, and inferior caudal lobes. In general, we demonstrated that shy Siberian sturgeon had better swimming performance from physiology and morphology. These research results further enrich the theoretical viewpoints of fish behavior biology, more importantly, which provided a good example for studying the relationship between sturgeon’s “personality” and swimming performance.

Retaining the ‘art’: Painted Button-quail Turnix varius do make platelets in north-eastern Queensland

Button-quail Turnix spp. forage in a unique manner, leaving behind circular scratched depressions in the substrate known as platelets. These platelets offer an indirect method of surveying an otherwise cryptic and shy group of birds. Painted Button-quail T. varius are well known for creating platelets throughout most of their distribution. However, following 8 years of surveys from 1992 to 2000 in North Queensland, Nielsen (2000, p. 25) failed to locate any platelets and questioned whether Painted Button-quail in North Queensland may have “lost the art of forming platelets?”. During surveys in North Queensland between 2017 and 2022, we found extensive evidence at multiple locations of Painted Button-quail creating platelets that were consistent in size, shape, and placement with descriptions from elsewhere throughout the species’ distribution. A marked seasonal difference in occurrence and density of platelets was detected. Platelets were scarce from January to April, which coincides with the wet season, and increased in abundance throughout the dry season, with a peak at the end of the dry season (September–December). Platelets may represent a viable method for detecting Painted Button-quail in North Queensland, particularly during the dry season.

Trait and State: Interoceptive Accuracy during Anticipation of Public Speaking in Junior Secondary Shy Students from an Eastern Province of China.

This study investigated the interoceptive accuracy (IAc) of shy adolescents during anticipation of public speaking with a 2 × 2 factorial design. Altogether, 637 junior secondary students in an eastern province of China were sampled and screened with the Chinese version of Cheek and Buss shyness scale. The top 27% of students were considered the shy group (n = 30, 16 girls, Mage = 13.03, SD = 0.67), whereas the bottom 27% were labelled the non-shy group (n = 31, 16 girls, Mage = 13.16, SD = 0.86). The two groups of participants estimated their heart rates during specified intervals using a mental tracking paradigm in two conditions (baseline vs. anticipation), while their actual heart rates were simultaneously measured. The results indicated that: (1) the shy adolescents were more accurate in estimating their actual heart rate than non-shy adolescents; and (2) both shy and non-shy adolescents exhibit enhanced IAc in anticipation conditions when compared with baseline conditions. Implications of the higher IAc of shy adolescents and the state feature of IAc are discussed.

The interplay between personalities and social interactions affects the cohesion of the group and the speed of aggregation.

Collective decision-making plays a central role in group-living animals and can be crucial to the survival of a group and the fitness of its members. As group-level properties emerge from individual decisions, personality variation can be a major determinant of collective behaviours. Here, we explore the relationship between personality and social interactions to explain the speed and cohesion of collective decision making during the aggregation process of the American cockroach (Periplaneta americana). We composed groups solely with shy individuals (spending a long time sheltered) or bold individuals (spending a short time sheltered) and tested them in a binary setup (arena with two shelters) for 3 consecutive days. We analysed the shelter use of individuals and groups to compare behavioural consistency among days and analyse the collective decision-making process. Contrary to the bold groups, shy groups had a faster aggregation process with more individuals sheltered mainly because shy individuals found the shelter more rapidly. Moreover, we show that personality is modulated by social interactions. We show high behavioural plasticity in bold groups, where some individuals act shy. This also suggests that learning and regulation mechanisms may take place. This study sheds some light on the implications of individual personality for collective decision making and the key role of shy individuals in gregarious species, such as P. americana.

The Influence of Personality on a Group‐Level Process: Shy Hermit Crabs Make Longer Vacancy Chains

AbstractAnimal personality has been investigated in a variety of contexts but few studies have investigated the effects of individual‐level traits on processes that occur at the group or population level. Vacancy chains describe sequences of linked vacancy moves in systems where individuals use discrete and reuseable resource units. When a new resource unit becomes available, this can cause a cascade of moves between resource units, beyond the first individual that encounters the new unit. Thus, vacancy chains can drive the distribution of resources through a population. Here, I investigate the effect of variation in boldness on movements between vacant gastropod shells in the hermit crab Pagurus bernhardus. Boldness was quantified using the duration of a startle response, which varied consistently between individuals. In groups of five crabs, introduction of a single new shell led to aggregate benefits, in terms of improving shell quality, across all group members. Boldness did not influence the extent of these benefits or the extent to which they were distributed between crabs of different sizes. Initially, vacancy chains were longer, indicating that more individuals moved between shells, for bold groups compared with shy groups. After 24 h, however, the chain length was longer for shy groups. Thus, although participation in a vacancy chain may lead to similar benefits, these could be more widespread for groups comprising shy individuals that show long startle responses, low inquisitiveness and low aggression. Similar effects on resource acquisition could be present in other examples of animals that utilise reusable resource units and show consistent between‐individual differences in behaviour.

Personality and collective decision-making in foraging herbivores

The mechanisms by which group-living animals collectively exploit resources, and the role of individuals in group decisions, are central issues for understanding animal distribution patterns. We investigated the extent to which boldness and shyness affect the distribution of social herbivores across vegetation patches, using sheep as a model species. Using an experimental and a theoretical approach, we show that collective choices emerge through the nonlinear dynamics of interactions between individuals, at both short and long distances. Within a range of parameter values derived from the observation of homogeneous groups of each behavioural type, we propose a simple mechanism whereby the same interaction rules can result in different patterns of distribution across patches for bold and shy individuals. We present a mathematical model based on behavioural rules derived from experiments, in which crowding and conspecific attraction affect the probability of entering or leaving patches. Variation in the strength of social attraction is sufficient to account for differences in spatial distribution across patches. The model predicts that resource fragmentation more strongly affects the distribution patterns of shy groups, and suggests that the presence of both bold and shy individuals within groups would result in more flexible behaviour at the population level.

Individual personality and the spatial distribution of groups of grazing animals: An example with sheep

Impacts of individual personality on group distribution were investigated using sheep (Ovis aries) as a model. In an indoor exploration test, individuals who visited <4 (out of 6) objects in a novel environment were classified as 'shy' (n=10), and those who visited 5 or 6 objects were classified as 'bold' (n=10). Nine weeks later, using a series of groups (n=40) of either 5 shy or 5 bold sheep, we measured distribution at pasture and responses to disturbance and the approach of a human handler. When grazing undisturbed, the mean nearest neighbour distance and spread (minimum convex hull area) of shy groups were less than those of bold groups, with shy individuals moving towards one another more often. Shy groups explored a smaller area than bold groups. When disturbed, shy sheep were more likely to stop grazing and move closer together. Shy sheep kept further away from the handler and moved faster when driven. The results demonstrate a link between personality and group distribution, suggesting that our 'shy' and 'bold' individuals may occupy different positions on the shy-bold continuum documented for other species. We discuss implications for diet composition and impacts on vegetation grazed by animals with different personalities.

The Rewards of APA Membership

Back to table of contents Previous article Next article From the PresidentFull AccessThe Rewards of APA MembershipMichelle Riba, M.D., M.S.Michelle RibaSearch for more papers by this author, M.D., M.S.Published Online:17 Sep 2004https://doi.org/10.1176/pn.39.18.0390003 One of the best aspects of being president of APA is having the opportunity to hear from APA members about issues affecting our patients and our profession. Many of you have e-mailed me, offering advice, support, expertise, and even some friendly criticism about what we are doing at APA. We are not a shy group! What is clear from these communications is that our members feel very much connected and part of the important work we are doing and that they care a lot about what we are trying to do.When an APA member writes to me, whether he or she is raising a clinical issue, asking about the work of an APA component, or recommending that some action be taken with regard to a particular problem, the fact that the person is a psychiatrist and a fellow APA member provides an immediate bond and connection. I make new friends among our members regularly, and I very much appreciate the time and trouble many of you are taking to let me know how you think I am doing and how APA is doing.Which brings me to the issue of APA membership. At this time in our profession, I cannot think of anything more important than our coming together and maintaining a strong APA. APA membership helps solidify our professional identity as psychiatrists; it is an honor to belong to such a great organization. The Association has certainly stood the test of time—it is the oldest medical specialty society in the United States (it was founded in 1844). Moreover, no other psychiatric organization has the depth and breadth of expertise and ability to advocate for our patients and our profession. Under the leadership of our terrific medical director, Jay Scully, M.D., we have one of the most professional and most respected medical organization staffs in the world.I have had the opportunity to meet with many resident groups in the last year, and inevitably the subject of APA membership comes up. Many residents (as do general members) affiliate with various subspecialty organizations—and that is a good thing because such organizations offer a range of valuable professional and collegial opportunities. As a result, however, many residents are confused about which organizations are most important or valuable to join. My advice to them is simple: It is critical to join APA as well as their subspecialty or professional-interest psychiatric organization.That our field has many outstanding, effective organizations is indicative of its health and the many exciting developments that have taken place over the past 20 years in research, patient care, and academia. And while becoming active members in them strengthens our ability to accomplish important goals, we cannot permit ourselves to become fragmented or have our voices diminished. We must make sure we retain a unified voice that can speak for all of psychiatry; having that unified voice makes us more effective in communicating consistent and focused messages to legislators, advocacy groups, patients, the public, and other medical groups. Moreover, being an APA member ensures that APA continues to represent a critical mass of psychiatrists whose numbers have meaning in Congress.Psychiatry needs to work hard to make ourselves heard. Stigma continues to plague our profession and our patients. State and federal budget cuts, no or limited access to care, denied care under managed care plans, and lack of parity coverage are among the problems we and our patients confront daily.To be sure, I appreciate that APA dues, medical society dues, and specialty organization dues can add up. But the value you are getting for your dollar in belonging to a world-renowned psychiatric organization and joining with your colleagues is unmistakable.We need you in other ways as well. If you want get involved in psychiatry but prefer to do so closer to home, there are many opportunities at the APA district branch and state association levels. If you are at or near retirement, we need your expertise and help more than ever.This is a big organization. We are working on many issues. Your voice is important, needed, and valued. Thank you for your continued membership in APA.▪ ISSUES NewArchived

Is the internet the best resource for blushers?

Blushing can be a disabling condition that causes sufferers great distress. It causes patients to become socially isolated, frequently being labelled as "shy". Any referral to their condition is embarrassing; even a discussion with a health care professional requires a great deal of courage. Even then, the information from non-specialists is often inaccurate and inadequate and fails to inform patients of the possible treatment options available. In today's era the internet has become an important information medium. This information on almost any subject is widely available to the general public and can be accessed at any time. It is available to blushers and health care professionals alike. It offers a non-embarrassing method of seeking help for an embarrassing condition. It is a medium for specialists to inform sufferers incognito about such a condition. We report our experience from our website: a generalised hyperhidrosis, blushing and sympathectomy information web site (www.sympathectomy.co.uk) by analysing the number of hits and requests for information. We discuss the statistics of internet access to our website including the "hit rate" and enquiry rate. Paradoxically 75% of all enquiries have been from blushers with only 25% coming from patients with hyperhidrosis.A properly designed, accurate and dynamic web site tailored towards users' needs can be used to effectively educate an information hungry but shy group.

Shyness: relationship to social phobia and other psychiatric disorders

The relationship between shyness, social phobia and other psychiatric disorders was examined. The prevalence of social phobia was significantly higher among shy persons (18%) compared with non-shy persons (3%). However, the majority of shy individuals (82%) were not socially phobic. A significant and positive correlation was found between the severity of shyness and the presence of social phobia, but the data suggest that social phobia is not merely severe shyness. Social phobia was also positively and moderately correlated with introversion and neuroticism. Thus, shy persons with social phobia were shyer, more introverted, and more neurotic than other shy people, but none of these factors was sufficient to distinguish shy persons with social phobia from those without social phobia. The proportion of the shy group with psychiatric diagnoses other than social phobia was significantly higher than among the non-shy group, indicating that various diagnostic categories are prominent among the shy. The results are discussed in terms of the overlap in shyness and social phobia and the relationship of shyness to other psychiatric diagnoses and personality dimensions.

Scrutinizing the relationship between shyness and social phobia

The nature of the relationship between shyness and social phobia can be clarified by assessing rates of social phobia in highly shy and normative samples. In the present study, 2202 participants were screened and categorized on a shyness scale as highly shy (90th percentile) or “normatively” shy (40–60th percentile). The Composite International Diagnostic Interview and the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis II Personality Disorders (SCID-II; Avoidant Personality Disorder module) were used to assign clinical diagnoses. Approximately 49% of individuals in the highly shy group had a social phobia diagnosis compared to 18% in the normatively shy group. Significantly more generalized social phobia (36% vs. 4%) and avoidant personality disorder (14% vs. 4%) diagnoses were present in the highly shy group compared to the normatively shy group. Equal rates of nongeneralized social phobia (i.e., 14% vs. 14%) were present in the highly shy and the normatively shy comparison group. Findings suggest that shyness and social phobia (especially the generalized type) are related constructs but not completely synonymous; an individual can be extremely shy yet not have a social phobia diagnosis.

Shy girls and boys: a new look.

A new look at shyness in young children involves selecting for shyness, using criteria involving both natural and laboratory contexts, categorizing children (including a group between the two extremes), and including the sex of the child in analyses. Children of both sexes differed significantly across low, medium, and high shy groups, with negative mood, worries and fears, and problem behaviour in preschool being associated with high shyness. Although boys in general and high shy boys in particular had the highest problem behaviour scores in preschool (including acting out behaviour), maternal interactions with high shy boys were positive: significantly more positive than with boys who were high shy in natural settings but low shy in the laboratory, or with high shy girls. Of the girls, maternal style was most positive for the medium shy girls, who also received the highest relative frequency of positive maternal actions during a brief task-significantly higher than medium shy boys, as well as high shy girls.

Behavioral subtypes of low-achieving children: Differences in school social adjustment

The purpose of this research was to identify possible behavioral subtypes of low- achieving elementary school children and to examine the extent to which these children experience difficulties in their peer relationships in school. Thirty-three low- achieving second- through fifth-grade students and a matched sample of average- achieving children were identified. A cluster analysis was conducted using peer assessment measures of cooperative, disruptive, aggressive, and shy behavior. Results revealed two distinct subtypes of low-achieving children, an aggressive-disruptive group and a nonaggressive but somewhat shy group. Low-achieving, aggressive-disruptive children were less socially accepted and more rejected than average-achieving children. These children were also rated by teachers as having more difficulty handling problematic social situations than either average-achieving children or low-achieving, nonaggressive children. Low-achieving, nonaggressive children did not differ from average-achieving children in peer sociometric status or in their ability to handle social problem situations. Implications for social skills intervention are discussed.

Differences between fearful and self-conscious shy subtypes in background and current adjustment

Based on A. Buss' (1985, in W. A. Jones, J. M. Cheek, & S. R. Briggs (Eds.), Shyness: Perspective on research and treatment (pp. 39–46). New York: Plenum) theory of shyness, participants were classifield into fearful, self-conscious, and nonshy groups forming a 3 (group) × 2 (gender) design. The study was designed to examine shyness group differences in developmental history and current competence on tasks relevant to interpersonal and school adjustment to test assumptions of Buss' model. For past history, there was a significant difference between fearful and self-conscious shys in age of onset of shyness. Previously shy subjects did not differ from fearful and self-conscious shys in feelings of acute self-consciousness in junior high school, but reported significantly less self-consciousness in college. Fearful in contrast to self-conscious shys reported a greater degree of somatic anxiety, and fearful shy men reported significantly greater behavioral inhibition than did all other groups. Results for shyness differences in competence showed that, compared to nonshys, both shy groups reported less satisfaction with their physical appearance. Fearful shys were less knowledgeable about effective social skills, and both shy groups reported less consideration and less exploration of occupations requiring interpersonal contact. The findings are discussed with respect to theoretical implications for Buss' model of shyness and for their clinical implications.

The effects of self-evaluative statements on heterosocial approach in shy and nonshy males

Shy and nonshy college males participated individually in a study on “attitude induction.” Subjects received either self-enhancing (SE)or self-critical (SC)statements to concentrate on and experience. The extent of subsequent heterosocial approach was unobtrusively assessed. Compared to the SE group, the SC group took longer to initiate conversation, spent less time conversing, and evidenced several other behavioral differences. No differences were found on any specific behavioral or self-reported indices of anxiety. The shy and nonshy groups differed from one another in a manner similar to the SC and SE groups. The potential significance of self-evaluation processes as one factor influencing heterosocial approach was discussed.

Effects of Chlorpromazine and Amytal on Hoarding in “Shy” and “Nonshy” Rats

Ss were classified into shy and nonshy groups by means of the cage-emergence technique. A series of trials in either open or closed alleys were given, the last 2 serving as saline control trials for the drug stage. An equal number of shy and nonshy Ss were randomly assigned to sodium amytal or chlorpromazine and 3 open test trials were given. Shy animals hoarded less in the open than in the closed alleys, but there was no significant difference between the two groups in the closed alleys. Sodium amytal effectively increased hoarding in the shy Ss, but chlorpromazine failed to do so. Neither drug had a significant effect upon hoarding of nonshy Ss. The significance of these results was discussed in connection with hoarding levels of shy and nonshy Ss and the effects of the drugs on fear.