Introverts and Extroverts: Which Type Prefers Social Networking?

I recently had a discussion in one of the courses I teach about whether introverts or extroverts were more likely to be on the social web. Some students made a good argument for why there may be more introverts on social networking sites. Introverts tend to like to take their time to think about what they want to say before they say it. Therefore, the online environment is a good place for them to be able to type what they want to say at their own speed. Other students made a good argument for why there may be more extroverts on social sites. Extroverts like a lot of discussion and interaction with others and therefore it makes sense that they’d be out there conversing, even if it was in written form.

I did a little research and found an interesting study by Maggie Morrison and Sally McMillan from the University of Tennessee. A total of 351 persons participated in this study examining the behavior and characteristics of consumers in user generated content. Their findings indicated that most respondents read or lurk more often than they post. They also found that men were likely to score high on the posting factor and women were more likely to score high on use of social networking sites.

As far as the whether there were more introverts or extroverts, the authors found that participants who are more likely to lurk and post at social networking sites are also more likely to score high on the extraversion scale.

Check out a blog by abisignorelli.com where the author speculated that there were more introverts by clicking here. The author put together a quick one question survey to gather some data. Click here for that survey. At the time of this writing, the results from that survey indicated 57% were introverts and 43% were extroverts.

Blog.thick.com tended to agree that more introverts were on the web. In that article, the author states that the internet has helped the introvert come out of their shell. To see the article, click here.

Twitterwatchdog.com also agrees that there are more introverts socializing on the Internet, stating that Twitter is a safe haven for shy people and introverts. Check out their blog by clicking here.

Mashable.com noted in one of their articles that Guy Kawasaki, the 15th most influential Twitter user and one of the most recognizable names in social media, is a self-professed introvert. Click here to go to the Mashable site to answer their survey to answer whether you are an introvert or an extrovert.

So what do you think? Are there more introverts or extroverts out there social networking? The University of Tennessee study showed more extroverts and the informal surveys showed more introverts. In our book, The Young Adult’s Guide to Understanding Personalities, Toni Rothpletz and I write about the differences between introverts and extroverts. We are both extroverts and find the differences between the two groups fascinating. If you are interested in learning more about Myers-Briggs’ and their definition of the difference between introverts and extroverts, click here.

In our book we list several examples of each type of Myers-Briggs personality type.

Here is a list of some famous extroverts that we write about in our book:

Tom Hanks
David Spade
Oprah
President Obama
Johnny Depp
Michael Jordan
Matthew McConaughey
Ben Affleck
Robin Williams
Robert Downing Jr.
Sandra Bullock

Here is a list of some famous introverts:

Tiger Woods
Albert Einstein
Sir Isaac Newton
Meryl Streep
Julia Roberts
John F. Kennedy, Jr.
William Shakespeare
Michael Jackson
Marilyn Monroe

If you are interested in seeing more . . .you can check out the lists of celebrity examples in our book which will be published soon. I will keep you updated.

Keirsey’s Results Show Wealthy Extroverts Are Happiest Americans

In Dr. Grupta’s blog, he wrote about: Who are the happiest Americans? According to a new study, they may be extroverted, earning more than $75,000 a year, healthy, and engaged. The analysis was conducted by Keirsey Research, an organization that looks at how personality relates to a person’s preferences in consumer choices, political opinion, and a variety of other factors. Click here for the rest of Grupta’s article.

In our book about personalities, my daughter, Toni Rothpletz, and I discuss Keirsey’s temperament research. If you are interested in reading more about the results of Keirsey’s study that showed “Wealthy Extroverts are the Happiest Americans” click here. Some highlights from the results of this study showed:

Personality. 63 percent of Americans rate themselves as very or somewhat happy. Extroverts (74 percent), however, are much happier than introverts (56 percent).
Wealth. In general, the higher the household income, the happier the individual. 72 percent of those with an annual household income of $75,000 or more are very or somewhat happy, compared to 59 percent of those with an annual household income of $50,000 or less.
Love. Not surprisingly, being engaged promotes above average happiness (71 percent very or somewhat happy). Those who are separated but not divorced are least happy when it comes to love (48 percent).
Age. Americans get progressively happier as they get older, with one exception. Happiness takes a dip between the ages of 35-44 (58 percent are very or somewhat happy), when parental and career pressures are typically at their peak.
Family. “Empty nesters” are most happy (73 percent very or somewhat happy), while those who are divorced and sharing custody are least happy (56 percent). Individuals who do not have children cite average happiness (62 percent).
Education. In most cases, more education means more happiness. There was no difference, however, between the happiness of those with a bachelor’s degree and those with a graduate degree (68 percent very or somewhat happy).
Politics. Democrats and Republicans are equally happy (roughly 70 percent very or somewhat happy), while Green Party affiliates are the least happy (52 percent).