This in-class exercise is designed to teach basic principles of survey methodology and make students more aware of the pervasiveness of and potential problems associated with shyness in college students. Students complete a brief survey on shyness and the instructor presents a summary of the results to the class as part of a lecture on survey methodology. The instructor also discusses the problems associated with shyness in college students and possible causes of shyness. Suggested readings to help students overcome their shyness are also included.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
ArcusD.McCartneyK. (1989). When baby makes four: Family influences in the stability of behavioral inhibition. In ReznickJ. S., Perspectives on behavioral inhibition (pp. 197–218). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
2.
CarducciB. J.ClarkD. A. (1993, August). Behavioral, cognitive, and affective tendencies of chronically and transitionally shy individuals. Poster session presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
3.
CarducciB. J.ClarkD. A. (1994, August). The personal and situational pervasiveness of chronically shy, socially anxious individuals. Poster session at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association, Los Angeles.
4.
CarducciB. J.SteinN. (1988, April). The personal and situational pervasiveness of shyness in college students: A nine-year comparison. Poster session presented at the annual meeting of the Southeastern Psychological Association, New Orleans.
5.
CheekJ. (1989). Conquering shyness: The battle anyone can win. New York: Dell.
6.
CheekJ. M. (1994). Shyness. In ParkerS.ZuckermanB., Behavioral and developmental pediatrics: A handbook for primary care (pp. 285–288). Boston: Little, Brown.
7.
CheekJ. M.CarpentieriA. M.SmithT. G.RierdanJ.KoffE. (1986). Adolescent shyness. In JonesW. H.CheekJ. M.BriggsS. R., Shyness: Perspectives on research and treatment (pp. 105–115). New York: Plenum.
8.
KaganJ.ArcusD.SnidmanN. (1993). The idea of temperament: Where do we go from here? In PlominR.McClearnG. E., Nature, nurture and psychology (pp. 197–210). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
9.
KaganJ.ArcusD.SnidmanN.FengW. Y.HendlerJ.GreeneS. (1994). Reactivity in infants: A cross-national comparison. Developmental Psychology, 30, 342–345.
10.
KaganJ.ArcusD.SnidmanN.RimmS. E. (1995). Asymmetry of forehead temperature and cardiac activity. Neuropsychology, 9, 47–51.
11.
KaganJ.SnidmanN.St ArcusD. (1992). Initial reactions to unfamiliarity. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 1, 171–174.
12.
KlopfD. W. (1984). Cross-cultural apprehension research. A summary of Pacific Basin studies. In DalyJ. A.McCroskeyJ. C., Avoiding communication (pp. 157–169). Beverly Hills: Sage.
13.
LearyM. R. (1983). Understanding social anxiety: Social, personality, and clinical perspectives. Beverly Hills: Sage.
14.
LearyM. R. (1986). Affective and behavioral components of shyness: Implications for theory, measurement, and research. In JonesW. H.CheekJ. M.BriggsS. R., Shyness: Perspectives on research and treatment (pp. 27–38). New York: Plenum.
15.
PilkonisP. A. (1977). Shyness, public and private, and its relationship to other measures of social behavior. Journal of Personality, 45, 585–595.
16.
ZimbordoP. G. (1977). Shyness: What it is. what to do about it. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.
17.
ZimbardoP. G.PilkonisP. A.NorwoodR. M. (1974). The silent prison of shyness (ONR Tech. Rep. No. Z-17). Stanford, CA: Stanford University
