The field of personality psychology explores the characteristics of people and connects those traits with a variety of behaviors and outcomes. Careful measurement techniques used in this field have allowed a large reliable database to be built.
The gold standard for making a judgment about the relationship between a behavior and an outcome is to be able to do an experiment that conditions participants. We can not attribute traits to people at random in a study, so this has limited the power of conclusions that can be drawn.
For example, studies have suggested that extroverts are generally happier than introverts. This discovery has been constantly monitored for decades. But, it is difficult to know if this reflects something about what makes people extroverted, or if this is a reflection of the types of interactions that people have when they act as extroverts.
This specific question was addressed in an experiment by Seth Margolis and Sonja Lyubomirsky in an April 2020 paper in the Journal of Experimental Psychology.
The design of this experiment is straightforward. Participants were given descriptions that are typical of extroverts (talkative, persistent, and spontaneous) and were told to act that way for a week. They were given adjectives that are typical of introverts (intentional, quiet, and reserved) and told to act that way for a week. The order in which they received instructions was balanced among the participants.
At the beginning of the study, a measure of people's personality traits was taken. Along the way, researchers gathered information about people's actions to make sure they followed the instructions. They also took welfare measures. Participants also appreciated how enjoyable the activities were for them.
Në përgjithësi, pjesëmarrësit shfaqën nivele më të larta të mirëqenies në javën që u sollën si ekstrovert sesa javën që u sollën si introvert. Kjo ishte e vërtetë si për njerëzit që janë të lartë dhe ata që janë të ulët në ekstroversion në shkallët e personalitetit. Pra, ky manipulim i preku të gjithë për mirë edhe nëse ishin introvert në jetën e vërtetë.
Sa më shumë që pjesëmarrësit kënaqeshin me sjelljet dhe mendonin se ato ishin kuptimplote, aq më i madh ishte ndryshimi në mirëqenien midis javëve ekstroverte dhe introverte.
Në përgjithësi, ky studim sugjeron se të vepruarit si një ekstrovert, i cili i shtyn njerëzit të kenë ndërveprime sociale me të tjerët dhe të përfshihen në aktivitete të reja, rrit ndjenjën e lumturisë dhe kënaqësisë së njerëzve në krahasim me të vepruarit si një introvert dhe të qenit më të turpshëm dhe të rezervuar.
This study shows that experimental work can play an essential role in understanding the relationships between behaviors related to personality traits and other outcomes.
The results from the study indicate that you should probably try to get out of your comfort zone. Where it needs to be, you can find happiness!
Burimi: Psychology Today
