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Happiness expert reveals whether introverts or extroverts are truly happier
Are you an introvert or�an extrovert? Most people are somewhere in the middle, with characteristics of both, but one of them is happier.
Happiness expert Dr Robert Waldinger has revealed who truly gets more enjoyment out of life, and it’s probably not the one you think.
Are introverts or extroverts happier?
Speaking on Steven Bartlett’s Diary Of A CEO podcast, Waldinger, a psychiatrist who specializes in happiness, said it’s introverts that are happier.
“Extroverts tend to get more short-term happiness and introverts tend to have more long-term happiness,” he explained.
So, that means both are happy in their own individual way, but introverts tend to be happier in the long run.
Extroverts get more “enjoyment” out of life, he explained, while introverts get more “meaning,” and it’s this meaning that results in long-term happiness.
Why introverts tend to be happier
Most people assume that extroverts are happier because they always have a “higher mood” and “positive affect”.
However, the psychiatrist explained that introverts have “special gifts” including closer relationships and deeper emotional connections.
As a result of that, they tend to have long-term friendships and marriage partners that sustain them in a way that extroverts don’t.
Extroverts are sometimes the most lonely because they often have lots of people around them, but don’t form those deep connections.
Are you an introvert or extrovert?
As explained by Simple Psychology, some of the main traits of an introvert are:
- Being reserved, passive and thoughtful
- Wanting to keep emotional states private
- Feeling more comfortable in solitary environments
- Preferring one-on-one or small-group interactions
- Find excessive social interactions draining
In opposition, being an extrovert is characterized by:
- Being social, assertive and cheerful
- Seeking novelty and excitement
- Enjoying being the center of attention.
- Thriving in social settings
- Feeling energized by interacting with others
- Seeking out and enjoying group activities or public events
Dr Robert Waldinger is a psychiatrist and psychoanalyst who is a part-time professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and director of the Harvard Study of Adult Development. His research focuses on happiness and what actually makes a good life.
