Jayla DiPalo- What are extroverts and introverts?

A group of students is researching the difference between how introverts and extroverts form friendships and how this influences their career choices. Extroverts are more social and assertive, while introverts are more focused on their own thoughts and feelings. An article by Andrew Spark found that extroverts have advantages in leadership roles. The study suggests that extroverts may form friendships more easily, while introverts value one-on-one connections. Friendships can impact career choices through shared interests and advice. Extroverts have an advantage in developing leadership skills through relationships, but introverts can still have extroverted careers. The Holdup organization at the University of Connecticut focuses on leadership development for introverts and extroverts. Both introverts and extroverts can exhibit leadership qualities. The organization offers opportunities for individuals to contribute and benefit from the community. The study and the organization show th Welcome to our podcast, I'm Jayla DiPaolo and I'm working with my classmates Elaine, Franco, and Alan to help dissect our research question. We ask, what's the difference between how introverts and extroverts form friendships throughout their life? And how do their friendships influence their career choices given a similar education? We all are excited to share what we have learned with our listeners. In this episode specifically, we will explore the similarities and differences between introverts and extroverts. We will discuss the meaning of extroversion and introversion and how it can impact a person's life choices. Then we will tie everything together to connect this to the main research question. So let's begin. So to start, what exactly is introversion and extroversion? The formal definition of extroversion is a personality trait or style characterized by a preference of engaging socially with others. In other words, it is the tendency towards being mainly concerned with and obtaining gratification from what is outside the self. Introversion is pretty much the opposite. It's the tendency towards being mainly concerned with and obtaining gratification from one's own mental life. It is more of a personality trait or style characterized by a preference to one's own thoughts and feelings. So what does it mean to be an extrovert or an introvert? The meaning behind being introverted or extroverted in simple terms is that an introvert is someone who doesn't engage in large social interactions, while on the other hand, extroverts have extra big social personalities. An article by Andrew Spark conducted a study that analyzes the interconnection between extra and introvertism and the concept of leadership roles. It is a common theme that extroverts have more advantages in leadership due to them being more bold, assertive, and talkative than introverts. There were three hypotheses discussed in the article, which state that extroverted behavior increases emergent leadership while introverted behavior decreases it, next, that extroverted behavior increases post-activity positive effect, and then extroverted behavior decreases post-activity negative effect, and it came to be that there was a lot of support and evidence to prove all of these hypotheses true. The study contributes to an understanding of leadership emergence by emphasizing the role of behavioral states and offering insights into how the behaviors of introverts and extroverts affect their self-perceived emergent leadership. While the provided study focuses on the effect of introverted and extroverted behaviors in a group context and their relationship to leadership emergence, it doesn't directly address our research question. However, we can interpret some potential connections to it. To start, friendship formation can be interpreted from the results of the study. One might think that extroverts with their outgoing and sociable behaviors may find it easier to form friendships with other people, but introverts, on the other hand, might approach friendship formation in alternative ways, probably valuing one-on-one connections with the other person. Now, how does this evidence show the influence of friendships on career choices? The study shows the influence on behaviors on leadership skills. One might think that different socialization styles influenced by being an introvert or an extrovert might impact the types of friendships individuals decide to create, but maybe even friendships formed at an earlier age can impact career choices through similarities with the other person. This could include advice and shared interests that could lead to potential career paths. The advantage of making more relationships with others and participating better in teamwork allows extroverts to develop leadership skills far easier than in the case of an introvert. The friendships and other relationships made through leadership can be more of an advantage to an extrovert than an introvert, but just because an introvert doesn't have the desire to be a leader doesn't mean that their career can't be that of an extrovert. Not only does this article show the different behaviors that an introvert and an extrovert exhibit, but this article can also shift conversation to how these different behaviors are shown in a career or workplace later in life. Now, that was a lot to take in, so let's take a moment and think to yourself with all of the information we have talked about, do you see yourself as an introvert or an extrovert? Based on the research and the formal definition of extroversion and introversion, could you see yourself being more extroverted or introverted? Extroversion is different, but it doesn't mean we can't do similar things. I would like to explain a site where one can learn more about this topic. The Holdup is a completely student-run organization at the University of Connecticut that emphasizes on leadership and organizational development for everyone, whether you are an introvert or an extrovert. They aim to empower individuals and groups to elevate their leadership identities and strengthen active membership in their communities. They talk about how introverts and extroverts in the organization have formed friendships and how their lives are impacted or influenced by introversion or extroversion. On their website, there is an article by Krista O'Brien to show that anyone can join this club even if you don't exhibit the traditional qualities of a leader. The world is not black and white. Not all of us are introverts or extroverts. Some of us can be on the spectrum as well. That is totally normal. The organization creates a space where individuals, regardless of their introversion or extroversion, can actively contribute to and benefit from the community. Krista O'Brien states something really powerful in her writing. She says, I recently discovered another leadership quality that is important and it seems more prevalent in introverts, humility. Being a humble leader allows you to put the focus on the individuals that you lead. I think this is a really interesting comment to make about how although the traditional view of a leader is an extrovert, an introvert may exhibit more powerful qualities that a leader should portray. Both the article by Sparks and the article by O'Brien convey a lot of valuable information about introversion and extroversion. The study emphasizes that leadership outcomes are a result of behavior within a given context. The holdup organization, both introverted and extroverted individuals, may find opportunities to develop and showcase their leadership skills. The study also suggests that introverts and extroverts can show leadership relevant behaviors. The holdup organization aligns with this idea and emphasizes empowering individuals regardless of their traditional leadership qualities. I could obviously go on and on and on about this topic, but next up is Elaine with more information about how introverts and extroverts form friendships with others. I hope you enjoyed. I'm Jill at Apollo. See you next time.