We explain what it is to be an extrovert and the characteristics of an extrovert. Also, what is it to be an introvert.
What is being an extrovert?
Someone is said to be extroverted or extroverted when their general traits of personality tend to enjoy the company of others, activities outside the home and high levels of socialization. In other words, extroverts are those who recharge their emotional and mental energy when they are in the presence of others. It is the complete opposite of introverts.
It should be clarified that, according to the Royal Spanish Academy, both the term extroverted and extraverted are acceptable, although the latter is preferred in academic and cultured settings, as it is more faithful to the original formulation of these psychological concepts. The same is not true, however, with an introvert.
Extraversion and introversion are personality typologies formulated by the physician and psychologist Carl Gustav Jung (1875-1961) in his work Psychologische Typen (“Psychological types”) from 1921. In this work the Swiss scholar proposes them as “poles” of the personality: the one that tends toward the outside world (extroverted, that is, poured out) and the one that tends toward the world. inside (introvert, that is, poured inwards).
Furthermore, Jung combined these poles with four main functions of consciousness: two of them perceptual or irrational, which would be intuition and sensation; and two of them judgmental or rational, which would be the thought and the feeling. So, regarding the extroverted attitude, there could be four psychological types:
- Extraverted-thinking. People who are guided in life by a set of stable, invariable rules and principles, and who are interested first of all in reality.
- Extraverted-feeling. Conventional people, interested in social and personal success, and who are generally well adapted to their time. They are prone to fashions and tend toward the fickle.
- Extravert - sensation. Practical and stubborn people, who accept the world as it is, and are interested more than anything in the experienceable phenomena of reality.
- Extraverted-intuition. People with capacity for leadership and "sixth sense", who are often attracted to novelty and opportunity.
In all these cases, the common trait is extraversion, that is, prioritizing the outer life over the inner world.
Characteristics of an outgoing person
Broadly speaking, extroverts tend to be:
- Very sociable, able to enjoy group activities and tasks in which they must face others.
- Active and energetic, with a tendency to enjoy the external world and physical activities.
- Charismatic, gifted for leadership, the resolution of problems and the dialogue.
- More energetic when they are with people, and less energetic when they are alone.
Extrovert and introvert
Introversion is the exact opposite of extraversion, and they are fundamentally distinguished in that introverts privilege their inner world over the social and external world, which is why they "recharge their energy" when they are alone, in comfortable environments and low social activity.
Introverts, therefore, tend more towards reflection, the inner contemplation of their thoughts and emotions, while extraverts are more comfortable dealing with the real world and with others.