Examining launch and snare effects in the longitudinal associations between shyness and socio‐emotional difficulties in childhood

Shyness and Socio-Emotional Adjustment among Young Chinese Children: The Moderating Role of Screen Time

The primary aim of the present study was to examine the potential moderating role of screen time in the links between shyness and indices of socio-emotional adjustment in young Chinese children. Participants were N = 211 children (112 boys, 99 girls) ages 43-66 months (M = 58.84 months, SD = 5.32) recruited from two public kindergartens in Shanghai, People's Republic of China. Mothers completed assessments of children's shyness and screen time, and both mothers and teachers completed measures of indices of children's socio-emotional functioning (prosocial, internalizing problems, learning problems). Among the results, shyness was positively associated with internalizing problems and negatively associated with prosocial behavior, whereas screen time was positively associated with internalizing problems. However, several significant shyness × screen time interaction effects were observed. The pattern of these results consistently revealed that at higher levels of screen time, links between shyness and indices of socio-emotional difficulties were exacerbated. Results are discussed in terms of the implications of shyness and screen time in early childhood.

Relations between social withdrawal subtypes and socio-emotional adjustment among Chinese children and early adolescents

The aim of the present study was to compare the relations between subtypes of social withdrawal and socio-emotional adjustment in Chinese children and early adolescents. Participants included 571 children (Mage  = 9.62 years) and 345 adolescents Mage  = 12.12 years) in mainland China. Social withdrawal subtypes (i.e., shyness, unsociability, social avoidance) and indices of socio-emotional adjustment were assessed via self-reports, peer nominations, and teacher ratings. Shyness tended to be more strongly associated with emotional maladjustment in early adolescence, whereas unsociability was more strongly associated with socio-emotional difficulties in childhood. For social avoidance, associations with indices of negative adjustment (i.e., social anxiety, emotional symptoms, peer problems) were stronger in childhood, however, associations with indices of positive adjustment (i.e., life satisfaction, well-being) were stronger in early adolescence.

Developmental changes in the structure of shyness and internalizing symptoms from early to middle childhood: A network analysis

Shyness is a temperamental trait that shares considerable conceptual overlap with aspects of internalizing problems, creating difficulties in operationalizing and assessing these two constructs and their association. This study addresses these issues by employing network analyses. Participants were, white, N = 555 children (M_age  = 52.45 months, SD = 15.96, 55% girls) followed longitudinally over 4 years (2016-2010) in Norway. Teachers rated child shyness and assessed children's internalizing symptoms. Results suggest that two behavioral shyness traits were the most central aspects of shyness. The centrality of these aspects was robust across age. The most influential symptom connecting internalizing symptoms with shyness was "unhappy." Shyness became more differentiated with development, and associations between anxiety-related symptoms and shyness increased as children entered formal schooling.

Evaluating Links between Social Withdrawal Motivations and Indices of Psychosocial Adjustment among Norwegian Emerging Adults

Social withdrawal is the behavioral tendency to remove oneself from social situations - a tendency that often contributes to reductions in individuals' mental health. The current study evaluated the links between different motivations for social withdrawal (shyness, unsociability, social avoidance) and indices of psychosocial adjustment in a Norwegian sample of emerging adults. Participants were N = 194 Norwegian university students who completed self-report measures of life satisfaction, loneliness, and depressive symptoms, as well as withdrawal motivations. Among the results, a newly translated version of the Social Preference Scale-Revised (SPS-R) was validated for use in Norway. Findings showed that shyness was uniquely and positively associated with loneliness and depressive symptoms, as well as lower life satisfaction, whereas social avoidance was positively associated with depressive symptoms. Unsociability was uniquely linked to lower levels of loneliness and depressive symptoms. Findings provide novel information about the psychosocial correlates of social withdrawal motivations during emerging adulthood in the under-explored cultural context of Norway. Understanding nuances in the correlates of different motivations may aid in the development of culturally and developmentally sensitive interventions.

The Relation of Motivation Factors for Online Games With Personality Disorders, Addiction, Shyness, and Loneliness in Kuwait

Drawing on the Self-Development Theory (SDT), this study examines the relation between the factors that motivate online gaming and the effects of addiction, shyness, and loneliness. We have modified the SDT theory by adding intrinsic and extrinsic factors to measure the degree of its effect on addiction in online gaming settings. Next, we develop a special instrument to measure gamers’ experience and their level of addiction. The sample is 671 online gamers who participated in an online survey. A confirmatory factor analysis and structured equation modeling tests are conducted to identify reliable factors and the goodness of fit of the research model. The findings show that the effect of addiction on shyness and loneliness is minor. Furthermore, loneliness is affected mostly by anxiety of others. In addition, the challenge of meeting the goals of gaming has the greatest effect on addiction. The study offers important implications for decision makers among family members such as parents and among society in general such as policy makers to avoid side effects of online gaming.