The Gift of Introversion

are four shades of introversion: social, thinking, anxious, and restrained. And many
introverts are a mix of all four types, rather than demonstrating one type over the others.
(Scroll to the bottom for a quiz to find out your own type.)
Taken together, the first letter of the four types spells out STAR, which is what Cheek
named his model. He designed it by surveying about 500 adults, ranging in age from 18
to 70, asking them about things like their preference for solitude, or how inclined they
are to daydream. The uniting principle of all four kinds is, of course, a tendency to turn
inward rather than outward — but beyond that, it gets more complicated.
Here's a brief description of each:
Social: Social introversion is the closest to the commonly held understanding of
introversion, in that it's a preference for socializing with small groups instead of large
ones. Or sometimes, it's a preference for no group at all — solitude is often preferable
for those who score high in social introversion. "They prefer to stay home with a book or
a computer, or to stick to small gatherings with close friends, as opposed to attending
large parties with many strangers," Cheek said. But it's different from shyness, in that
there's no anxiety driving the preference for solitude or small groups.
Thinking; Thinking introversion is a newer concept. People with high levels of thinking
introversion don't share the aversion to social events people usually associate with
introversion. Instead, they're introspective, thoughtful, and self-reflective. "You're
capable of getting lost in an internal fantasy world," Cheek said. "But it's not in a
neurotic way, it's in an imaginative and creative way." Think the dreamily imaginative
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