Some Family Antecedents of Severe Shyness

Abstract

Love-shyness is a degree of inhibition and reticence vis-a-vis the opposite sex that is sufficiently severe as to obviate any participation in courtship, marriage and family formation roles. Two love-shy groups (an older one and a younger one) were compared to a nonshy group on several family background variables. The love-shys were found to have been about five times as likely as the nonshys to have grown up without having any female siblings. They were also found to have grown up in homes which were isolated from any kin family network. Besides not receiving much emotional support from kin, the shys tended to have been social isolates as far as agemate peers were concerned. Further, the love-shys were found to have been more than three times as likely as the nonshys to have grown up as only children. Disharmony and verbal abuse had been commonplace components of the love-shys' family atmosphere.