Shyness, sociability, and social dysfunction in schizophrenia

Recent bio-developmental models of shyness traits (Schmidt, L.A., Fox, N.A. , 1998. The development and outcomes of childhood shyness. Annals of Child Development 13, 1-20; Schmidt, L.A. Fox, N.A., 1999. Conceptual, biological , and behavioural distinctions among different types of shy children. In: S chmidt, L.A., Schulkin, J. (Eds.), Extreme Fear, Shyness, and Social Phobia : Origins, Biological Mechanisms, and Clinical Outcomes. Oxford University Press, New York, pp. 47-66) have proposed that childhood shyness and early sociability troubles may be a precursor to pervasive social dysfunction in adulthood. An important question in testing the vulnerability model is to d etermine the severity of shyness among adults who have a serious social dys function, such as individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia. The Cheek and B uss Shyness and Sociability Scales (Cheek, J.M., Buss, A.H., 1981. Shyness and sociability. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 41, 330-339) and the Reznick Retrospective Self-report of Inhibition (Reznick, J.S., Heg eman, I.N., Kaufman, E.R., Woods, S.W., Jacobs, M., 1992. Retrospective and concurrent self-report of behavioural inhibition and their relation to adu lt mental health. Development and Psychopathology 4, 301-321) were administ ered to 23 schizophrenia outpatients and 23 control subjects matched for ag e and sex. The results indicated that individuals with schizophrenia showed significantly more shyness (P < 0.004), lower sociability (P < 0.02) and m ore recollections of childhood social troubles (P < 0.007) compared with th e control group. Within the schizophrenia group, both shyness traits (P < 0 .04) and limited sociability (P < 0.01) were clearly associated with interp ersonal dysfunction, while significant correlations were also found between troubled sociability and negative symptoms (P < 0.05). The findings of shy ness traits, impaired sociability and more recollections of childhood socia l difficulties among stable outpatients diagnosed with schizophrenia are co nsistent with predictions based on a bio-developmental shyness vulnerabilit y model. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.