“…Shyness is a characteristic of temperament or personality that reflects a tendency to feel anxious and inhibited in anticipation of or during social situations (Cheek & Melchior, 1990) and has been investigated in western cultures for many decades (see Coplan et al, 2021; outcomes and are considered to be a risk factor for poorer socioemotional development and overall well-being (Caspi et al, 1988;Schmidt et al, 2017). For example, shyness in young adults has been associated with higher levels of internalizing problems such as social anxiety or social anxiety disorder (Henderson & Zimbardo, 2010;Poole et al, 2017) and depression or mood disorders (Alfano et al, 1994;Murberg, 2009;Schmidt & Fox, 1995) as well as with higher levels of negative emotionality and lower levels of selfregulation, dispositional characteristics proposed to be problematic for adaptive social functioning (see Eisenberg et al, 1995 andHassan et al, 2021). In addition, adults with relatively higher versus lower levels of shyness were more likely to experience a poorer relationship with their parents, friends, or romantic partners, and enter into marriage at an older age, experience more severe marital problems, or express lower marital satisfaction (Baker & McNulty, 2010;Caspi et al, 1988;Nelson et al, 2008).…”