Zeffrey

CHAPTER 024 | Is It Introversion, or Emotional Avoidance?

Some people love being alone.

Others love being surrounded by people.

But neither tells us how comfortable someone feels with emotional intimacy.

Carl Jung explored introversion and extraversion as different psychological orientations.

Modern personality research understands these traits as existing along a spectrum.

Attachment avoidance, however, concerns something different.

How comfortable do we feel depending on someone?

Can we express vulnerability?

Can we accept emotional closeness?

Someone can be introverted and emotionally secure.

Someone can be extraverted and uncomfortable with intimacy.

And sometimes, solitude is simply restorative.

Not every need for space is avoidance.

Not every busy social life reflects emotional security.

The same behaviour can have different meanings depending on the person and situation.

You can love solitude and still welcome closeness.

Understanding ourselves means recognising the difference between what we prefer and what we may be protecting ourselves from.

Notice. Ask. Respect. Choose.

Reading: C. G. Jung, Psychological Types (1921); contemporary personality and attachment research.

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