--- title: Introverts or Extroverts: Here’s Which One Has It Better description: In the US, it’s always seemed like the answer was “extrovert.” Being social is lauded and most people seem skeptical of all that skulking about... canonical: https://time.com/3584624/introvert-extrovert/ author: Eric Barker article:opinion: true article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-11-15T05:01:27.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-03-31T08:01:23.901Z article:section: Ideas og:title: Introverts or Extroverts: Here’s Which One Has It Better og:description: In the US, it’s always seemed like the answer was “extrovert.” Being social is lauded and most people seem skeptical of all that skulking about... og:url: https://time.com/3584624/introvert-extrovert/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb7547b3da3366096/698768c22dce018bad9dbca4/dog.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 4900 og:image:height: 2756 og:image:alt: dog og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Introverts or Extroverts: Here’s Which One Has It Better twitter:description: In the US, it’s always seemed like the answer was “extrovert.” Being social is lauded and most people seem skeptical of all that skulking about... twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb7547b3da3366096/698768c22dce018bad9dbca4/dog.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Introverts or Extroverts: Here’s Which One Has It Better > Sponsored content. 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A paid TIME subscription is separate and available at time.com/subscribe-agent. by [Eric Barker](https://time.com/author/eric-barker/) ## Eric Barker Nov 15, 2014 5:01 AM UTC  Cavalier King Chalres Burrying it's Head Cavalier King Chalres Burrying it's Head Getty Images by [Eric Barker](https://time.com/author/eric-barker/) ## Eric Barker Nov 15, 2014 5:01 AM UTC In the US, it’s always seemed like [the answer was “extrovert.”](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Introvert#Regional%5Fvariation) Being social is lauded and most people seem skeptical of all that skulking about that introverts do. There’s no doubt research has shown a number of advantages to being a people person. [Plenty of studies](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Introvert#Extraversion.2C%5Fintroversion.2C%5Fand%5Fhappiness) say extroverts are [happier](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2011/02/what-do-very-happy-people-have-in-common/): --- > “” --- What happens when you take an introvert and make them act like an extrovert? They get [happier](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2012/04/would-introverts-be-better-off-if-they-acted/): --- > “” --- That’s some pretty eye-opening evidence. (But, to be fair, those chatty extroverts are much better at PR, so let’s reserve judgment for the time being.) Other research shows there may be a connection between [extraversion and intelligence](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2010/05/are-extroverts-smarter-than-introverts/) but that’s been [debated](http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0191886905000619). On the other hand, what predicts college grades better than IQ? Being an introvert. Via [Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0307352145/ref=as%5Fli%5Fss%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0307352145&linkCode=as2&tag=spacforrent-20): --- > “” --- Need a top expert in a field? Might not want to pick that outgoing fellow. Via [Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0307352145/ref=as%5Fli%5Fss%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0307352145&linkCode=as2&tag=spacforrent-20): --- > “” --- What about more social areas of expertise, like leadership? It definitely gets more complex. Extroverts are better leaders of passive employees, introverts shine with [proactive workers](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2011/01/are-extroverts-better-leaders/): --- > “” --- Susan Cain, author of [Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0307352145/ref=as%5Fli%5Fss%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0307352145&linkCode=as2&tag=spacforrent-20) sticks up for introverts in her TED talk: Overall, I doubt there’s a clear “better” between introverts and extroverts. They both have strengths and weaknesses, which we’re learning more about every day. Here are a few more interesting tidbits: 1. You can generally [trust your gut](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2012/06/what-are-ten-instances-when-you-should-defini/) when trying to determine how introverted/extroverted someone is. [Faces](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2012/03/can-you-learn-to-dissect-peoples-personalitie/), [handshakes](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2011/12/5-things-people-can-tell-about-you-from-your/) and [Facebook profiles](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2012/02/what-areas-of-our-lives-say-the-most-about-ou/) are all accurate predictors. 2. Taste in music is predictive of personality. Enjoy upbeat and conventional tunes? You’re probably an [extrovert](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2011/12/what-does-the-music-you-like-say-about-your-p/). 3. Dog person or cat person? Dog people are [15% more extroverted](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2012/05/8-things-your-choice-of-pet-says-about-your-p/). 4. Are you a morning person? They’re often [introverts](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2012/02/what-personality-traits-do-night-owls-have-wh/). 5. Extraversion and introversion predict [what sex acts people are interested in](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2011/10/does-personality-predict-what-sex-acts-people/). Me? I remember taking a personality test in college and blowing away the instructors with my introversion score. They were curious to learn more about me but, unsurprisingly, I had little interest in talking with them. **_This piece originally appeared on_** [**_Barking Up the Wrong Tree_**](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2012/10/introvert-extravert/)**_._** **Join over 130,000 readers.** Get a free weekly update via email [here](http://eepurl.com/o6uAD). ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"OpinionNewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3584624/introvert-extrovert/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3584624/introvert-extrovert/"},"headline":"Introverts or Extroverts: Here’s Which One Has It Better","datePublished":"2014-11-15T05:01:27.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-31T08:01:23.901Z","description":"In the US, it’s always seemed like the answer was “extrovert.” Being social is lauded and most people seem skeptical of all that skulking about...","url":"https://time.com/3584624/introvert-extrovert/","keywords":["Psychology"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb7547b3da3366096/698768c22dce018bad9dbca4/dog.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Eric Barker","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/eric-barker/"}],"articleSection":"Ideas","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb7547b3da3366096/698768c22dce018bad9dbca4/dog.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"dog","caption":"dog","creditText":"Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/ideas/","name":"Ideas"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/psychology/","name":"Psychology"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3584624/introvert-extrovert/","name":"Introverts or Extroverts: Here’s Which One Has It Better"}}]}] ```