It feels like a huge social experiment – and we are all the test subjects: Hundreds of millions of people in Germany, Europe, and around the world are more or less doomed to stay alone in their homes. In order to curb and slow down the spread of the corona virus, you should leave your own four walls as rarely as possible and avoid direct social contacts outside your own household. Initially, these were only recommendations, but now they are "rules", as Chancellor Angela Merkel made clear: In addition to Germany, many other countries have introduced strict exit restrictions.
For most people, life changes radically. No more events, no appointments, no meetings with friends, many work from home and also no longer see their colleagues. Instead: a lot of rest, a lot of time, a lot of being alone. How you deal with it also depends on your own personality. The question of whether someone is more introverted or extroverted is particularly important.
Introverts need calm, extroverts love action
It was almost exactly a century ago that the Swiss psychiatrist Carl Gustav Jung introduced this distinction in psychology. The two terms denote opposing types of perception, thinking and feeling. Introverts are often quiet and reserved, they often prefer to watch rather than act. Above all, however, they attach great importance to their inner life: they like to read, think a lot, reflect on themselves and their environment. Interaction with other people quickly becomes exhausting, introverts need the silence to recharge their batteries.
Extroverts, on the other hand, draw their energy primarily from the presence of other people: they love large groups, like to be the center of attention, often have a high need for communication and are very active. In this way, extroverts naturally attract the attention of the environment faster. This personality profile is often considered desirable in society: The author Susan Cain, who wrote the bestseller "Quiet" (German title: "Still") on the subject, speaks of an "extroverted ideal" – especially in the USA, but also in large parts of the rest of the western world.
On the other hand, introversion is often treated as a "second-class trait", "somewhere between disappointment and illness," writes Cain. Introverts often feel that they need to be cured of this property. But now, in the midst of forced social isolation, the tide is turning: it is the hour of the introvert.
Social isolation: introverts have the advantage
They should be able to cope with the situation much better than extroverts. "I've trained for this all my life," people on Twitter who have always enjoyed spending a lot of time in their own four walls write on Twitter. For introverts, this slowdown feels good at first, confirms coach and author Sylvia Löhken, who has written several books on the subject. The latent social pressure to constantly meet other people or take part in events no longer applies. The "FOMO" phenomenon, the constant fear of missing something ("Fear of missing out"), is taking care of itself these days.
But the social isolation in the face of the Corona crisis has its downsides, says Löhken when asked by stern. "Introverts tend to be safe. But this situation is completely unsafe, no one knows how to proceed." It can quickly happen that the fear of the coronavirus and its consequences is rampant in this group. Löhken sees the second problem as the lack of retreat, for example within families who now spend a lot of time in a confined space: "Being alone is actually a fiction, people hang on to their skin." There are hardly any opportunities to relax.
In such cases, Löhken advises to look for one-to-one communication – introverts prefer that anyway, rather than talking in a group. "You should systematically consider: Where can I get help and avoid risks? Where is my safety?" For introverts, this is usually not the large number of social contacts, but the intensive relationship with a few confidants that has grown over a long period.
Extroverts lack communication – but there are alternatives
For extroverts, the time of social isolation cannot end quickly enough. "It is a horror for them to go into poor stimulation," says expert Löhken. "It's a tough situation." For people who normally rely heavily on external stimuli, the risk of becoming lonely in social distancing increases. You have to find other ways to recharge your batteries.
"Communication, communication, communication," advises Sylvia Löhken. Fortunately, the much-quoted "ban on contact" is not meant literally – in addition to the now prohibited physical contacts, there are various digital options for maintaining communication with other people. Social media platforms and video conferences are suitable for this, while introverts prefer to exchange ideas in writing. In general, media use is a way to distract yourself and escape boredom – for example by watching series.
The situation is completely new for everyone. And even if the social isolation of introverts seems to be inherently more: in this case, the retreat is not chosen by yourself, but imposed from outside. And nobody knows how long it will last. Even the most introverted person is likely to suffer a freak after a while. And some extroverts may also learn to appreciate tranquility. We probably all know a lot about ourselves at the end of this time.
This article was originally published on stern.de.