Shyness: A Bold New Approach [Paperback]

Bernardo J. Carducci Ph.D. (Author), Susan Golant (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 2000

Shy Facts

• Shy children are not destined to be shy adults.
• Shyness does not equal low self-esteem.
• Shyness is not a "disease," personality deficit, or character flaw.
• Humans aren't the only species to experience shyness. Scientists have been studying shy cattle aswell as shy cats, shy fish, and shy dogs.
• Some of the world's most famous, richest, smartest and bravest people are shy.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Psychology professor Carducci defines shyness as a "personality trait" rather than as an emotional disorder or mental illness. In fact, he asserts, nearly everyone suffers from shyness to some degree and at some time in life. For some, due to combinations of biology, environment, experience and psychology, shyness can cause a lot of trouble. Acknowledging the handicap this trait can become, particularly in current Western culture, Carducci attempts "not to turn introverts into extroverts" but rather to teach readers to live a "successfully shy life." Beginning with a questionnaire to determine the reader's level of shyness and its impact on daily life, Carducci suggests many techniques for coping with specific social, workplace and personal situations, including meetings, interviews, dates, speeches, presentations, networking and party small talk. He recommends keeping a "shy life journal" in which to record experiences and resolutions for "expanding your comfort zone." Carducci also includes descriptions of pertinent brain activity and useful information for parents and teachers of shy children.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"A hopeful, inspiring book that helps shy people to overcome self-defeating behaviors, respect their unique qualities, and lead lives filled with greater intimacy and self-acceptance. I highly recommend it!"-- John Gray, author of "Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus"""Shyness" is a rare treat for all those who are currently or formerly shy. Bernie Carducci beautifully blends a personal concern for helping shy children and adults with useful advice based on sound research and clinical wisdom."-- Philip G. Zimbardo, author of "Shyness: What It Is, What to Do About It

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Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Harper Perennial (March 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060930683
• ISBN-13: 978-0060930684
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #368,129 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

104 of 110 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Concise, easy to understand, and utlimately life changing., January 7, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Shyness: A Bold New Approach (Hardcover)

Carducci`s book on shyness opened up a new world for me, years of painful first encounters and the turmoil of being afraid. The inability I had to make the simplest amount of small talk kept me from making new friends and being more successful in my career. Those days are over, I now understand that there is a whole new world out there for me to discover and enjoy.I am no longer afraid. I will only hope others who are shy will find this book so, that their worlds may be alive like mine is now!

48 of 52 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars carducci's approach is empowering, November 14, 2000

By 

Donald R. Fleck (Brooklyn, NY USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Shyness: A Bold New Approach (Paperback)

I studied five popular books on shyness in the past few months, and I like Carducci's because his approach is based on intimate, detailed knowledge of shy people, as well as on his involvement with a Shyness clinic. Other books approached shyness from the point of view of theory (e.g. cognitiv/behavioral or psychodynamic) and missed the many methods of managing shyness that come directly from knowing shy people well. Two things I found overwhelmingly strong: 1) he works from a strengths perspective, looking at shyness not as a deficit, but as a personality trait whose inhibiting effect can be greatly reduced with dedicated individual effort, and 2) he has a method which is clear, goes step-by-step without the need for professional guidance, and is extremely easy to follow. It does take work....but you can get to "the successfully shy life."

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very interesting and helpful, May 26, 2005

By 

L. Hilton - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Shyness: A Bold New Approach (Paperback)

I'm not as bad as some of the people he talks about in the book, but I certainly found a lot of examples that hit pretty close to home. Some of what he talks about being common for shy people was suprizing to me, such as having a much harder time communicating in loud places like bars. I always thought it was just me.
I also liked that he doesn't see shyness as a problem that needs to be fixed, but helps people who may struggle to become more successful with their shyness. I've always beat myself up about not being outgoing, and it was nice that he doesn't treat shyness like a personality flaw.
I also found it refreshing to learn that shyness isn't like your eye color or something that can't be changed, but rather it's more like a learned pattern of behavior.
The book gives you advice on how to help you cope with your shyness in different situations, such as joining an ongoing conversation, dating, etc.