Exploring cultural diversity: A network analysis of the communicative correlates of shyness within the black culture

Abstract

This Investigation was designed to explore the experience of shyness within the black culture. Specifically, this is the second study In a three‐phase research program designed to assess the relationship between social network attributes and shyness. In order to achieve this purpose, this study compared the communication networks of high, moderate, and low‐shy black communicators with expectations about the communicative behavior of shy individuals drawn from existing research on shyness. The results suggest that shyness may be experienced differently within culturally‐diverse populations; thus, there is a need for In‐depth intracultural investigations of shyness before an understanding of this phenomenon in intercultural contexts can be achieved.