Gregariousness Analysis

Introduction Gregariousness
Trait Definition I have found two working definitions for gregariousness. The first definition comes from Ghayas & Malik (2013) and it states that “Sociability refers to ones desires to live in a group because they want to be part of a group of people whom they respect, people who like them, whose values they share, and people whose cognitive reasoning they can understand.” The second definition is from Leary, Kelly, Cotrell, & Schreindorfer (2013). According to them “sociability [refers] to the tendency to seek out interactions with other people”.
Two theoretical perspectives on Gregariousness
• Biological Perspective o Empirical Research
 Origins
 Causes
 Development o Influences & Processes
 Dynamics
 Correlates

I still enjoy spending time with large groups of people as long as I am familiar with at least a few of the individuals in said group. Most people have a tendency to become less sociable as they age, (Pollet, Roberts, & Dunbar, 2011) which would account for the perception that some current acquaintances have of myself.
• Present
I see myself as an ambivert. I fluctuate between introversion and extraversion but when I am feeling extraverted, I become more sociable. If I am in situations that involve excessively large amounts of people that I am unfamiliar with I usually get overwhelmed but if I am with friends or even casual acquaintances I often strive to be the center of attention unless one of my companions is more outgoing than I am. At that point, I am likely to be tamer in my antics, although I will still attempt to divert awareness back to myself every so often.
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I have one friend who claimed that I was far more outgoing and adventurous of the two of us and she considered me to be an extravert. When I informed her of my selection of the trait gregariousness for my topic, she found it to be fitting. My friend, who I have known since the age of eight, is herself an introvert. To her, my desire to actually interact with other people and my ability to enjoy those interactions, always seemed to be a concept she could not grasp.
I also asked my suitemates about their perceptions of my personality and their answer differed greatly from the others I received. One of my suitemates who is extremely social and outgoing disagreed with my self –assessment and the opinions of others. She has always held the belief that because I do not always go out of my way to associate with other people that I am