‘Covivert’ Personality Type Excels In Isolation, Psychology Experts Share
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While the COVID-19 outbreak has proven to be difficult for many, there’s a group that apparently thrives in this time-flexible climate. They’re called “coviverts,” a term coined by Nikki Vergara, a Masters graduate of Applied Positive Psychology and cofounder of management consulting firm Positive Workplaces, and Gallup-certified Strengths Coach Clifton Esteban.
Extroverts are grappling with the lack of face-to-face interaction, while introverts struggle without their daily routines. Then there are the coviverts—“a combination of introversion and extroversion skills”—who value their new freedom, personal time, and the power they now have on “virtual socialization,” where they aren’t forced into interactions.
Sans the pandemic, these personalities might be known as ambiverts. They “show flexibility between the two extremes, depending on the context,” Vergara told Rappler. While ambiverts will often wonder if they’re extroverts or introverts without acknowledging they’re somewhere right in the middle, they might finally realize where they fall under after being forced into this new environment.
Coviverts appreciate not being pressured to communicate with everyone, though if need be, they’ll spend the whole day getting chatty. When the camera’s switched off, they completely immerse themselves into new at-home hobbies like cooking or painting.
“You’re relishing the solitude that the lockdown offers,” Esteban chimed in. “Using it even as an opportunity to go inward, reflect, and get to know yourselves more, while making sense of the world.”
Esteban said a challenge the new personality type faces during the pandemic is that they are forced to come “face to face” with themselves. They can’t escape to another place, a second circle of friends, or a distracting activity. At times, they’ll “numb” their thoughts by mindlessly scrolling through social media or show-surfing.
He added that the quarantine is a “ripe space for introspection,” or introversion skill, and will be helpful for when they meet the “errand”- and “distraction”-filled external world again.
When they’re out, they can utilize the lessons as a “stepping stone,” Esteban described. Perhaps they’ve discovered that they can spend their weekends inside instead, or that they don’t have to connect face-to-face with peers.
Vergara detailed that after recognizing their introversion skills, coviverts can even relate these experiences with their friends, “in hopes of building a better, more connected world (extroversion skill).”
[via Rappler, cover image via Shutterstock]
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