There are countless differences between the ways extroverts live their lives compared to introverts. According to personality psychologist Brian Little, those differences extend into the bedroom.
During a talk at this year's TED conference in Vancouver, Little cited research suggesting that there is a significant difference in the amount of sex that introverts have compared to extroverts. The gist: Both extroverted men and women have more sex on average than their introverted counterparts.
A large study of university students in West Germany used a standard personality test called the Eysenck Personality Inventory (EPI) to categorize participants, and then asked them how much sex they had. Extroverted men reported having sex 5.5 times a month, compared to 3 times for introverted men. Extroverted women had even more sex (7.5 times a month) compared to the introverts (3.1 times a month).
One caveat: this study was obviously self-reported. It may be that extroverts simply say they have more sex than introverts.
During his talk, Little — a professor at Cambridge University and a mentor to well-known psychologist Adam Grant — discussed other differences he's found between introverts and extroverts.
"Extroverts like to stand close, make eye contact, have a mutual gaze. When an extrovert meets [someone named] Charles, it rapidly becomes Charlie, Chuck, and Chuckles Baby. Introverts stay with Charles until they're given a pass to be more intimate," he says.
