According to psychologist and academic Jonathan Cheek, there are four different kinds of introverts, and you might sit anywhere along this scale. Cheek noticed many broad and varying definitions of introversion and, in order to reach a more streamlined conclusion of his own, he interviewed 500 adults as part of his study. He reached the conclusion of four types of introvert, which he then named the STAR model to encompass different definitions: Social, Thinking, Anxious and Restrained.
In 1921, Carl Jung, who first developed the notion of introversion, noted that no person is either exclusively an introvert or "extravert", but noted that extraverts (or extroverts as we now refer to then) focus their energy outwards and introverts focus theirs inwards.
Here are the four types of introvert as laid out by Cheek on his STAR spectrum.
1. The social introvert
According to Cheek, the Social Introvert has a preference for small groups, but an even greater preference for alone time. Time spent alone is of the highest value to the social introvert who also prefers not to socialise in large groups of strangers if possible.
2. The thinking introvert
While this person has no aversion to large groups, they can often become lost in their own head. Deeply imaginative, it is often the case that they have zoned right out of where they are and need to be brought back to the party.
3. The anxious introvert
Self-conscious and socially awkward, the Anxious Introvert avoids interacting with people as far as possible. The Anxious Introvert is also constantly obsessing about whether they ruined the last conversation they had or if people are judging them.
4. The restrained introvert
Preferring to work on their own, Restrained Introverts move at a slower pace than most people; think carefully before talking or acting; and can take a while to get new projects going. They are also usually not morning people either - taking their time to start the day.
While Cheek's STAR model is just one theory in personality science that tries to define how we interact with our environments and the people in them, you have a little proof that there is no simple "introvert" or "extrovert" tag.