Are you a Highly Sensitive Person?

A highly sensitive person is someone with a biological personality trait called sensory processing sensitivity by scientists. Highly sensitive people perceive, think and feel more deeply. Elaine Aron describes HSPs using the acronym DOES

Biological research has yielded evidence that there are highly sensitive individual in over 100 animals. Even tiny fruit flies are composed of two types of individuals, “sitters” and “rovers”.

Depth of Processing, Overstimulation, Emotional Reactivity/Empathy, and Sensitivity to Subtle Stimuli  

Depth of Processing : A highly sensitive person will also think more deeply than less sensitive people. For example, if they have to plan a camping trip, they will do research on all the places they could go, have a list of all the criteria that matter to them when they are deciding on a good camping location, and have a long list of things to take and things they need to do to keep their household organized before they leave. Highly sensitive brains notice more, and make more connections between the information they take in. It is what allows HSPs to be more thorough when working on a project and also to be much more creative, since they can make connections that most people don’t make.

Easily Overstimulated. HSPs are more easily stressed by noise, chaotic situations, deadlines, or working in groups (true more for introverted HSPs). They often prefer to work alone or at home? They may also hesitate to make plans or turn down invitations because they need more downtime. This is not always the case, however. There are HSPs who are also High Sensation Seekers. These are people who need more stimulation than most HSPs, so they seek out exciting things to do, adopt thrill-seeking sports, or worry about FOMO (fear of missing out). They cannot put up with the extra stimulation for too long however, so they yo-yo back and forth between seeking out excitement and trying to recover from it!

Emotional Reactivity/Empathy: What other people notice most about a highly sensitive person is their strong emotions. Most people think a highly sensitive person is just someone who is neurotic (anxious, depressed), but highly sensitive people also have stronger positive feelings such as joy and excitement. They are also more empathic. For example, scientific research by myself, Elaine Aron, Bianca Acevedo and other HSP researchers reports that the empathic areas of the brains of highly sensitive people are more active than those of less sensitive people when they view pictures of their loved ones, or even emotional pictures in general.

Sensitivity to Subtle Stimuli: A highly sensitive person is more sensitive to subtleties in their environment, that is they perceive (notice) more about the things they hear, taste, smell and touch . So they might notice that their food has more salt in it today than yesterday, whereas a less sensitive person won’t notice.

Each highly sensitive person is different, although they all share a sensitivity to something. Some people are more empathic, others are more bothered by loud noises, and still others may not be as bothered by negative sounds etc. but be very moved by music or painting, or other artistic expression. Scientific research (Smolewska et al., 2006) has discovered there are three different characteristics that are measured by the Highly Sensitive Person Scale as follows: Ease of Excitation (EOE), Aesthetic Sensitivity (AES), and Low Sensory Threshold (LST). EOE refers to becoming mentally overwhelmed by external (multitasking) and internal (hunger, sleepiness) demands. Aesthetic Sensitivity (AES) describes aesthetic awareness (e.g., ‘‘Are you deeply moved by arts and music?’’). Low Sensory Threshold (LST) refers to unpleasant sensory arousal to external stimuli (e.g., ‘‘Are you easily overwhelmed by things like bright lights, strong smells, coarse fabrics, or sirens close by?’’).

Your unique highly sensitive person profile depends on the balance between these three factors.

It’s Biological: High sensitivity is biological and is present in over 100 animals, as well as in humans. Even tiny fruit flies are composed of two types of individuals, “sitters (sensitive)” and “rovers (less-sensitive)”. Although a lot more research still needs to be done, researchers have discovered associations with serotonin and dopamine genes, as well as specific brain circuits and areas. With respect to the brain, scientific studies have revealed differences between high and low HSPs in brain activation within areas involved in attention, awareness, and information processing of both social and non-social stimuli. Thus, you are highly sensitive because you were born that way, and most likely, either one or both of your parents or grandparents were also born highly sensitive.

HIGHLY SENSITIVE CHILDREN

Children either learn about a new situation by observing it or by interacting with it. Highly sensitive children learn about a new situation by observing and gathering information. Such children will be cautious in a new situation until they become familiar with it. Notice I didn't say afraid, just cautious. They may cry, fuss, hide behind their mothers etc. until they are shown that the situation cannot hurt them. Highly sensitive children learn very quickly from negative feedback, so you only have to tell them once not to do something.

HIGHLY SENSITIVE EMPLOYEES

Highly sensitive employees often think in a highly complex and creative fashion. They are the employees with the great ideas. Highly sensitive employees learn very quickly, and are thorough, conscientious, and notice details. They can be overwhelmed by noisy, chaotic environments, too much to do in a short time, and negative feedback. Since they put a lot of pressure on themselves, some of them can burn out easily.  There are some careers for which they are ideally suited, and others that do not bring out their best qualities. Contact Dr. Jagiellowicz to discuss how her expertise in management consulting and high sensitivity research can help bring out the best in your highly sensitive employees and find the right fit when recruiting.