'Revenge of the Introverts' addresses new research

The work of West Virginia author and psychologist Laurie Helgoe of Charleston is the cover story in the latest issue of the national magazine, Psychology Today.

"Revenge of the Introverts" addresses new research since the 2008 publication of Helgoe's book, Introvert Power: Why Your Inner Life Is Your Hidden Strength. Included in the article's interviews with people who use introversion to their advantage is one with another Charleston resident, Beth Wheatley, director of government relations for the Nature Conservancy of West Virginia.

"This started when I did an interview with a Psychology Today blog," Helgoe said. "The editor was interested in the career change I made after I recognized that I am an introvert and having a large number of clinical psychology clients was taxing for me. An editor-at-large called me and asked me to do a feature article, which was selected as the cover story for the September-October issue."

In the article, Helgoe discusses the personality-culture clash that introverts experience in a society that rewards extraversion, and corrects misunderstandings about the 50 percent of the population who prefer an active inner life to a busy social calendar.

Introvert Power, published by Sourcebooks, received a starred review from Publishers Weekly, has subsequently been published in Korean, and has a Czech version pending. Four previous books that Helgoe authored or co-authored include: The Anxiety Answer Book, The Boomer's Guide to Dating (Again), The Complete Idiot's Guide to Raising Boys, and The Pocket Idiot's Guide to Breaking Up. She also serves as a literary consultant to other writers and businesses and conducts "Get It Published!" seminars.