The Study of Behavioral Inhibition and Temperamental Shyness Across Four Academic Generations

The contemporary study of phenomena in the psychological sciences can be usually traced to a rich historical past. The study of behavioral inhibition and temperamental shyness is no exception. In this chapter, we review the study of behavioral inhibition and temperamental shyness as viewed across four academic generations (Generation I, Jerome Kagan; Generation II, Nathan Fox; Generation III, Louis Schmidt; Generation IV, Kristie Poole), spanning over seven decades and representing multiple student-mentor relationships. We suggest that the transactional nature of student-mentor relationships is one key mechanism through which the establishment and transmission of knowledge anchors us to the past, informs contemporary inquiry, and spawns new directions for future research and academic generations.