Factors Related to the Sensitivity to Unwanted Transparency

Abstract

The goal was to investigate variables related to the sensitivity to unwanted transparency, defined as the feeling that a person experiences during an interaction when the interacting partner seemingly notices something that the person would rather conceal. Undergraduates (n = 309) were asked to complete self-report scales about their self-consciousness, shyness, nonverbal skills, secretiveness, and sensitivity to unwanted transparency. The combination of variables (private self-consciousness, shyness, and secretiveness and lack of nonverbal expressions) explained 23% of the variance in sensitivity to unwanted transparency.

Cues for Inferring Secrets Held by Others during Social Interactions

“…These findings provide hints about the sense of unwanted transparency, the sense experienced when another person appears to notice something during an interaction that one would rather not have noticed (Tabata, 2007(Tabata, , 2008(Tabata, , 2009). Tabata (2008) suggested that silent pauses and aversion of gaze arising from the sense of unwanted transparency may not feel natural to the viewer.…”