Do you find it easier to socialize in diverse groups?

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DevilKisses
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14 Jul 2016, 6:19 pm

I sure do. If there's a group full of WASPy people my age I feel very awkward. If I go to a group with a large variety of ages, ethnicities and interests I find it way easier. I don't know if it's because I'm socially awkward or not a WASP.


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kraftiekortie
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14 Jul 2016, 6:24 pm

I also find it easier to live in a diverse neighborhood.

My neighborhood is majority minority: African-Americans, East Indians, Hispanics, Chinese, Koreans. Not many Caucasians.

I put minority in quotes--but it wouldn't take.



Joe90
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14 Jul 2016, 6:43 pm

That is why I fit in at work more, because there are people of different age, race, gender, size, and some are non-NT too.

I think all workplaces should have a diverse range of people. A few years ago I worked at a local supermarket, and there was mostly girls there, all between the ages of 17 to about 22, and although they seemed nice to me, I still felt like a fish out of water there. The girls flirted intensely with the few boys that were there, and it just wasn't professional. It felt more like a college environment, or like some sort of clubhouse.


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saxgeek
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14 Jul 2016, 8:12 pm

I don't really fit in with any group of people, but I find Asian people tend to talk about more interesting things than other ethnic groups.

DevilKisses wrote:
I sure do. If there's a group full of WASPy people my age I feel very awkward. If I go to a group with a large variety of ages, ethnicities and interests I find it way easier. I don't know if it's because I'm socially awkward or not a WASP.

For the record, WASP stands for White Anglo Saxon Protestant. Try to explain acronyms when you use them for the first time.



Noca
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14 Jul 2016, 8:48 pm

I can only socialize 1on1. I completely shutdown in groups. I cannot keep track of the discussions nor know when it is my turn to speak.



C2V
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14 Jul 2016, 8:50 pm

Same here. I often find it difficult to engage with homogenous groups, I suppose because I don't fit in any of them and thus, feel even more outside than usual. With more diverse groups of people, we're all different, not just me.


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saxgeek
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14 Jul 2016, 8:59 pm

Noca wrote:
I can only socialize 1on1. I completely shutdown in groups. I cannot keep track of the discussions nor know when it is my turn to speak.

Same. I'm usually okay with 2 other people at the most, but I still have timing problems. Sometimes, I'll think of something and accidentally start talking while someone else is already saying something. Other times, I'll start saying something, nobody listens, and then they interrupt me with their own conversation, and that continues until I get frustrated and walk away.



kraftiekortie
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14 Jul 2016, 9:10 pm

I screw up on "timing" all the time.

Especially on the phone.

And especially within in groups of people.

And especially within groups of people in a noisy place.



muffinhead
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14 Jul 2016, 11:32 pm

Noca wrote:
I can only socialize 1on1. I completely shutdown in groups. I cannot keep track of the discussions nor know when it is my turn to speak.

Same for me as well. Even 2 other people is pushing it, unless we all know each other really well, and it's still difficult if it's for a long period of time. When I'm in a group of more people than that, I lose track of conversations, try to listen to everything at once, and end up overwhelmed.


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15 Jul 2016, 12:38 am

Noca wrote:
I can only socialize 1on1. I completely shutdown in groups. I cannot keep track of the discussions nor know when it is my turn to speak.

same, more or less. it's not so much that i don't know when it's my turn (i usually don't mind being a little pushy anyway, and i can usually do it with enough humor not to be rude), it's more that i'm hypervigilant and i can't keep track of things. not a good combination. i see threat and trouble everywhere, i think of ramifications of everything, and my reactions always come too late. it makes me feel like i'm just being pushed around, and i get angry and depressed. in the end i'm very averse to groups in general (if you look at my history, btw, yes, it did take me four years to convince myself to even post here after i first thought about it. there definitely is a major difference from real-life to written "turn-based" media though)

sometimes under stress, or for some other combination of reasons, i can be nearly hypomanic though. then i'll take control of situations where i would normally not even be participating. but then afterwards i'll feel completely exhausted and repulsed by the very thought of ever interacting with people again. it saves my life sometimes, but in many situations it creates persistent problems just to solve momentary ones. by now i'm used to the reality that severely restricting the range of social environments i'm ever involved in is a very real necessity for me (i'm not on facebook, for one thing, and i don't want to be). nowadays i see myself as figuring out how to introduce more human contact in my life without losing sight of that need (which is essentially why i'm here)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s5FyfQDO5g0


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DevilKisses
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15 Jul 2016, 1:06 am

C2V wrote:
Same here. I often find it difficult to engage with homogenous groups, I suppose because I don't fit in any of them and thus, feel even more outside than usual. With more diverse groups of people, we're all different, not just me.

That's it. I just can't interact well with Canadian girls my age. Especially if they're super white. I do better with people who are different than me because they'll attribute the differences to age, gender or cultural differences. Instead of having mental disorders or being a standoffish b!tch.


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ToughDiamond
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15 Jul 2016, 1:28 am

Yes, much easier. I've even been to fairly large gatherings of diverse types and got away with it fine, and the only district I lived in where I really felt included was a very diverse collection of folks. And the worst groups it's ever been my displeasure to get stuck with have been homogenous mainstream white groups.