害羞的人很難掩飾這種性格，因為在一群人中，第一個發言且滔滔不絕的一定不是他們，而且害羞的人容易臉紅。
       臉紅是blush，例如︰She blushed at the mention of her poor examination result.(一提到她不濟的考試成績，她就會臉紅。)
       很多害羞的人都想改變這種性格，想練成喜怒不形於色的功夫。這也合理，因為心中的感覺都掛在臉上，很容易被人看得通透，在爾虞我詐的商業社會中容易被人佔便宜。

       Social apology
       但容易臉紅原來是美德的表現。
       Embrace your embarrassment - it's a sign you are more trustworthy and more generous(慷慨的、大方的), according to a University of California, Berkeley study.
       Embarrassment是尷尬。加州大學的一項研究發現，容易覺得尷尬的人比較值得信任，也較為大方。
       Those who get flustered also tend to be more faithful, according to the study findings, published in this month's online issue of Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.
       Flustered是激動不安的。Faithful是忠誠的。研究又發現，喜怒形於色的人也比較忠誠。研究報告的其中一個作者，社會心理學者Robb Willer解釋臉紅的心理：
       Embarrassment is a "sort of social apology ... I didn't mean to do that. I'm actually a very social person, very reliable, someone you can trust," says Willer.
       感到尷尬、臉紅，原來是道歉的一種。所表達的意思是︰“我無心冒犯。”也等於向對方說：“我喜歡與人交往，十分可靠，你可以信任我。”
       Willer說："The biggest take-away(收穫) of the research is that if you're someone who gets embarrassed easily, you shouldn't feel any shame. It actually reveals virtuous(善良的、正直的、有道德的) aspects of your character(性格)."

       容易臉紅較忠誠
       學者花了三年時間做實驗，觀察多組研究對象對某些情況的反應。
       In one, 60 college students were videotaped as they recounted(復述) embarrassing moments like mistaking an overweight woman for one who is pregnant. The students also participated in a game to measure altruism(利他的行為). The ones who showed greater levels of embarrassment were also the most generous.
       In addition, getting flustered and being faithful seem to be linked.(此外，容易臉紅與忠誠似乎也有直接的關係。)
       The people in the study who were easily embarrassed "were more oriented to committed relationships," said Willer. So it may be a good sign if you are dating someone who gets red-faced(滿臉通紅) when he trips over his own feet, he says.
       "Oriented to committed relationships"是傾向建立有承擔的、長的關係。所以會是個好的伴侶。但根據這項研究，不易臉紅的人的性格則相反：
       Willer said it could also be construed(推論) that people who do not show high levels of embarrassment are "less trustworthy, less reliable, less generous, on average."
       雖然如此，害羞的人若仍想克服這種性格，Leil Lowndes的Goodbye to Shy: 100 Shybusters That Work!提供了一些辦法。文︰子慧