What troubles me is the Internet and the electronic technology revolution. Shyness is fueled in part by so many people spending huge amounts of time alone, isolated on e-mail, in chat rooms, which reduces their face-to-face contact with other people.

Zimbardo links rising shyness to a structural change in social life: communication technologies that make it easier to be “with” others while physically alone. The quote reflects his broader argument that shyness is not merely a private temperament but can be amplified by environments that reduce low-stakes, everyday face-to-face practice—where people learn conversational timing, read nonverbal cues, and build confidence through repeated exposure. By naming e-mail and chat rooms, he also anticipates later concerns about mediated interaction: it can feel safer and more controllable, but may inadvertently reinforce avoidance of in-person encounters, creating a feedback loop in which isolation both results from and deepens social anxiety.