You’ve heard of extroverts and introverts. Enter the idea of being an otrovert…
When people ask me what my star sign is, and I say Aries, I also always say: ”You do know that this is not a thing?”
The idea that the position of distant stars on the day I was born can somehow make me similar to other people born under those same stars is just magical thinking.
Or so I independently think.
And that may be a sign that I’m an otrovert.
The concept is doing the rounds of pop psychology articles (when Oprah Daily is writing about what it’s like to date an otrovert, you know a Thing has well and truly arrived).
What is an otrovert anyway?
The word was coined by New York psychiatrist Dr. Rami Kaminski, who used the Spanish word “otro” combined with Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung’s concepts of introversion and extroversion. Essentially, an otrovert is a perpetual outsider. As listed on Kaminiski’s website, The Otherness Insitute, otroverts:
- Tend to live life as a fugitive – freedom seems to depend on obscuring their rebellion.
- Can connect with other people but cannot fathom how a group thinks collectively.
- Are comfortable being alone and uncomfortably lonely in any group of people.
- Cannot be comfortable in work that requires team players.
- Are dedicated to their own personal traditions and habits, not to shared rituals and customs.
- Do not ask for nor accept advice. They make their own decisions.
- Do not need a lot, they love what they have.
- Automatically categorise everything they encounter as to whether it makes sense to them or not.
- Have no inherent respect for rules or regulations and do not trust institutions.
- Are very sensitive to other people’s feelings, and tend to be gentle and unobtrusive.
- Are creatures of habit who do not like transitions.
None of that means that this is a cognitive or emotional disorder, according to the Otherness Institute, which says: “Otroverts are empathic and friendly, with no problem creating loving relationships. In fact, there is no obvious distinction from any well-adjusted individual. The distinction lies in the inability to belong.” (my emphasis)
How to know if you are an otrovert?
There’s a test you can take on the Otherness Institute’s website – I have taken it twice, and both times came up fair and square as an otrovert.
Take the test – The Otherness Institute
The be careful stuff
You need to know that there are some terms and conditions to all this. Just as you listen to the traits associated with a star sign, and hear what you want to hear (Aries people, for intstance, are “courageous, determined, confident, enthusiastic, optimistic, honest, passionate” – of course I am all those things!), you might be inclined to take on the otrovert label because it gives you a neat container for some of your more difficult characteristics. That’s called socially desirable self-attribution, as described here:
At a time when many live online and compare themselves to apparent ideals which feel unattainable, adopting a socially acceptable description like otroversion may allow people to explain feelings of non-belonging, positioning themselves as enlightened outsiders rather than isolated or struggling… Those who are simply disillusioned with their social lives, online or offline, could also see this as an opportunity to reduce their experience of being ‘other’, because now they’re part of a group that are ‘other’. (The link to the article quoted no longer works, but it was active at the end of 2025)
And this is not yet a recognised term in the field of psychology. As an article on the ET Edge Insights website points out: “Not all psychologists agree that otroversion is a distinct, measurable type. Critics worry the label may be too vague or overbroad, lumping together experiences that actually stem from anxiety, neurodivergence, cultural difference, or simply natural variation within existing spectrums. Peer-reviewed studies remain rare, with most current writing on the topic appearing in expert interviews, op-eds, or preliminary dissertations.”
My own moment of recognition
I completely understand the scientific reservations about the concept – but it does make sense to me.
When I first read about the term, and took the quiz, I felt a sense of relief. I majored in psychology (years ago) and understand the concepts of extroversion and introversion. Nothing I’ve ever read about those major ways of viewing human personalities has felt right to me personally. I’ve just never been able to see where I sit on that spectrum (and ambivert has never resonated either). Instead, almost everything about otroversion sounds like the inside of my head.
So, even it’s dodgy science, I think there are things I can take from the concept.
What I’ve learned
There was a paragraph on the Otherness Institute site that leapt out at me:
From early life, the sense of being different makes an otrovert tentative and wary. The pressure to assimilate and become a member in the social communal is palpable… otroverts do not appear to be loners from the outside. They have a social circle and are often charismatic. Since most otroverts are not aware of the concept and their distinctive state, they feel abnormal rather than different, and tend to obscure their innate solitary tendencies from the communal. Often, as a survival mechanism, they assume the stance of a pseudo-extrovert. Playing the gregarious while actually deeply introverted is extremely taxing on an otrovert and may lead to emotional breakdown and depression, especially in earlier stages of life. By embracing their otherness and being vocal about it, otroverts are able to have a full, satisfying, and productive life.
That explained the push-and-pull I feel in social or work gatherings, with my inner voice saying: “Join the group!” while feeling very strongly that I don’t want to. Thinking about this as something that is “just the way I am” has taken away the pressure. Lately, I’ve been way more relaxed in social gatherings. Now, with a lowering of the shoulders, my inner voice says: “It’s okay to watch from the sidelines till you find one interesting person to talk to.”
One final challenge
Writing in GQ magazine, Dr Aaron Balick, psychotherapist and author, says:
The fact that “introvert” and “extravert” have become identity categories is the antithesis of what Jung intended them to be. In order to be a more complete person, he argued, you’re much better off exploring your less developed capacities because they are the ones that open doors to personal growth.
The idea of these concepts morphing into identity categories is key to taking a balanced view of the whole thing. None of us fits neatly to a label, whether that is a star sign or a psychological concept.
That means that I can take the ideas around otroversion and use them to expand my horizons. I can be alone in a group, and accept that stance. And I could, more often, voice the thoughts I have that go counter to groupthink.
People who know me will say that’s what I do anyway – but they don’t know the extent to which I don’t actually say what I think. I’ve spent a lot of time in my life keeping my mouth shut, living as a fugitive – it’s time to take my place on the outskirts, and be honest about that.
Picture: Dan Meyers, Unsplash
