Shyness experts keep coyly quiet

The first-ever conference on shyness is to be held in Britain next week - but organisers are coy about what will be going on.

They were initially reluctant to advertise and are not sending out press releases. But yesterday Dr Ray Crozier, the conference chief, said: "There has been increasing interest in the topic but there has never been the right opportunity to get together

The conference, organised in Cardiff by the Welsh branch of the British Psychological Society, will only be a cosy gathering of about 75 - a much smaller affair than the other conferences of the society, which can attract up to 1,000 delegates.

Psychologists and psychiatrists from the UK, the USA, Canada, Japan and Australia will be attending. "Those who specialise in social phobia, shame and selective mutism will be able to speak to each other for the first time." Dr Crozier said. "It is a great opportunity".

More than 40 papers will be given on the theme of social phobia, a mild form of which is said to affect up to a third of the population and a severe form one in 10.

The keynote speech will be given by Philip Zimbardo, from the USA, who pioneered research into shyness and helped set up the Shyness Institute in California, where people can be treated for their problems.

Professor Zimbardo will be talking on the subject of "social fitness training". He will be emphasising "ongoing social fitness workouts, just like physical fitness workouts, to get in `social shape' and maintain social fitness".

Other papers will investigate the differences between shame and humiliation, children's understanding of being embarrassed by others' actions and anxiety levels among pupils transferring from primary to secondary schools.