关键词: Shyness, 害羞, 羞怯, 词源学分析, 概念对等

Abstract: Shyness is a common phenomenon in interpersonal communication. Appropriate shyness is a normal reaction. But excessive shyness can bring negative effect to the development of individuals, which may even do harm to the individual's physical and mental health. Western psychologists started the systematic study of shyness since the 1970s, while China began to pay attention to this psychological phenomenon in the end of 20th century. The study of shyness in China made some achievement in recent years. But there are differences and confusion on the translation of the basic terms of "shyness". Some scholars have translated it into "Haixiu", while others translated it into "Xiuqie". Which translation is more accurate? This is not only just a simple problem of translation, it also concerns the accurate grasp of the concept and the requirements of cultural equivalence in cross-cultural studies. This study intends to review the definition of shyness in western psychology field and etymologically compare the meanings of "Haixiu" and "Xiuqie" in Chinese language. In this way, the researcher plans to find the Chinese expression of shyness, which is conceptually equivalent to the concept of the "shyness " in Western Psychology. The present study reviewed the Western concept of "shyness" and analyzed etymologically the meanings of "Haixiu" and "Xiuqie" in Chinese language. Through literature review, the researcher found that Western scholars have many different definition and expression of shyness. But its key factors can be summarized as the following there aspects. Firstly, shyness is a subjective experience. It is the subjective experience of worry, tension generated in interpersonal interaction situation. Secondly, shyness is a kind of behavior expression. It is the behavior of self-restrain, silence or social avoidance. Thirdly, the subjective experience and behavior of shyness are limited in specific situations---interpersonal situations. As a result, they basically view shyness as the feeling of tense, anxious, and embarrassment as well as the behavior of social habitation and withdrawal when they are in personal interaction situations. With reference to Etymology, Word-Ocean Dictionary, Chinese Dictionary, Modern Chinese Dictionary, the researcher etymologically further analyzed "Haixiu" and "Xiuqie". The results shown that, in Chinese language, "Xiuqie" means "feel embarrassed in emotion and timid in action", while "Haixiu" means "feel embarrassed and uneasy ". Thus "Haixiu" only expressed the conscious aspect of "shyness", and it can not illustrate the behaviour withdrawal. "Xiuqie" expressed both the "Xiu"(feel embarrassed) and the "Qie" (social withdrawal) to social activities. The present study found that the translation of “Xiuqie” is closer to the meaning of "shyness". Thus "Xiuqie" realized conceptual equivalence to the concept of the "shyness ".

Key words: shyness, Haixiu, Xiuqie, etymological analysis, conceptual equivalence