The Highly Sensitive Person: How to Thrive When the World Overwhelms You

Since its publication, The Highly Sensitive Person has become widely regarded as a foundational resource for the study of high sensitivity. For example, psychologist Philip G. Zimbardo, himself well known for his studies of shyness, stated that Aron’s book “suggests new paths for making sensitivity a blessing, not a handicap” (back cover). The book has spawned many other books, lectures, and websites devoted to understanding high sensitivity and providing support for HSPs. Many HSPs recognize themselves in Aron’s descriptions and credit the book with giving them a new self-awareness. The Highly Sensitive Person lent public visibility to a formerly “invisible” personality trait and added a new term to the lexicon.

At the same time, critical questions have been raised about possible limitations of the concept of high sensitivity and about the rigorousness of the science underlying the book. Psychologist Amanda Moses has suggested that the “HSP construct” as outlined by Aron is “too vague to conform to the standards of scientific validation” and has potential overlaps with other clinical conditions including autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Moses opines that such overlaps should be further investigated (“A Critical Analysis of the Highly Sensitive Person Construct.” Psychology Today). In the book, Aron makes the point that high sensitivity, while not itself a disorder, may coexist with various disorders whose symptoms should be investigated on their own terms. She cautions that the umbrella term “Highly Sensitive Person” is meant more as a description of common psychological and emotional experience than as a clinical diagnosis.

Aron and her husband, Dr. Arthur Aron, have themselves refined aspects of HSP theory since the book’s publication. For example, in 1997 the couple identified the signal feature of HSPs as sensory processing sensitivity (SPS)—defined as heightened awareness of the sensory environment due to increased sensitivity of the central nervous system. Further, in the Author’s Note added for the book’s 2020 edition, Aron developed the acronym DOES to define more concisely the components of high sensitivity: Depth of Processing, Overstimulation, Emotional reactivity, and Sensing the subtle.

As Aron goes on to state in the Note, her research opened a floodgate of interest and commentary in the subject of high sensitivity. The interest continues today with popular websites such as Sensitive Refuge (highlysensitiverefuge.com) that provide information and a means of connection for people with the trait.