Sensory processing sensitivity

Sensory processing sensitivity (SPS) is a <a href="/facts/Trait_theory/Iun5UFdX">temperamental or personality trait</a> involving "an increased sensitivity of the <a href="/facts/Central_nervous_system/k8I6To97">central nervous system</a> and a deeper <a href="/facts/Cognition/ga0tSBul">cognitive</a> processing of physical, social, and emotional stimuli". The trait is characterized by "a tendency to 'pause to check' in novel situations, greater sensitivity to subtle stimuli, and the engagement of deeper cognitive processing strategies for employing coping actions, all of which is driven by heightened emotional reactivity, both positive and negative".
A human with a particularly high measure of SPS is considered to have "hypersensitivity", or be a highly sensitive person (HSP). The terms SPS and HSP were coined in the mid-1990s by <a href="/facts/Psychologist/J4l4QdX2">psychologists</a> <a href="/facts/Elaine_Aron/78Glm3wR">Elaine Aron</a> and her husband <a href="/facts/Arthur_Aron/MqyyoIIj">Arthur Aron</a>, who developed the Highly Sensitive Person Scale (HSPS) questionnaire by which SPS is measured. Other researchers have applied various other terms to denote this responsiveness to stimuli that is seen in humans and other species.
According to the Arons and colleagues, people with high SPS make up about 15–20% of the population. Although some researchers consistently related high SPS to negative outcomes, other researchers have associated it with increased responsiveness to both positive and negative influences. Aron and colleagues state that the high-SPS <a href="/facts/Personality_trait/Iun5UFdX">personality trait</a> is not a disorder.

Sensory processing sensitivity open-in-new

Sensory processing sensitivity