Exploration of complex shyness and the relationship between fear and approach behaviors in domestic cats (Felis catus)

Shyness in human psychology is recognized as a complex trait distinct from pure fear, often characterized by an approach-avoidance conflict. While shyness and fear are frequently conflated in animal behavior studies, this research investigated shyness in domestic cats (Felis catus), exploring whether they exhibit multifaceted personality structures similar to those of human infants. We conducted three sequential surveys with cat owners: Study 1 included 82 cats of both sexes, Study 2 included 114 male cats to follow up on the sex-specific pattern observed in Study 1, and Study 3 included 114 stray-born male cats to further examine the pattern identified among stray-born cats in Study 2. We used adapted versions of the Colorado Childhood Temperament Inventory (CCTI) and the Infant Behavior Questionnaire-Revised (IBQ-R) to assess shyness, fear, and approach tendencies. The predicted quadratic relationship between shyness and approach scores was not statistically significant, and thus the primary confirmatory hypothesis was not supported. Subsequent exploratory hierarchical cluster analyses suggested four candidate personality phenotypes in stray-born male cats: “Highly Sociable” (low fear/high approach), “Sociable” (low fear/moderate approach), “Fearful” (high fear/low approach), and a “Human infant-like shyness” type (high fear/high approach). These findings suggest that cat shyness is predominantly linked to fear, as supported by the strong positive correlations between shyness and fear. However, the cluster analyses identified a specific subset of cats exhibiting a complex personality involving high-approach tendencies despite high fear, mirroring human infant-like shyness. This study highlights the multifaceted nature of cat temperament and demonstrates that adapting human psychological frameworks can provide significant insights into animal personality, potentially improving welfare in domestic cats.