The Truth

A related fact is that it is actually easier to meet members of the
opposite sex through friendship networks than through any other means.
It requires a significantly greater amount of courage and self-confidence
to initiate a conversation with a total stranger than it does to initiate one
with someone to whom one has been introduced by a mutual friend. This
is true for the vast majority of people, and it is certainly true for those
with interpersonal anxiety or shyness problems.
Of course, shyness above and beyond a certain point of severity
prevents a person from ever immersing himself into any informal social
networks. The real rub is that for those who actually enjoy active mem-
bership in informal social networks, substantially less social self-confidence
and "nerve" is required for meeting potential lovers than is required for
people who do not have membership in informal friendship networks.