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Well, perhaps I misunderstood your intended focus, Beth, since you began with a reference to your own "apprehension about [your] ability to critique others."
If you're asking instead why other Forum members might be disinclined to offer critiques, I of course don't know. I'm not sure why that would be important to know. I mean, if there were a resounding response, "We don't want to!" or "We're afraid to!" then I guess you'd know, but we'd still be spinning around on square one, waiting for someone to have a look at our drawings or paintings.
(We could try the ploy, "I'll pay you!", and in fact that's something that some Forums appear to be experimenting with. But that's for another time, in another thread.)
Perhaps they share your apprehension. I do. I haven't been doing this "art thing" very long, I don't do much of it, I know what my weaknesses are, and there probably isn't a more neurotically shy or less of a "public person" than me on this Forum. (Don't confuse a willingness to perform on the Internet with confidence or talent.)
That all boils down to "So what?" Being apprehensive is self-imposed. It can be a struggle, but you might have to stop and turn around right in fear's face and say, "Hey! Yeah, talkin' to YOU! Quit following me around, I've got things to do. Make yourself useful. Pour some coffee. Tell me your story."
My suggestion, Beth, is to go on down to the Critiques area, find one of those posted images that invites you to say something about it, and say it. If you hemorrhage words like I do, it might take an hour, but plenty of good advice has been dispensed on the Forum in 10-minute increments.
Just sign on and say it. That, in a nutshell, is the story behind every single one of those critiques.
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