The Role of Social Anxiety in Social Interaction Difficulties

1977 ◽  
Vol 131 (6) ◽  
pp. 610-615 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roisin Hall ◽  
David Goldberg
Keyword(s):  
Social Interaction ◽  
Social Anxiety ◽  
Psychiatric Patients ◽  
Skills Training ◽  
Training Programme ◽  
Problem Behaviour ◽  
Socially Anxious ◽  
Common Complaint ◽  
High Social Anxiety

Social anxiety was found to be the most common complaint in a sample of psychiatric patients reporting social interaction difficulties. High social anxiety was shown to be associated with impairments to social behaviour in socially anxious psychiatric patients and non-psychiatric volunteers. A comparison was made of systematic desensitization and a form of social skills training in the treatment of social interaction difficulties associated with high social anxiety. This indicated that while both therapies were effective in the reduction of social anxiety, the training programme was the more effective in reducing problem behaviour, but desensitization appeared to lead to a wider generalization of improvement as indicated by increases in social participation.

Eye-Tracking Evidence of a Maintenance Bias in Social Anxiety

2017 ◽  
Vol 46 (1) ◽  
pp. 66-83 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catarina Fernandes ◽  
Susana Silva ◽  
Joana Pires ◽  
Alexandra Reis ◽  
Antónia Jimenez Ros ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Anxiety ◽  
Eye Tracking ◽  
Dwell Time ◽  
Time Course ◽  
Personality Structure ◽  
Socially Anxious ◽  
Dynamic Measures ◽  
High Social Anxiety ◽  
Depressive Personality

Background: The mechanisms and triggers of the attentional bias in social anxiety are not yet fully determined, and the modulating role of personality traits is being increasingly acknowledged. Aims: Our main purpose was to test whether social anxiety is associated with mechanisms of hypervigilance, avoidance (static biases), vigilance-avoidance or the maintenance of attention (dynamic biases). Our secondary goal was to explore the role of personality structure in shaping the attention bias. Method: Participants with high vs low social anxiety and different personality structures viewed pairs of faces (free-viewing eye-tracking task) representing different emotions (anger, happiness and neutrality). Their eye movements were registered and analysed for both whole-trial (static) and time-dependent (dynamic) measures. Results: Comparisons between participants with high and low social anxiety levels did not yield evidence of differences in eye-tracking measures for the whole trial (latency of first fixation, first fixation direction, total dwell time), but the two groups differed in the time course of overt attention during the trial (dwell time across three successive time segments): participants with high social anxiety were slower in disengaging their attention from happy faces. Similar results were obtained using a full-sample, regression-based analysis. Conclusion: Our results speak in favour of a maintenance bias in social anxiety. Preliminary results indicated that personality structure may not affect the maintenance (dynamic) bias of socially anxious individuals, although depressive personality structures may favour manifestations of a (static) hypervigilance bias.

Social Anxiety, Recall of Interpersonal Information, and Social Impact on Others

1998 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 303-322 ◽  
Author(s):  
Debra A. Hope ◽  
Karen D. Sigler ◽  
David L. Penn ◽  
Valerie Meier
Keyword(s):  
Social Interaction ◽  
Social Anxiety ◽  
Social Interactions ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Social Impact ◽  
The Other ◽  
Socially Anxious ◽  
Cognitive Theories ◽  
Interpersonal Information

This study sought to replicate and extend a previous study in which social anxiety was associated with poorer recall of the details of a social interaction as well as to test various hypotheses derived from Trower and Gilbert’s (1989) psychobiological/ethological theory of social anxiety. Socially anxious and nonanxious undergraduate students participated in a heterosocial conversation with a confederate under the observation of a second subject. Consistent with the previous study, there was some evidence that social anxiety was associated with poorer recall of interaction details for women. Social anxiety and recall were unrelated for men. Men demonstrated poorer recall than women overall. The hypotheses derived from Trower and Gilbert’s theory were largely supported, suggesting socially anxious individuals view social interactions as competitive endeavors in which they are ill equipped to challenge the other person. Rather, they adopt self-effacing strategies, but still doubt their success. Finally, the judgments of nonanxious individuals about their impact on others appeared to be positively biased. Implications for cognitive theories of social anxiety are discussed.

SOCIAL ANXIETY, SELF-FOCUSED ATTENTION, AND THE DISCRIMINATION OF NEGATIVE, NEUTRAL AND POSITIVE AUDIENCE MEMBERS BY THEIR NON-VERBAL BEHAVIOURS

2002 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 11-23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stuart Perowne ◽  
Warren Mansell
Keyword(s):  
Social Anxiety ◽  
Selective Attention ◽  
Social Environment ◽  
Focused Attention ◽  
Social Threat ◽  
Apparent Paradox ◽  
Socially Anxious ◽  
Anxiety Group ◽  
Threat Cues ◽  
High Social Anxiety

Recent research indicates the apparent paradox that social anxiety may be associated with both self-focused attention and selective attention to external social threat cues. A naturalistic paradigm was designed to explore both processes. High and low socially anxious individuals were asked to make a speech to a monitor displaying six people whom they believed to be watching them live. Two audience members exhibited only positive behaviours, two only neutral ones and two only negative behaviours. In contrast to the low social anxiety group who selectively discriminated positive audience members, the high social anxiety group selectively discriminated the negative individuals, yet they were no more accurate at discriminating the negative behaviours the audience members had performed and they reported more self-focused attention than the low social anxiety group. The effects remained while covarying for differences in dysphoria. The results indicate that socially anxious individuals base their judgements of being disapproved by others on limited processing of their social environment.

A Comparison of Reinforcement Sensitivity Theory Measures: Unique Associations With Social Interaction Anxiety and Social Observation Anxiety

Assessment ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 25 (5) ◽  
pp. 627-639 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sam L. Kramer ◽  
Benjamin F. Rodriguez
Keyword(s):  
Social Interaction ◽  
Social Anxiety ◽  
Reinforcement Sensitivity Theory ◽  
Sensitivity Theory ◽  
Social Interaction Anxiety ◽  
Reinforcement Sensitivity ◽  
Social Observation ◽  
Freeze System ◽  
Interaction Anxiety

Evidence suggests that the behavior inhibition system (BIS) and fight-flight-freeze system play a role in the individual differences seen in social anxiety disorder; however, findings concerning the role of the behavior approach system (BAS) have been mixed. To date, the role of revised reinforcement sensitivity theory (RST) subsystems underlying social anxiety has been measured with scales designed for the original RST. This study examined how the BIS, BAS, and fight, flight, freeze components of the fight-flight-freeze system uniquely relate to social interaction anxiety and social observation anxiety using both a measure specifically designed for the revised RST and a commonly used original RST measure. Comparison of regression analyses with the Jackson-5 and the commonly used BIS/BAS Scales revealed important differences in the relationships between RST subsystems and social anxiety depending on how RST was assessed. Limitations and future directions for revised RST measurement are discussed.

Intrusive social images in individuals with high and low social anxiety: a multi-method analysis

2019 ◽  
Vol 47 (5) ◽  
pp. 594-610
Author(s):  
Andrea R. Ashbaugh ◽  
Keera N. Fishman ◽  
Stephanie A. Houle-Johnson
Keyword(s):  
Social Anxiety ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Social Image ◽  
Socially Anxious ◽  
Cognitive Behavioural ◽  
Social Interaction Anxiety Scale ◽  
Social Images ◽  
High Social Anxiety ◽  
Interaction Anxiety ◽  
Emotion Memory

AbstractBackground:Models of social anxiety suggest that intrusive images/memories are common in social anxiety and contribute to the maintenance of social anxiety.Aims:We examined the context and phenomenological features of intrusive social images using quantitative and qualitative measures across various levels of social anxiety.Method:Undergraduate students (n = 191) completed measures of social anxiety (i.e. Social Interaction Anxiety Scale and Social Phobia Scale) and wrote a description of an intrusive social image. Individuals who reported an intrusive social image (n = 77) rated the frequency, interference and phenomenological (e.g. vividness, emotional intensity) characteristics of the image. A content analysis of the intrusive image narratives was completed by independent raters.Results:High social anxiety (HSA) increased the likelihood and frequency of experiencing intrusive images, and to some extent the interference caused by these images. However, the characteristics of these images with regard to their content and quality were similar across levels of social anxiety. Among participants who provided narratives, HSA individuals (n = 34) did not differ from low socially anxious (LSA) individuals (n = 28) in themes that reflect concerns about their own thoughts, actions and behaviours. However, HSA individuals reported greater concerns about how other individuals would react, and their intrusive images were often from an observer perspective when compared with LSA individuals.Conclusions:These results are interpreted in relation to cognitive models of emotion, memory and cognitive behavioural models of social anxiety.

scholarly journals Role of social skills training in adolescents with social anxiety disorder

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 41-48 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pablo José Olivares-Olivares ◽  
Pedro Francisco Ortiz-González ◽  
José Olivares
Keyword(s):  
Social Skills ◽  
Anxiety Disorder ◽  
Social Anxiety ◽  
Social Anxiety Disorder ◽  
Social Skills Training ◽  
Skills Training

Relationships among Social Perception, Social Skill, and Social Anxiety of Psychiatric Patients

1983 ◽  
Vol 53 (3_suppl) ◽  
pp. 1175-1178 ◽  
Author(s):  
Allan L. Fingeret ◽  
Peter M. Monti ◽  
Maryann Paxson
Keyword(s):  
Social Behavior ◽  
Social Anxiety ◽  
Social Perception ◽  
Social Skill ◽  
Psychiatric Patients ◽  
Social Performance ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Social Situations ◽  
Response Alternatives

This study examined relationships among measures of social perception and social performance for 63 psychiatric patients. Simulated social situations with differing response alternatives were presented on videotape to patients who judged the most appropriate alternative of three. Patients also participated in role-plays, and their videotaped responses were later rated for social skill and social anxiety. Patients also responded to a self-report inventory of social behavior. Analysis indicated that social perception was correlated with social skill but not with social anxiety. Self-report measures were not correlated with either social perception or social performance. The possible role of social perception in social performance was discussed.

scholarly journals Self-Focused Cognition in Social Anxiety: A Review of the Theoretical and Empirical Literature

2016 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 44-64 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alice R. Norton ◽  
Maree J. Abbott
Keyword(s):  
Social Anxiety ◽  
Cognitive Processes ◽  
Empirical Literature ◽  
Similar Process ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Social Situations ◽  
Socially Anxious ◽  
Substantial Body ◽  
Growing Body

Social anxiety disorder (SAD) is characterised by a marked and persistent fear of social or performance situations. Cognitive models suggest that self-focused cognitive processes play a crucial role in generating and maintaining social anxiety, and that self-focused cognition occurs prior to, during, and following social situations (Clark & Wells, 1995; Rapee & Heimberg, 1997). There is a substantial body of empirical evidence demonstrating that socially anxious individuals engage in self-focused cognition during and following a social or performance situation. A smaller but growing body literature suggests that a similar process occurs prior to such situations, and that these three processes are interdependent. Furthermore, the vast majority of research to date indicates that self-focused cognitive processes are detrimental, and that they generate and maintain social anxiety in a variety of ways. However, there remains considerable scope for research to further explicate the role of these processes in the maintenance of SAD, and to enhance interventions designed to ameliorate their negative effects.

Humor use, reactions to social comments, and social anxiety

2014 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicholas A. Kuiper ◽  
Audrey Aiken ◽  
Maria Sol Pound
Keyword(s):  
Social Anxiety ◽  
Social Rejection ◽  
Use Of Self ◽  
Humor Styles ◽  
Socially Anxious ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Social Comments

AbstractThis study investigated how the use of different humor styles by individuals described as being either socially anxious or non-anxious can have an impact on the perceptions and evaluations made by others about these individuals. Participants read a set of scenarios describing brief interactions with a casual acquaintance (either socially anxious or non-anxious) who made four different types of social comments (affiliative, self-enhancing, aggressive or self-defeating). When the affiliative and self-enhancing comments were delivered humorously, participants indicated more positive evaluations and less social rejection of the casual acquaintance. This finding was obtained for both the socially anxious and non-anxious casual acquaintances. In contrast, the use of self-defeating comments, both with or without humor, was particularly detrimental to evaluations of the socially anxious acquaintance. In addition, participants were generally less interested in future interactions with a socially anxious acquaintance, and rated themselves more negatively when this acquaintance was portrayed as being socially anxious. Discussion focused on the pervasive role of humor in facilitating more positive reactions and responses to social comments made by both socially anxious and non-anxious individuals.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document