Being kind to my socially anxious mind; A study of the relationship between selfcompassion and social anxiety

This study ( n = 304) examined the relationship between somatic symptoms and social anxiety. Significant differences in the experience of somatic symptoms were found among four groups (i.e. performance anxious, interaction anxious, generalized socially anxious, and controls). Post hoc analyses revealed that those who exceeded the clinical cutoff for generalized social anxiety exhibited more somatic symptoms than those who exceeded the clinical cutoff in the other two social anxiety domains or controls. Individuals in each group exhibited more somatic symptoms than controls, but subtypes did not differ in the amount of somatic symptoms experienced. Additionally, regression analyses revealed that type of somatic symptoms experienced varied depending on subtype.

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The Relation Between Social Anxiety and Audience Perception: Examining Clark and Wells’ (1995) Model Among Adolescents

Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy ◽

10.1017/s1352465813000271 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 42 (5) ◽

pp. 555-567 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Anke W. Blöte ◽

Anne C. Miers ◽

David A. Heyne ◽

David M. Clark ◽

P. Michiel Westenberg

Keyword(s):

Social Anxiety ◽

Community Sample ◽

Cognitive Model ◽

Focused Attention ◽

Social Event ◽

Performance Expectations ◽

Socially Anxious ◽

Negative Thoughts ◽

Negative Perceptions ◽

The Relationship

Background: Clark and Wells’ cognitive model of social anxiety proposes that socially anxious individuals have negative expectations of performance prior to a social event, focus their attention predominantly on themselves and on their negative self-evaluations during an event, and use this negative self-processing to infer that other people are judging them harshly. Aims: The present study tested these propositions. Method: The study used a community sample of 161 adolescents aged 14–18 years. The participants gave a speech in front of a pre-recorded audience acting neutrally, and participants were aware that the projected audience was pre-recorded. Results: As expected, participants with higher levels of social anxiety had more negative performance expectations, higher self-focused attention, and more negative perceptions of the audience. Negative performance expectations and self-focused attention were found to mediate the relationship between social anxiety and audience perception. Conclusions: The findings support Clark and Wells’ cognitive model of social anxiety, which poses that socially anxious individuals have distorted perceptions of the responses of other people because their perceptions are coloured by their negative thoughts and feelings.

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The relationship between self-esteem and self-compassion in socially anxious

Current Psychology ◽

10.1007/s12144-021-02305-2 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Pawel Holas ◽

Melanie Kowalczyk ◽

Izabela Krejtz ◽

Katarzyna Wisiecka ◽

Tomasz Jankowski

Keyword(s):

Social Anxiety ◽

Psychological Functioning ◽

Well Being ◽

Self Esteem ◽

The Self ◽

Negative Effects ◽

Socially Anxious ◽

Self Compassion ◽

Negative Effect ◽

The Relationship

Abstract Fear of evaluation and a negative view of the self are the core aspects of social anxiety. Self-compassion and self-esteem are two distinct positive attitudes toward the self, which are positively related to each other, well-being and good psychological functioning. It is less clear, however, how they interplay in socially anxious individuals and if self-compassion may reduce the negative effect of low self-esteem on social anxiety. The current research aimed at evaluating the directional links between those constructs to check if self-compassion mediates the effect of self-esteem on social anxiety. In this study, 388 adult participants with elevated social anxiety completed measures of self-compassion, self-esteem and social anxiety. As expected, both self-esteem and self-compassion correlated negatively with social anxiety and positively with one another, with lower self-esteem being a stronger predictor of social anxiety. Importantly, self-compassion partially mediated the relationship between self-esteem and social anxiety. These findings suggest that self-compassion partially explains the negative effects of deficits in self-esteem on social anxiety. Practical implications of the research are discussed.

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Social anxiety and anger regulation

European Journal of Personality ◽

10.1002/per.528 ◽

2004 ◽

Vol 18 (7) ◽

pp. 573-590 ◽

Cited By ~ 17

Author(s):

Hannelore Weber ◽

Monika Wiedig ◽

Jennis Freyer ◽

Joerg Gralher

Keyword(s):

Social Anxiety ◽

Significant Influence ◽

Social Performance ◽

The Self ◽

Independent Effect ◽

Socially Anxious ◽

Independent Observer ◽

Anger Regulation ◽

Observer Ratings ◽

The Relationship

Based on the assumption that social anxiety is associated with less assertive behaviour and that effective anger regulation is influenced by social anxiety, two studies were conducted to examine the relationship between social anxiety and anger regulation. In Study 1, questionnaires measuring social anxiety, assertiveness, and six habitual anger‐related responses were administered to 115 adults. Social anxiety had an independent effect on rumination and submission, whereas assertiveness was independently related to the use of humour and feedback. In Study 2 (N = 136 adults) self‐ and observer ratings of anger‐related behaviour were obtained after anger was experimentally induced. Social anxiety was related to self‐ratings of submission and rumination. However, independent observer ratings based on videotapes revealed no significant influence of social anxiety on anger‐related behaviour. Taken together, the results provide evidence that social anxiety is associated with the self‐perception of less assertive behaviour and the tendency to evaluate one's behaviour more negatively. These results are consistent with prior studies showing that socially anxious persons tend to underestimate their social performance relative to the ratings of independent observers. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

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Self-esteem mediates the relationship between mindfulness and social anxiety among Chinese undergraduate students

Social Behavior and Personality An International Journal ◽

10.2224/sbp.2016.44.8.1297 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 44 (8) ◽

pp. 1297-1304 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Jianfeng Tan ◽

Pouchan Lo ◽

Nie Ge ◽

Chengjing Chu

Keyword(s):

Social Anxiety ◽

Undergraduate Students ◽

Cultural Context ◽

Self Esteem ◽

Preventive Therapy ◽

Mindfulness Practice ◽

Chinese Adults ◽

Socially Anxious ◽

Mindful Attention Awareness Scale ◽

The Relationship

We examined self-esteem as a mediator of the relationship between mindfulness and social anxiety in a Chinese cultural context. Participants comprised 508 Chinese undergraduate students, who completed the Mindful Attention Awareness Scale, Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, and Interaction Anxiousness Scale. Results showed that social anxiety was negatively correlated with mindfulness and self-esteem, and that mindfulness was positively correlated with self-esteem. Mediation analysis revealed that self-esteem partially mediated the association between mindfulness and social anxiety. Thus, we suggest that mindfulness decreases social anxiety because high mindfulness fosters high self-esteem. Mindfulness practice, for example, meditation, can be used as a preventive therapy to help Chinese adults to reduce their social anxiety, and can also enhance the self-esteem of socially anxious Chinese adults.

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Do Socially Anxious Individuals Hold Positive Metacognitive Beliefs About Rumination?

Behaviour Change ◽

10.1375/bech.27.2.69 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 27 (2) ◽

pp. 69-83 ◽

Cited By ~ 19

Author(s):

Quincy J.J. Wong ◽

Michelle L. Moulds

Keyword(s):

Executive Function ◽

Social Anxiety ◽

Emotional Disorders ◽

The Self ◽

Thought Processes ◽

Composite Measure ◽

Socially Anxious ◽

Repetitive Thought ◽

Metacognitive Beliefs ◽

The Relationship

AbstractThe Self-Regulatory Executive Function (S-REF) model of affective dysfunction (Wells & Matthews, 1994) suggests that metacognitive beliefs are important for initiating and maintaining repetitive thought processes in emotional disorders. Rumination is reported by socially anxious individuals, yet it is not known whether this group endorse positive beliefs about the utility of rumination. We predicted that higher levels of social anxiety would be positively associated with stronger positive metacognitive beliefs about rumination. In Study 1 (N= 250 undergraduates), a measure of social anxiety was positively correlated with a measure of positive metacognitive beliefs about rumination, even when controlling for gender and level of depression. Given this result, we then attempted to replicate the finding in another sample, as well as test whether positive metacognitive beliefs about rumination would mediate the relationship between social anxiety and trait rumination. In Study 2 (N= 124 undergraduates), a social anxiety composite measure was positively correlated with a measure of positive metacognitive beliefs about rumination, even when controlling for gender, level of depression and level of rumination. Positive metacognitive beliefs about rumination were also shown to partially mediate the relationship between social anxiety and trait rumination. These results support the S-REF model and provide a potential account of why socially anxious individuals engage in rumination. Implications for the treatment of social anxiety are discussed.

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