THE EFFECTS OF AGE ON SOCIAL ANXIETY

The Effects Of Age On Social Anxiety, Social Avoidance And Distress

Abstract

Literature suggests that parent-child attachment and anxiety symptoms are related. One purpose of the present study was to assess whether attachment patterns relate differentially to social anxiety aspects (fear of negative evaluation, social anxiety and distress in new situations, and generalized anxiety and distress). The second purpose was to investigate these links both longitudinally and concurrently in middle childhood. Children in grades 3 and 5 (N = 74) completed measures of secure, ambivalent, and avoidant attachments with mothers and a measure of social anxiety symptoms in grade 5. Longitudinal analyses showed that ambivalent attachment was most consistently related to social anxiety. Concurrent measures of attachment and social anxiety showed that lower attachment security and higher ambivalent attachment were most consistently related to higher social anxiety. Concurrent attachment predicted variance in social anxiety after controlling for earlier attachment. Findings suggest that anxiety interventions might target attachment. We examined how social anxiety is related to appraisals for various disinhibited behaviors and sought to identify potential subgroups of socially anxious people. College students completed trait measures and appraised disinhibited behaviors on their potential for threat, opportunity to satisfy curiosity, and ability to enhance social status. Three months later, participants were asked to report on their frequency of disinhibited behaviors since the initial assessment. People with greater social anxiety demonstrated frequent approach-avoidance conflicts - co-existing recognition of threats and rewards - about social interactions and disinhibited behaviors. Even when asked about the activity most likely to be avoided, participants with greater social anxiety evaluated these as having potential to satisfy curiosity and advance their social status. Three qualitatively different groups of people were identified based on social anxiety tendencies and approach-avoidance appraisal patterns. Groups differed on the degree of approach-avoidance conflicts, measures of psychological and social well-being, and frequency of social interactions and disinhibited behaviors. Moderately socially anxious people who were approach oriented reported the most difficulties. Results suggest that social anxiety is associated with tension between competing desires to avoid anxiety and explore. However, there appears to be important variability in the regulatory orientation, behavior, and well-being of socially anxious people. Conclusions about the nature of social anxiety may be compromised by not attending to existing differences in self-regulatory orientation and strategies. This study compared symptoms of anxiety among a sample of 22 stutterers to previously gathered data for social phobics and nonpatient controls. Stutterers had more social anxiety and avoidance than did nonpatient controls. The stuttering group had less social distress and avoidance, less fear of negative evaluation, fewer symptoms of social phobia, and fewer symptoms of agoraphobia as compared to the social phobia group. There was not, however, a significant difference between the stuttering and social phobia groups on a measure of general anxiety. The majority of stutterers reported speech-related fear as their primary phobia. The results of the study suggest that stutterers may not suffer from social phobia, but that some stutterers may avoid ...