Social Anxiety Disorder

checklist

• pronounced, disproportionate, repeated anxiety about social situations in which the individual can be judged; 6 months +

• fear of being negatively evaluated by others

• exposure to social situation almost always produces anxiety

• avoidance of feared situations

• significant distress or impairment

treatment

• benzodiazepines, antidepressants improve functioning in the fear circuit

• CBT is as effective if not more so

• exposure therapy and deconstructing irrationality

begins when?

late childhood or adolescence

causes

• interplay of cognitive and biological factors

• people with the disorder may have dysfunctional beliefs about the social realm (high social standards, belief of no control)

• genetic predispositions, trait tendencies, biological irregularities

• trauma

• overprotective parent

social skills training

• use of modeling appropriate social behaviors for clients and encouraging them to try

• roleplay, rehearsing

• frank feedback & reinforcement