The predominant emotion in social phobia is anxiety. As we have seen, anxiety occurs in response
to a perceived threat through activation of the flight or fight response. Whilst this response
developed in animals as an emergency response to physical danger, in humans it can also be
triggered by the threat of some type of loss. It may be that a fear of losing our social standing with
others may trigger the anxiety of social phobia. It may also relate to some deep seated need to be
accepted by others which could date from prehistoric times when an individual’s survival in a harsh
and dangerous environment depended on acceptance by the tribe. In any case, it is now clear that
the anxiety in social phobia is triggered by a fear of being negatively evaluated. Underlying this is
an excessive concern about the opinions of others.
You can compare your degree of concern about what others may think of you with the general
population by completing the following questionnaire, developed by Watson and Friend.
FNE SCALES
In each case indicate whether or not the statement applies to you by writing either T for true or F for false.
Please be sure to answer all the statements.
1. ___ I rarely worry about seeming foolish to others.
2. ___ I worry about what people will think of me even when I know it doesn't make any difference.
3. ___ I become tense and jittery if I know someone is sizing me up.
4. ___ I am unconcerned even if I know people are forming an unfavorable impression of me.
5. ___ I feel very upset when I commit some social error.
6. ___ The opinions that important people have of me cause me little concern.
7. ___ I am often afraid that I may look ridiculous or make a fool of myself.
8. ___ I react very little when other people disapprove of me.
9. ___ I am frequently afraid of other people noticing my shortcomings.
10. ___ The disapproval of others would have little effect on me.
11. ___ If someone is evaluating me, I tend to expect the worst.
12. ___ I rarely worry about what kind of impression I am making on someone.
13. ___ I am afraid that others will not approve of me.
14. ___ I am afraid that people will find fault with me.
15. ___ Other people's opinions of me do not bother me.
16. ___ I am not necessarily upset if I do not please someone.
17. ___ When I am talking to someone, I worry about what they may be thinking about me.
18. ___ I feel that you can't help making social errors sometimes, so why worry about it.
19. ___ I am usually worried about what kind of impression I make.
20. ___ I worry a lot about what my superiors think of me.
21. ___ If I know someone is judging me, it has little effect on me.
22. ___ I worry that others will think I am not worthwhile.
23. ___ I worry very little about what others may think of me.
24. ___ Sometimes I think I am too concerned with what other people think of me.
25. ___ I often worry that I will say or do the wrong things.
26. ___ I am often indifferent to the opinion others have of me.
27. ___ I am usually confident that others will have a favorable impression of me.
28. ___ I often worry that people who are important to me won't think very much of me.
29. ___ I brood about the opinions my friends have about me.
30. ___ I become tense and jittery if I know I am being judged by my superiors.
Score this questionnaire by giving yourself 1 point if you said “True” to numbers 2,3,5,7,9,11,
13,14,17,19,20,22,24,25,28,29,10. Score 1 point if you said “False” to
1,4,6,8,10,12,15,16,18,21,23,26,27. Your score gives an indication of how concerned you are to get
the approval of others in your life. Approximately 75% of people in the general population score
less than 19 on this scale. Scores higher than this indicate a level of over concern about others’
opinions of you that is likely to cause distress – and result in anxiety in social situations.
That’s not to say that others don’t get any social anxiety. They do. Everyone would like to think
that they are accepted and approved of by others they come in contact with. We all know the
feeling of embarrassment when we make a silly mistake, say something inappropriate or draw
attention to ourselves in an unflattering, and usually accidental, way. However, there are several
differences between normal social anxiety and social phobia.
Normal social anxiety Social phobia
Moderate desire for approval Strong desire for approval
Expectation of approval Expectation of disapproval
Reasonable tolerance for disapproval Extremely distressed by disapproval
Easily forgets about faux pas Dwells on faux pas, very upset by them
When in doubt interprets response as positive When in doubt interprets reaction as critical
So, it is the fear of negative evaluation that is the core of the problem, but it is compounded by
unrealistic beliefs about:
· How bad you think negative evaluation is, and what you believe the consequences will be for
you
· How likely you think it is that you will be evaluated negatively
This explains why some people that show the apparent signs of anxiety that worry you - who blush
or tremble, sweat or shake, appear lost for words or stumble over what they are saying – do not
appear to worry about it. Indeed, many of the people we have treated in the past have commented
that they have encountered people who did what they themselves feared without worrying about it,
for example, the person who shook when writing, yet seemed unconcerned,
to a perceived threat through activation of the flight or fight response. Whilst this response
developed in animals as an emergency response to physical danger, in humans it can also be
triggered by the threat of some type of loss. It may be that a fear of losing our social standing with
others may trigger the anxiety of social phobia. It may also relate to some deep seated need to be
accepted by others which could date from prehistoric times when an individual’s survival in a harsh
and dangerous environment depended on acceptance by the tribe. In any case, it is now clear that
the anxiety in social phobia is triggered by a fear of being negatively evaluated. Underlying this is
an excessive concern about the opinions of others.
You can compare your degree of concern about what others may think of you with the general
population by completing the following questionnaire, developed by Watson and Friend.
FNE SCALES
In each case indicate whether or not the statement applies to you by writing either T for true or F for false.
Please be sure to answer all the statements.
1. ___ I rarely worry about seeming foolish to others.
2. ___ I worry about what people will think of me even when I know it doesn't make any difference.
3. ___ I become tense and jittery if I know someone is sizing me up.
4. ___ I am unconcerned even if I know people are forming an unfavorable impression of me.
5. ___ I feel very upset when I commit some social error.
6. ___ The opinions that important people have of me cause me little concern.
7. ___ I am often afraid that I may look ridiculous or make a fool of myself.
8. ___ I react very little when other people disapprove of me.
9. ___ I am frequently afraid of other people noticing my shortcomings.
10. ___ The disapproval of others would have little effect on me.
11. ___ If someone is evaluating me, I tend to expect the worst.
12. ___ I rarely worry about what kind of impression I am making on someone.
13. ___ I am afraid that others will not approve of me.
14. ___ I am afraid that people will find fault with me.
15. ___ Other people's opinions of me do not bother me.
16. ___ I am not necessarily upset if I do not please someone.
17. ___ When I am talking to someone, I worry about what they may be thinking about me.
18. ___ I feel that you can't help making social errors sometimes, so why worry about it.
19. ___ I am usually worried about what kind of impression I make.
20. ___ I worry a lot about what my superiors think of me.
21. ___ If I know someone is judging me, it has little effect on me.
22. ___ I worry that others will think I am not worthwhile.
23. ___ I worry very little about what others may think of me.
24. ___ Sometimes I think I am too concerned with what other people think of me.
25. ___ I often worry that I will say or do the wrong things.
26. ___ I am often indifferent to the opinion others have of me.
27. ___ I am usually confident that others will have a favorable impression of me.
28. ___ I often worry that people who are important to me won't think very much of me.
29. ___ I brood about the opinions my friends have about me.
30. ___ I become tense and jittery if I know I am being judged by my superiors.
Score this questionnaire by giving yourself 1 point if you said “True” to numbers 2,3,5,7,9,11,
13,14,17,19,20,22,24,25,28,29,10. Score 1 point if you said “False” to
1,4,6,8,10,12,15,16,18,21,23,26,27. Your score gives an indication of how concerned you are to get
the approval of others in your life. Approximately 75% of people in the general population score
less than 19 on this scale. Scores higher than this indicate a level of over concern about others’
opinions of you that is likely to cause distress – and result in anxiety in social situations.
That’s not to say that others don’t get any social anxiety. They do. Everyone would like to think
that they are accepted and approved of by others they come in contact with. We all know the
feeling of embarrassment when we make a silly mistake, say something inappropriate or draw
attention to ourselves in an unflattering, and usually accidental, way. However, there are several
differences between normal social anxiety and social phobia.
Normal social anxiety Social phobia
Moderate desire for approval Strong desire for approval
Expectation of approval Expectation of disapproval
Reasonable tolerance for disapproval Extremely distressed by disapproval
Easily forgets about faux pas Dwells on faux pas, very upset by them
When in doubt interprets response as positive When in doubt interprets reaction as critical
So, it is the fear of negative evaluation that is the core of the problem, but it is compounded by
unrealistic beliefs about:
· How bad you think negative evaluation is, and what you believe the consequences will be for
you
· How likely you think it is that you will be evaluated negatively
This explains why some people that show the apparent signs of anxiety that worry you - who blush
or tremble, sweat or shake, appear lost for words or stumble over what they are saying – do not
appear to worry about it. Indeed, many of the people we have treated in the past have commented
that they have encountered people who did what they themselves feared without worrying about it,
for example, the person who shook when writing, yet seemed unconcerned,
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