The observer perspective: effects on social anxiety and performance.

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Clinical Psychology
• Social Psychology

Background:

• The Clark and Wells cognitive model of social phobia suggests individuals with social phobia form negative self-impressions from an external "observer" perspective.
• While social phobics frequently use this perspective, its experimental impact on anxiety, cognition, and behavior remains under-investigated.

Purpose of the Study:

• To experimentally investigate the effects of adopting an observer perspective on thinking, anxiety, behavior, and social performance.
• To compare these effects in individuals with high and low social anxiety.

Main Methods:

• Forty-four participants, divided into high and low social anxiety groups, delivered two speeches.
• Speeches were delivered from either an observer perspective or a field perspective.

Main Results:

• Adopting an observer perspective led to increased negative thoughts and safety behaviors in both high and low socially anxious groups.
• Worse self-evaluation of performance, increased anxiety, and higher thought belief ratings were observed in the observer perspective condition.
• Trends suggest the observer perspective might contain positive information for individuals with low social anxiety.

Conclusions:

• Findings support the Clark and Wells cognitive model of social phobia.
• The observer perspective appears to negatively impact cognitive, affective, and behavioral aspects of social performance.
• The observer perspective's role in low socially anxious individuals warrants further investigation.