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Treating individuals with debilitating performance anxiety: An introduction
1Harvard Medical School, MA, USA. douglas_powell@hms.harvard.edu
Journal of Clinical Psychology
|July 9, 2004
Summary
Performance anxiety significantly impacts careers and performance, affecting 2% of the US population. Effective behavioral, cognitive, and technological treatments are available for public speaking, stage fright, and test anxiety.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Clinical Psychology
Background:
- Debilitating performance anxiety affects a significant portion of the population, leading to career-threatening issues.
- Individuals experience severe anxiety related to public speaking, stage fright, test-taking, and writing block.
- Musicians and athletes often underperform due to anxiety before and during critical events.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review effective treatments for debilitating performance anxiety.
- To introduce a special issue of the Journal of Clinical Psychology: In Session focused on performance anxiety.
Main Methods:
- Review of behavioral therapies.
- Review of cognitive therapies.
- Review of technological therapies.
Main Results:
- Behavioral, cognitive, and technological therapies show great promise for treating performance anxiety.
- Effective treatments are available for individuals suffering from debilitating performance anxiety.
Conclusions:
- Individuals with performance anxiety can benefit from available treatment options.
- This special issue provides a comprehensive overview of current therapeutic approaches.