Social Anxiety and Treatment

Essay # 45825

Psychology
Psychology > Social

The causes and effects of social anxiety and the treatments available.

2,648 words () | 3 sources | MLA | 2002 United States

Paper Summary:

From time to time, everyone feels a little anxious when they need to talk in front of people. However, some people are so anxious that it hinders them greatly. A person sits in front of the telephone and agonizes because she?s afraid to pick up the receiver and make a call, a man finds it difficult to walk down the street because he is self-conscious and feels that people are watching from their windows. By explaining what social anxiety is, where it possibly comes from, and how we can treat it, this paper presents a better understanding of the people who are shy and why they act the way they act.

From the Paper:

"Shy people, particularly if they are interacting with a socially confident person, anxiously focus on themselves rather on the person or the conversation. The outcome of this is that they usually forget what they were talking about. Shy individuals report more negative thoughts about themselves in social interactions, seeing themselves as inhibited, awkward, unfriendly and incompetent, particularly with people whom they are sexually attracted to. Ten to twenty percent of shy individuals may also lack basic social skills. This may mean that they don't know what to say or do, how to do so, and when best to respond. Ratings have shown that some shy individuals talk less, initiate fewer topics of conversation, touch themselves nervously and show fewer facial expressions."