Disorders - Social phobia
Zaboski, B. A., Joyce-Beaulieu, D., Kranzler, J. H., McNamara, J. P., Gayle, C., MacInnes, J.
OBJECTIVE: Social anxiety increases college student drop-out risk and stifles employment opportunities. Group cognitive-
behavioral therapy with exposure (CBT ERP) has the potential to alleviate campus resource strain but remains under-researched with college students.
The present study investigated the efficacy of group CBT ERP in a randomized clinical trial on a college campus. METHOD(S): Thirty-one postsecondary
students were randomly assigned to an exposure-only group or an active control. RESULT(S): Linear mixed-effects models indicated significant
GroupxTime interactions for general social anxiety (t=-2.02, g = 0.62) and depression (t = -2.77, g = 0.55); nonsignificant main effects were found
for group and time variables. On a measure of fear of negative evaluation, only the main effect of time was significant (t = 2.15, p = 0.032).
CONCLUSION(S): When compared to an active control group, CBT ERP is an efficacious and time-effective treatment for college students experiencing
social anxiety. Copyright © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Journal of Clinical Psychology, 75(9) : 1489-
1507
- Year: 2019
- Problem: Social phobia (social anxiety disorder)
- Type: Randomised controlled trials
-
Stage: Disorder established (diagnosed disorder)
-
Treatment and intervention: Psychological Interventions
(any), Cognitive & behavioural therapies (CBT), Exposure therapy, Exposure
and response prevention
Yeung, E. S., Sharpe, L.
Cognitive Bias Modification (CBM) refers to the modification of cognitive biases, such as
selectively attending to threatening information or interpreting information in a threatening way. CBM for attention (CBM-A) and interpretation
(CBM-I) are efficacious in reducing anxiety vulnerability and anxiety symptoms. However, little research has investigated the potential synergies of
these interventions. This study aimed to determine the relative efficacy of CBM-A, CBM-I, and combined CBM for reducing social anxiety symptoms and
attenuating anxiety vulnerability in response to a social stressor task. Participants (N = 116) were randomly allocated to receive CBM-A, CBM-I,
combined CBM, or placebo. Results revealed that CBM-I reduced negative interpretation bias and social anxiety symptoms. Furthermore, CBM-I improved
speech performance on a social stressor task. However, CBM-A procedures did not modify attentional biases or anxiety vulnerability. These findings
support the efficacy of CBM-I for social anxiety; however, no evidence for the efficacy of CBM-A was found, nor was the combined cognitive bias
hypothesis supported in this study. Copyright © 2019, Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.
Cognitive Therapy and Research., 43 : 781 -
791
- Year: 2019
- Problem: Social phobia (social anxiety disorder)
- Type: Randomised controlled trials
-
Stage: At risk (indicated or selected prevention)
-
Treatment and intervention: Service Delivery & Improvement, Psychological Interventions
(any), Attention/cognitive bias
modification, Technology, interventions delivered using technology (e.g. online, SMS)
Craske, M. G., Fanselow, M., Treanor, M., Bystritksy, A.
Background: In rodents, context specificity of Pavlovian extinction is attenuated by
manipulations that impair hippocampal function, including systemic administration of scopolamine, a muscarinic-cholinergic receptor antagonist.
Context renewal translates into return of fear following exposure therapy to feared situations. We evaluated the effectiveness of scopolamine for
attenuating context renewal of phobic fear in humans. Method(s): A total of 60 participants (35 female, 22 male, 1 transgender, 2 undeclared)with
social anxiety disorder and fear of public speaking were randomized to placebo, 0.5 mg scopolamine, or 0.6 mg scopolamine. They completed seven
exposure sessions in an exposure context and subsequently tested in the exposure context (extinction retest)versus a different context (context
renewal test), which were counterbalanced. Testing 1 month later occurred in the exposure context (long-term extinction retest). Fear measures
included skin conductance and self-reported distress during speeches. Hippocampus-dependent cognitive tasks were completed as well. Result(s):
Scopolamine augmented extinction across exposure sessions on skin conductance response and skin conductance level. Lower skin conductance response at
context renewal in scopolamine groups relative to the placebo group was constrained to simple effects and complicated by unexpected outcomes within
placebo and on self-reported fear. Scopolamine led to lower skin conductance response at long-term extinction retest. Scopolamine impaired
performance on a cognitive task of hippocampal function. Conclusion(s): Noninvasive and well-tolerated scopolamine impaired hippocampal processes and
augmented extinction during exposure. Drug-free effects persisted 1 month later. Findings at context renewal were limited and suggestive only.
Further investigation is warranted with varying scopolamine dosages. Copyright © 2019 Society of Biological Psychiatry
Biological Psychiatry., 86(9) : 703-711
- Year: 2019
- Problem: Social phobia (social anxiety disorder)
- Type: Randomised controlled trials
-
Stage: Disorder established (diagnosed disorder)
-
Treatment and intervention: Biological Interventions
(any), Other biological interventions, Service Delivery & Improvement, Psychological Interventions
(any), Exposure therapy, Exposure
and response prevention, Technology, interventions delivered using technology (e.g. online, SMS)
Kocovski, N. L., Fleming, J.
E., Blackie, R. A., MacKenzie, M. B., Rose, A. L.
There are many barriers to the
delivery of evidence-based treatment, including geographical location, cost, and stigma. Self-help may address some of these factors but there is a
paucity of research on the efficacy of self-help for many problems, including social anxiety. The present research evaluated the efficacy of a
mindfulness and acceptance-based self-help approach for the treatment of social anxiety. Individuals seeking help for social anxiety or shyness were
recruited from the community. Participants (N = 117) were randomly assigned to a book (n = 58) or wait-list control condition (n = 59) on a 1:1
ratio. Hierarchical linear modelling results supported the efficacy of the self-help condition with between-group effect sizes on social anxiety
outcomes ranging from .74 to .79. Significant change was also observed on self-compassion, mindfulness, acceptance, and depression. Some variables,
including social anxiety and acceptance, were assessed weekly for those in the book condition. Additional participants (n = 35) were recruited for
the book condition increasing the sample size to 93 for the latent change score modelling analyses. A unidirectional model was supported: increases
in acceptance were associated with subsequent decreases in social anxiety. Overall these results support the use of a mindfulness and acceptance-
based self-help approach for social anxiety. Copyright © 2018
Behavior Therapy, 50(4) : 696-709
- Year: 2019
- Problem: Social phobia (social anxiety disorder)
- Type: Randomised controlled trials
-
Stage: At risk (indicated or selected prevention)
-
Treatment and intervention: Psychological Interventions
(any), Mindfulness based
therapy, Acceptance & commitment therapy
(ACT), Self-help
Yan, H., Chen, J., Huang, J.
Background: Left-behind children (LBC) are becoming a widespread phenomenon and face higher risks of
psychological and educational problems. Our study aimed to explore school bullying in LBC and examine the effectiveness of art therapy intervention
for reducing bullying victimization affecting LBC in rural areas. Method(s): A total of 603 children, including 272 LBC and 331 non-LBC, were sampled
from 6 rural schools. Questionnaires regarding school life satisfaction, children's social anxiety, self-esteem, and school bullying were used to
assess the psychological and school behavior status of these children. One Hundred and Eighty LBC who were victims of school bullying were then
selected and randomly assigned to 3 groups to evaluate the effects of art therapy intervention. The interventions of art therapy and general
counseling were conducted in 6 sessions over 3 months. Result(s): Our results demonstrated LBC experienced more bullying victimization than non-LBC.
Left-behind boys were more likely to be bullied than left-behind girls. LBC > 12 years old, LBC whose parents are divorced, separated, or widowed,
were more vulnerable to being bullied. School bullying of LBC was affected by social anxiety scores and school life satisfaction. The bullying
victimization of LBC in the art therapy group was significantly improved. Conclusion(s): LBC suffered more school bullying than did non-LBC. Art
therapy can effectively help LBC in rural primary schools to reduce their vulnerability to bullying. Copyright © 2019 Yan, Chen and Huang. This is an
open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other
forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is
cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
Frontiers in Psychiatry, 10 (FEB)
(40) :
- Year: 2019
- Problem: Social phobia (social anxiety disorder)
- Type: Randomised controlled trials
-
Stage: At risk (indicated or selected prevention)
-
Treatment and intervention: Complementary & Alternative
Interventions (CAM), Psychological Interventions
(any), Other Psychological Interventions, Creative expression: music, dance, drama, art
Silk, Jennifer S., Price, Rebecca B., Rosen, Dana, Ryan, Neal D., Forbes, Erika E., Siegle, Greg J., Dahl, Ronald E., McMakin, Dana L., Kendall, Philip C., Ladouceur, Cecile D.
Objective:
Children who are fearful and anxious are at heightened risk for developing depression in adolescence. Treating anxiety disorders in pre-/early
adolescence may be one mechanism through which depressive symptoms later in adolescence can be prevented. We hypothesized that anxious youth who
responded positively to cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for anxiety would show reduced onset of depressive symptoms 2 years later compared to
treatment nonresponders, and that this effect would be specific to youth treated with CBT compared to an active supportive comparison treatment.
Method: Participants were 80 adolescents ages 11 to 17 years who had previously completed a randomized trial comparing predictors of treatment
response to CBT and child-centered therapy (CCT). Youth met DSM-IV criteria for generalized, separation, and/or social anxiety disorder at the time
of treatment. The present study was a prospective naturalistic 2-year follow-up examining trajectories toward depression, in which participants were
reassessed for depressive symptoms 2 years after anxiety treatment. Treatment response was defined as a 35% reduction in independent evaluator-rated
anxiety severity on the Pediatric Anxiety Rating Scale after treatment. Results: As hypothesized, lower levels of depressive symptoms were observed
in anxious youth who responded to CBT for anxiety (beta = -0.807, p = .004) but not CCT (beta = 0.254, p = .505). Sensitivity analyses showed that
the effects were driven by girls. Conclusion: Findings suggest that CBT for anxiety is a promising approach to preventing adolescent depressive
symptomatology, especially among girls. The results highlight the need for better early screening for anxiety and better dissemination of CBT
programs targeting anxiety in youth. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved)
Journal of the American Academy of Child &
Adolescent Psychiatry, 58(3) : 359-367
- Year: 2019
- Problem: Anxiety Disorders (any), Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Social phobia (social anxiety disorder), Depressive Disorders
- Type: Randomised controlled trials
-
Stage: Disorder established (diagnosed disorder), At risk (indicated or selected prevention)
-
Treatment and intervention: Psychological Interventions
(any), Cognitive & behavioural therapies (CBT), Supportive
therapy, Other Psychological Interventions
Luna, P., Guerrero, J., Cejudo, J.
This study
aimed to evaluate the impact of a physical-sport education pilot programme on adolescents' subjective well-being (health-related quality of life,
positive affect and negative affect), trait emotional intelligence and social anxiety. The programme was based on the pedagogical sport education
model within a quality physical education framework, and approached from the perspective of social and emotional learning. Participants were 113
compulsory secondary education students aged 12-15 years that were assigned to a control group (n = 44) and an experimental group (n = 69). A quasi-
experimental design with repeated pre-test and post-test measures was used. Bonferroni correction was applied for multiple comparisons. The
preliminary results obtained in this investigation revealed that the physical-sport education pilot programme promoted significant improvements in a
specific indicator of subjective well-being and trait emotional intelligence in the experimental group. These encouraging findings support the
pedagogical efficiency of the programme with regard to the programme aim. The findings also highlight the feasibility and appropriateness of the
programme in terms of an innovative teaching proposal.
International Journal of Environmental Research & Public
Health, 16(10) :
- Year: 2019
- Problem: Anxiety Disorders (any), Social phobia (social anxiety disorder)
- Type: Randomised controlled trials
-
Stage: Universal prevention
-
Treatment and intervention: Complementary & Alternative
Interventions (CAM), Physical activity, exercise
Reutter, M., Hewig, J., Wieser, M. J., Osinsky, R.
Several meta-analyses to date have confirmed the efficacy of attentional bias modification (ABM) in shifting reaction times away from
threatening stimuli, reducing anxiety symptoms, and buffering against stressor vulnerability. The reliability of reaction time differences, however,
has been found to show unacceptable psychometric properties. In this study, we tested the impact of an extensive Dot-Probe ABM procedure, consisting
of close to 7000 trials, concurrently with behavioral and electrophysiological measures within a large sample of over 100 highly socially anxious
participants. Results indicated that the N2pc component demonstrates superior internal consistency and more statistical power in detecting
attentional biases and their modification than reaction time (RT) differences. RTs were neither indicative of an attentional bias before ABM nor of a
modification over time. In contrast, the N2pc indexed both an initial attentional preference for threatening stimuli and an alteration of this
relationship after training. Outcomes were not specific for attentional training away from threat but also occurred in the no-contingency control
procedure, casting doubt on the theoretic underpinnings of ABM. Electrophysiological measures are an important complement to the ABM literature and
should be further utilized to assess attentional biases with excellent reliability. Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Ltd
Behaviour Research and Therapy, 120(103404) :
- Year: 2019
- Problem: Social phobia (social anxiety disorder)
- Type: Controlled clinical trials
-
Stage: At risk (indicated or selected prevention)
-
Treatment and intervention: Psychological Interventions
(any), Attention/cognitive bias
modification
Ollendick, T.
H., White, S. W., Richey, J., Kim-Spoon, J., Ryan, S. M., Wieckowski, A.
T., Coffman, M. C., Elias, R., Strege, M. V., Capriola-Hall, N. N., Smith, M.
Social anxiety disorder (SAD) tends to emerge during the early teenage years and is particularly refractory to change even when standard
evidence-based CBT treatments are delivered. Efforts have been made to develop novel, mechanistic-driven interventions for this disorder. In the
present study, we examined Attention Bias Modification Treatment (ABMT) for youth with SAD.
Behavior Therapy, 50(1) : 126-
139
- Year: 2019
- Problem: Social phobia (social anxiety disorder)
- Type: Randomised controlled trials
-
Stage: Disorder established (diagnosed disorder)
-
Treatment and intervention: Psychological Interventions
(any), Attention/cognitive bias
modification
Zaboski, B. A., Joyce-Beaulieu, D., Kranzler, J. H., McNamara, J.
P., Gayle, C., MacInnes, J.
OBJECTIVE: Social anxiety increases college
student drop-out risk and stifles employment opportunities. Group cognitive-behavioral therapy with exposure (CBT ERP) has the potential to alleviate
campus resource strain but remains under-researched with college students. The present study investigated the efficacy of group CBT ERP in a
randomized clinical trial on a college campus. METHOD(S): Thirty-one postsecondary students were randomly assigned to an exposure-only group or an
active control. RESULT(S): Linear mixed-effects models indicated significant GroupxTime interactions for general social anxiety (t=-2.02, g = 0.62)
and depression (t = -2.77, g = 0.55); nonsignificant main effects were found for group and time variables. On a measure of fear of negative
evaluation, only the main effect of time was significant (t = 2.15, p = 0.032). CONCLUSION(S): When compared to an active control group, CBT ERP is
an efficacious and time-effective treatment for college students experiencing social anxiety. Copyright © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Journal of Clinical Psychology, 75(9) : 1489-1507
- Year: 2019
- Problem: Social phobia (social anxiety disorder)
- Type: Randomised controlled trials
-
Stage: Disorder established (diagnosed disorder)
-
Treatment and intervention: Psychological Interventions
(any), Cognitive & behavioural therapies (CBT), Exposure therapy, Exposure
and response prevention
Yang, L., Zhou, X., Pu, J., Liu, L., Cuijpers,
P., Zhang, Y., Zhang, H., Yuan, S., Teng, T., Tian, L., Xie, P.
Social anxiety disorder (SAD) is highly prevalent and persistent in
children and adolescents. However, evidence for the efficacy and acceptability of psychological interventions for SAD in children and adolescents
remains unclear. Seven electronic databases (PubMed, CENTRAL, Embase, Web of Science, PsycINFO, CINAHL, and ProQuest) were searched. Randomized
controlled trials (RCTs) that compared psychological interventions for SAD with control conditions in children and adolescents were included. Primary
outcomes were the efficacy (mean change in anxiety symptom scores) and acceptability (dropouts for all reasons). Secondary outcomes were remission,
quality of life/functional improvement, and depressive symptoms measures. Seventeen RCTs were included in this meta-analysis. Psychological
interventions (including cognitive behavioral therapy and behavioral therapy) were significantly more effective than control conditions, with a
standardized mean difference (SMD) of - 1.13, and remission with a risk ratio (RR) of 8.99, the number needed to treat was 3.3. There was no
statistically significant difference between psychological interventions and control conditions for all-cause dropouts (RR = 1.00). Psychological
interventions were superior to control conditions in improving quality of life/functioning (SMD = 0.79) and reducing depressive symptoms (SMD = -
0.39). Given considerable heterogeneity of primary efficacy outcome, a series of subgroup analyses of different variables were conducted.
Psychological interventions are probably efficacious in the treatment of SAD among children and adolescents, and may markedly improve quality of life
and functioning in this population. However, this finding should be interpreted with caution because of the high heterogeneity of trials and low
literature quality.
European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 28(1) : 79-
89
- Year: 2019
- Problem: Anxiety Disorders (any), Social phobia (social anxiety disorder)
- Type: Systematic reviews
-
Stage: Disorder established (diagnosed disorder)
-
Treatment and intervention: Psychological Interventions
(any), Cognitive & behavioural therapies (CBT), Other Psychological Interventions
Lu, R., Zhou, Y., Wu, Q., Peng, X., Dong, J., Zhu, Z., Xu, W.
Background: The population of left-behind children is growing rapidly in China in recent
years. Without parents' company, left-behind children may develop severe emotional problems, which can trigger extreme behaviours such as self-harm
and suicide. Previous literature suggests that mindfulness-based intervention could effectively alleviate a variety of sufferings such as anxiety and
suicide ideation. The current study sought to examine the effectiveness of mindfulness-based intervention on suicide ideation among left-behind
children in China. Methods: This study investigated the effects of an 8-week mindfulness training programme on suicide ideation of left-behind
children in China. Forty-nine left-behind children completed a pretest and posttest on mindfulness level, social anxiety, self-esteem, and suicide
ideation, with 21 in the mindfulness training group and 28 in the waitlist control group. Results: Adjusting for pretest differences analyses of
covariance found that, compared with waitlist control group, the mindfulness training group showed a significant improvement in mindfulness level and
decreases in social anxiety and suicide ideation after the 8-week mindfulness training. Conclusion: The findings from this study support that the use
of mindfulness-based intervention can effectively reduce the suicide ideation and social anxiety of left-behind children in China. (PsycINFO Database
Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved)
Child: Care, Health and
Development, 45(3) : 371-379
- Year: 2019
- Problem: Social phobia (social anxiety disorder), Suicide or self-harm behaviours (excluding non-suicidal self-harm)
- Type: Randomised controlled trials
-
Stage: At risk (indicated or selected prevention)
-
Treatment and intervention: Psychological Interventions
(any), Mindfulness based
therapy