Mindsets in social anxiety: a new look at selective information processing
Abstract
According to the Rubicon Model of Action Phases (in: J. Gollwitzer, 1996), Motivation, volition, and action, Enzyclopedia of psychology, series "motivation and emotion", Vol. 4, Hogrefe, Göttingen, 1996, pp. 531-582), different stages in goal pursuit are accompanied by different mindsets that enhance processing of mindset-congruous information. Before people engage in action, they usually deliberate possible goals for a given situation (deliberative mindset). Once a goal is chosen, they plan how to achieve this particular goal (implemental mindset). The present experiments tested the hypothesis that people with social anxiety show a reversal of mindsets when approaching social situations. In Experiment 1, 20 students were asked to either deliberate goals for a hypothetical social conflict (deliberation), or to think about steps to solve the conflict (implementation). An unexpected recognition test demonstrated different recognition memory for deliberation-related versus implementation-related information in the two groups, consistent with the hypothesis of different mindsets. In Experiment 2, 48 students who were either high or low in social anxiety were randomly assigned to either the deliberation or the implementation condition. Participants high in social anxiety showed a pattern in the recognition test that was consistent with a reversal of mindsets. When asked to plan social situations, they showed an inappropriate deliberative mindset. In contrast, they lacked a deliberative mindset when deliberating goals for the social situation. The result indicate that socially anxious people engage in information processing that interferes with successful goal attainment when approaching social situations.
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SAD can result in difficulty in setting, defining, and achieving social goals.
“Lastly, SAD can result in difficulty in setting, defining, and achieving social goals (Newman et al., 1994; Heinrichs and Hofmann, 2001; Hiemisch et al., 2002).”
From Can dialectical behavior therapy skills group treat social anxiety disorder? A brief integrative review (2024) · cites this paper as Hiemisch et al., 2002
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- Authors
- Hiemisch, A., Ehlers, A., & Westermann, R.
- Affiliations
- Universität Greifswald (DE)
- Corresponding author
- Ehlers, Anke
- ORCID
- Ehlers, Anke
- Venue
- Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2002-06
- Volume
- 33
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 103-114
- ISSN
- 0005-7916 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2157957133
- Cited by
- 37
- References
- 31
- Citations by year
- 2025: 2 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 2 · 2022: 2 · 2021: 1 · 2019: 3 · 2018: 3 · 2017: 2 · 2016: 2 · 2014: 3 · 2013: 4
- FWCI
- 0.96
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Research Portal (King's College London) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- Wellcome Trust (069777)
- Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Applied Psychology › Behavioral Health and Interventions
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Social and Intergroup Psychology
- Keywords
- social anxiety, mindset, deliberative mindset, implemental mindset, goal pursuit, selective information processing, recognition memory, social conflict, planning, goal achievement
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Decision Making, Female, Goals, Humans, Male, Mental Processes, Motivation, Phobic Disorders, Psychological Theory, Random Allocation, Social Behavior, Social Environment
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