“It's not just about being judged”: interpersonal distrust uniquely contributes to social anxiety
Open accessAbstract
Fears of evaluation are central to defining social anxiety disorder (SAD); notwithstanding, evidence suggests that interpersonal distrust and perceived ineffectiveness are distinct constructs, prevalent among individuals with SAD. To date, no studies have assessed the independent contributions of interpersonal distrust and perceived ineffectiveness to SAD severity beyond fears of evaluation. In total 151 community-dwelling adults (80% women) with anxiety histories completed questionnaires as part of a larger study. Hierarchal regression analyses indicated that interpersonal distrust, but not perceived ineffectiveness, contributed significant amounts of variance to SAD severity after partitioning out variance from depressive symptoms and fear of negative and positive evaluation. Concertedly, findings suggest that although fears of evaluation are seminal to SAD severity, distrust of others may also uniquely exacerbate symptoms of social anxiety. Clinical and research implications are discussed herein.
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People with SAD show greater discomfort with social touch, heightened levels of interpersonal distrust, increased amygdala activity in response to emotional stimuli, and heightened loneliness in SAD youth.
“Other examples of this pervasive sense of threat in interpersonal relationships is the greater discomfort with social touch among people higher in social anxiety (59), heightened levels of interpersonal distrust (60), increased amygdala activity in response to emotional stimuli (61), and heightened loneliness in SAD youth (62).”
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- Authors
- Fetzner, M. G., Teale Sapach, M. J. N., Mulvogue, M., & Carleton, R. N.
- Affiliations
- University of Regina (CA)
- University of Regina, 3737 Wascana Parkway, Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada
- Corresponding author
- Fetzner, Mathew G.
- Venue
- Journal of Experimental Psychopathology
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2016-03-19
- Volume
- 7
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 31-40
- ISSN
- 2043-8087 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2314905087
- Cited by
- 11
- References
- 34
- Citations by year
- 2025: 1 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 3 · 2022: 2 · 2021: 1 · 2020: 1 · 2018: 1
- FWCI
- 0.47
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- Journal of Experimental Psychopathology (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion
- Keywords
- social anxiety disorder, interpersonal distrust, evaluation apprehension, depressive symptoms
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