Stages Of Social Anxiety

People who suffer from social anxiety disorder (previously known as social phobia) experience persistent fear or anxiety about social or performance situations that is out of proportion to the actual threat posed by the situation or context. Anxiety provoking situations might include talking in groups, meeting people, going to school or work, eating or drinking in public, or public performances. 

It is common for socially anxious individuals to worry extensively ahead of a social event, and to engage in safety behaviors. While in the situation, they usually focus on how they feel. This can backfire, causing them to miss important social cues and negatively affecting their social performance. After a social event, they often ruminate on how badly they believe they ‘performed’, which often leads to self-criticism. 

The Stages Of Social Anxiety worksheet is a tool to record unhelpful socially anxious responses to social situations, and to map alternative ways of thinking

Would you be willing to work with me to map out how you respond to social situations? We’ll break it down into what you do before, during, and after a social event.

Step 1: The problem. Choose a recent or typical example of when the client felt anxious before a social encounter. 

Ask the client to describe a recent example of when they felt anxious. If the client struggles to describe a recent example, ask them to recall any strong memory of feeling socially anxious. This can be made more vivid by asking them to close their eyes and describe aloud what they can see in their mind. Note that anxiety is likely not the only emotion present: embarrassment and shame are equally relevant for socially anxious individuals.

• Before (Anticipatory anxiety). Ask the client to describe their cognitive processes before a social event.  
  • "Did you imagine the event going terribly? (catastrophizing, predicting the

Clark, D. M., Wells, A. (1995). A cognitive model of social phobia. In R. Heimberg, M. Liebowitz, D. A. Hope, & F. R. Schneier (Eds.), Social phobia: Diagnosis, assessment, and treatment. New York: Guilford Press