Shyness versus social anxiety disorder
Shyness is a temperament; social anxiety disorder is defined by the impairment. The dividing question is not how nervous you feel but what you have stopped doing because of it — declined promotions, avoided classes, skipped medical appointments.
- • Performance-only type is limited to public speaking situations
- • Avoidance keeps the prediction of catastrophe untested
- • Roughly 7% of US adults meet criteria in a given year
Why exposure works
Every avoided situation is a prediction that never gets falsified. Graded exposure works because it forces the prediction into contact with reality repeatedly, and the fear response habituates. Doing it in a structured order, starting from your lowest-scoring item here, is far more effective than jumping to the hardest one.
FAQ
What score suggests social anxiety disorder?
On this 0–24 scale, 20 or above is a marked pattern and 14–19 is moderate. Impairment matters more than the raw number.
Is public speaking fear the same thing?
Fear limited to performance situations is recognised as a performance-only subtype and often responds to shorter, more focused treatment.
Do beta blockers help?
They can reduce physical symptoms like tremor and racing heart in discrete performance situations, but they do not treat the underlying pattern the way exposure-based therapy does.
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