People regulate their interpersonal space appropriately to obtain a comfortable distance for interacting with others. Socially anxious individuals are especially prone to discomfort from and fear of physical closeness, leading them to prefer a greater interpersonal distance from others. Previous studies also indicate that fear can enhance the threat‐related elements of a threatening stimulus. For example, spider phobia is associated with estimating spiders as bigger and faster than they actually are. Nonetheless, it is still unclear whether the preference of those with social anxiety disorder (SAD) to maintain greater distance from others is associated with biased estimations of interpersonal distance.

中文翻译：

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社交焦虑症的偏见距离估计：了解回避行为的新途径

人们适当地调节他们的人际空间以获得与他人互动的舒适距离。社交焦虑的人特别容易因身体亲密而感到不适和恐惧，导致他们倾向于与他人的人际距离更大。先前的研究还表明，恐惧可以增强威胁性刺激中与威胁相关的元素。例如，蜘蛛恐惧症与估计蜘蛛比实际更大和更快相关。然而，尚不清楚社交焦虑症（SAD）患者与他人保持更大距离的偏爱是否与人际距离的偏向估计有关。