ABSTRACT

Individuals with social anxiety disorder (iSAD) experience adverse outcomes in daily life due to the disorder (e.g., lower educational and work achievement compared to their healthy counterparts). They are prone to social isolation, even though they desire intimate interpersonal relationships. Yet, little research on iSAD is devoted to understanding in detail a) when they interpret social situations as social-anxiety-provoking, b) how this interpretation motivates their assessments of their efficacy and likely interaction outcomes, and c) how they choose specific information-seeking strategies in uncertain social situations. Leveraging the theory of motivated information management (TMIM) and the emotional systems (ES) model, we explored the lived experiences of iSAD. We conducted in-depth interviews (N = 27) and analyzed them using thematic analysis. iSAD perceived discrepancies in a) mutual goals, b) common ground, and c) self-image as social-anxiety-provoking. These interpretations motivated their assessments of a) socializing benefits, b) communication competency, and c) interactant partner’s amiability, which led to a mix of information-seeking decisions in social situations. Practical and theoretical implications for future research are discussed.

摘要

患有社交焦虑障碍 (iSAD) 的个体由于该障碍在日常生活中会经历不良后果（例如，与健康的同行相比，教育和工作成就较低）。即使他们渴望亲密的人际关系，他们也容易受到社会孤立。然而，很少有关于 iSAD 的研究致力于详细了解 a）当他们将社交情境解释为引发社交焦虑时，b）这种解释如何激发他们对其功效和可能的互动结果的评估，以及 c）他们如何选择特定信息- 在不确定的社会情况下寻求策略。利用动机信息管理 (TMIM) 理论和情绪系统 (ES) 模型，我们探索了 iSAD 的生活体验。我们进行了深度访谈（N= 27）并使用主题分析对其进行分析。iSAD 感知到 a) 共同目标、b) 共同点和 c) 引发社会焦虑的自我形象方面的差异。这些解释激发了他们对 a) 社交利益、b) 沟通能力和 c) 互动伙伴的亲和力的评估，这导致了在社交场合中寻求信息的决策的混合。讨论了对未来研究的实践和理论意义。