Avery, senior and undergraduate research assistant, recently presented an article titled “The Effects of Self-Imagery Manipulations on Attentional Processes Within Social Anxiety” by Jacob D. Kraft & DeMond M. Grand.
Social anxiety, the pervasive fear of judgment and scrutiny in social situations, has long been associated with negative self-imagery. The study delves into the intricate relationship between social anxiety, executive function, attention, and the impact of self-imagery on these cognitive processes.
This study aimed to investigate the relationship between social anxiety and executive function and attention, while collecting
behavioral and electrophysiological data. Sixty-one individuals, representing a spectrum of social anxiety levels, participated in the study. Three self-imagery manipulations were employed, coupled with a Go/No-go task designed to assess executive function and attention. To capture both behavioral and neural responses, the researchers utilized event-related potentials (ERPs).
The findings below suggested that individuals with elevated social anxiety demonstrated comparable levels of effectiveness compared to those with low social anxiety. Notably, those with high social anxiety exhibited slower reaction times and a relative reduction in neural recruitment during the task.
These findings align with established literature suggesting that social anxiety is frequently linked more with diminished efficiency than with diminished effectiveness. The connection between social anxiety and executive function, as well as attention, remained unaffected by self-image type, corroborating recent viewpoints. The present results imply that the effects of self-imagery in the task may stem from the widespread attentional focus on self-oriented processing within social anxiety.
Avery described the a few of the limitations of the study including a not diverse or large enough sample and the possibility that some participants were not fully engaged in the study despite the manipulation checks. Avery then went on to discuss her own Honors College Thesis that investigates the influence of humiliation on turning points in social anxiety. We are so excited to see her progress throughout the rest of her senior year!
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