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Social Phobia is characterized by a marked and persistent fear of social or performance situations in which embarrassment may occur. In feared social or performance situations, individuals with Social Phobia experience concerns about embarrassment and are afraid that others will judge them to be anxious, weak, “crazy” or stupid. They may fear public speaking because of concern that others will notice their trembling hands or voice or they may experience extreme anxiety when conversing with others because of fear that they will appear inarticulate. They may avoid eating, drinking, or writing in public because of a fear of being embarrassed by having others see their hands shake. They almost always experience symptoms of anxiety such as heart palpitations, tremors, sweating, stomach upset, diarrhea, muscle tension, blushing, and/or confusion. Adults with Social Phobia may recognize that the fear is excessive or unreasonable, although this is not always the case in children. The person will typically avoid the feared situations. Less commonly, the person forces himself to endure the social or performance situation, but experiences it with intense anxiety. Marked anticipatory anxiety may also occur far in advance of upcoming social or public situations.
Criteria for Social Phobia:
-a marked and persistent fear of one or more social or performance situations in which
the person is exposed to unfamiliar people or to possible scrutiny by others. The
individual fears that he will act in a way that will be humiliating or embarrassing. In
children, there must be evidence of the capacity for age-appropriate social relationships
with familiar people and the anxiety must occur in peer settings, not just in interactions
with adults.
-exposure to the feared social situation almost invariably provokes anxiety, which may
take the form of a situationally bound or situationally predisposed panic attack. In
children, the anxiety may be expressed by crying, tantrums, freezing, or shrinking from
social situations with unfamiliar people.
-the person recognizes that the fear is excessive or unreasonable. In children, this feature
may be absent.
-the feared social or performance situations are avoided or else are endured with intense
anxiety or distress.
-the avoidance, anxious anticipation, or distress in the feared social or performance
situations interferes significantly with the person’s normal routine, occupation or
academic functioning, or social activities or relationships, or there is marked distress
about having the phobia.
-in persons under the age of 18 years, the duration is at least 6 months.
-the fear or avoidance is not due to the direct physiological effects of a substance or a
general medical condition and is not better accounted for by another mental disorder
such as Panic Disorder, Separation Anxiety Disorder, Body Dysmorphic Disorder, a
Pervasive Developmental Disorder or Schizoid Personality Disorder.
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