Emerging Research on Social Anxiety

​​Turns out, social anxiety in preadolescents and adolescents is not well researched and there is no straightforward path that scientists agree works.

In the past 10 years, more studies have been conducted to find better therapy treatments for kids. But it's still unchartered territory. 

Some things scientists agree on are on the right. 

Some interesting facts

• People with a parent or parents who’ve suffered from social anxiety disorder have a 30-40 percent greater likelihood of developing the condition themselves. ​
• Recent research into specific genetic markers for social anxiety have focused on changes in a gene called SLCGA4, which is passed from parent to child. It is involved in the transport of the neurotransmitter serotonin, a chemical that can help soothe nerves and stabilize moods. Both shortages and excesses of serotonin have been linked to social anxiety symptoms, and people with social anxiety disorder struggle to produce serotonin consistently and without fluctuation.
• Brain scans show that people with social anxiety disorder suffer from hyperactivity in a part of the brain known as the amygdala. The amygdala is responsible for the “flight-or-fight” response, which mobilizes the body to respond to perceived threats, real or imagined.
  
• In social anxiety sufferers, the prefrontal cortex actually amplifies the activity of the amygdala instead of calming it. People with social anxiety have such an entrenched fear of other peoples’ reactions that their brains interpret social interactions as legitimate threats, and no amount of rational reflection can completely soothe those fears.

How the research guides us

Science can tell us what is happening in our brain when we're anxious. 
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Everyone has different reasons or "triggers" for feeling anxiety. What do they all have in common?

It's our brain telling us to run because there is danger. It's our internal alarm system. Usually this is a good thing if you're in the woods and being chased by a grizzly bear. It's not so great if you're sitting at lunch and someone asks you a question in front of a bunch of people. 

The research that's been done to investigate social anxiety in kids hasn't indetified any foolproof methods of dealing with social anxiety because they are still investigating what kids feel before, during, and after an anxiety event. 

The good news is that it can be detected BEFORE negative self-talk happens. Adults know negative self-talk and how destructive it can be. Building awareness and community before it starts is the whole point of this website!

The BEST way to start dealing with social anxiety is to IDENTIFY your feelings. This is how you start to unfurl your social anxiety and address the issues head-on. Visit our Identifying Feelings page to learn more.

​​What we know: 

1. It's common
2. It can happen early
3. Exposure (practice) works and Cognitive behavoir therapy works. But each child is different and what works depends on a lot, especially age and gender
4. Adults and children don't experience social anxiety the same way!
5. Negative self talk isn't something kids experience until around 13; which may have to do with the people they around until that age!
6. Identify, Chill, Plan, & Unleash is our method of working on social anxiety. ​

​The links to the Social Anxiety scientific papers are (by year) here:

​2000
​2000
2007
2007
​2013
2017
​2018 
​2022
2023

Research About Managing Anxiety: 

• A new understanding of the cognitive reappraisal technique
  
• ​Persistence in goal striving and positive reappraisal as psychosocial resources for ageing well.
• Cognitive Reappraisal​
  

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It's called Social Anxiety because it happens when you're around other people, in society. Maybe it's because you've been bullied, maybe it's because that's the way you were born. Regardless, knowing the "upstairs brain" and "downstairs brain," and how they work, will help you deal with it. 

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) can be used to help change the negative thoughts that contribute to anxiety, help us learn new coping strategies, and gradually decrease the fear we experience in social situations.

​We created a workbook to help you work through it!​

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