FMRI Study of Social Anxiety during Social Ostracism with and without Emotional Support.

ABSTRACT: Social anxiety is characterized by an excessive fear of being embarrassed in social interactions or social performance situations. Emotional support can help to decrease or diminish social distress. Such support may play an important role at different points of social interaction. However, it is unclear how the beneficial effects of social support are represented in the brains of socially anxious individuals. To explore this, we used the same paradigm previously used to examine the effects of emotional support on social pain caused by exclusion. Undergraduates (n = 46) showing a wide range of social anxiety scores underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while participating in a Cyberball game. Participants were initially included and later excluded from the game. In the latt

SUBMITTER: Nishiyama Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4441506 | biostudies-literature | 2015

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature