PMR is indicated as an effective strategy for improving SOL in higher trait social evaluation anxiety elite performers.
While numerous theoretical and conceptual models suggest social evaluation anxiety would likely influence performance in simulation-based learning environments, there has been surprisingly little research to investigate the extent to which this is true.
Participants with high trait social evaluation anxiety showed a statistically significant decrease in SOL from Week 1 to Week 2 (Z = −2.02, p = .04), with a large effect size (r = .90) following PMR training.
Participants were randomized to an intervention condition designed to increase the perception of happiness over disgust in ambiguous facial expressions or a sham intervention control condition, and completed self-report measures of social anxiety, fear of negative evaluation, anxiety-related disorders, and depressive symptoms.
Beyond the characteristic symptoms of social anxiety disorder like intensive fear and avoidance of social situations on the basis of evaluation anxiety or anxiety of being in the focus of attention [ 30, 31], some patients also suffer from social competence deficits [ 32– 32].
Actions to minimize evaluation anxiety included the following: 1) we explained that the intent was to improve the computer, not their practice patterns; 2) we emphasized that there would be no right or wrong answers; and 3) we were alert to signs of defensive responses.
Second, other than self-report data on fear of negative evaluations, anxiety and depression, we do not have data on the level of impairment that participants were experiencing in terms of their anxious apprehension specific to starting university.
In SWAN 2010, 18% of elderly women had psychological disorders [ 3], and anxiety depression in addition to have major depression, dropping interest, outside self-evaluation, anxiety, nervousness, tendency to get angry, and also may be associated with fatigue, insomnia, inattention, memory loss, pain and so on menopause syndrome-like symptoms.
Fear of negative evaluation, state anxiety, trait anxiety, together with positive and negative affect, were assessed pre-intervention, on day one of the life stressor (day one of university) and four weeks into the semester (four week follow-up).
Thus, it is questionable to use a single fear paradigm for the evaluation of anxiety-like behavior in the rodents.
