At some point, most people have felt some degree of anxiety in social situations, and roughly one person in eight will experience significant social anxiety at some time in their life.
Social anxiety often causes considerable psychological distress and can lead to additional problems, such as depression, substance misuse, conflict with others, and employment difficulties. However, various forms of psychological counselling or psychotherapy have been shown to be effective in helping people suffering from social anxiety.
An innovative program of counselling for people who suffer from social anxiety is being offered as part of a research study at the Glasgow City Centre campus of the University of Strathclyde. This counselling research study is appropriate for people who are afraid of social situations such as:
• public speaking or talking to people they do not know
• being observed by others or eating in front of them
• being criticized by others or making a fool of themselves
And who find that these fears:
• almost always make them very anxious
• seem irrational or unreasonable to them
• lead them to avoid these situations or seriously interfere with their life
People who have these difficulties may qualify to take part in this research study as valuable participants, evaluating the effectiveness of emotion-focused therapy for dealing with social anxiety. If they wish, those who do not meet the standard criteria for this kind of research will be offered a place in a related research protocol in our centre, or given a referral.
Volunteer participants will receive up to 20 sessions of specialist counselling, without charge, from counsellors with particular interest in and or experience of social anxiety, in exchange for taking part in the research study. To be eligible, participants must be between 16 and 70 years of age and have significant social anxiety difficulties. All sessions are confidential but will be recorded for research purposes. Participants will be asked to fill out questionnaires before and after each therapy session, as well as to take part in research interviews and questionnaires.
Participants will be welcomed by a researcher who is familiar with the issues of social anxiety and who will make the first contact and conduct research interviews, tracking the participant’s progress though the study.
The project is being led by Professor Robert Elliott and colleagues at the Counselling Unit in the School of Psychological Science and Health at the University of Strathclyde, where they have set up a research clinic for this and related studies. The Counselling Unit is a leader in counselling training in Scotland and the UK, specializing in person-centred/experiential approaches, which emphasize empowerment and personal growth. This research project on Social Anxiety is one of two research protocols that we run; the other is a more general protocol for a broader range of clients.
If you know someone who might benefit from receiving counselling for social anxiety as part of this research project, or if you would like more information, please contact:
Research Coordinator
Phone: 0844 586 4561
Email: socialanxiety@strathclydetherapy.com
Strathclyde Centre for Counselling and Psychotherapy
University of Strathclyde
Counselling Unit
Room 506 Graham Hills Building
50 Richmond Street
Glasgow G1 1QE
Friday, August 31, 2007
Strathclyde Centre and ScotCon
The Strathclyde Centre for Counselling and Psychotherapy is part of the new Scottish Psychotherapy and Counselling Research Consortium (ScotCon), which seeks to enhance the development, scientific quality, and social relevance of psychotherapy research in Scotland, and to foster the use of research findings in practice, education, and policy formulation. To accomplish this, ScotCon encourages scientific collaborations among university and practice-based therapist-researchers through regular meetings, occasional public events (including workshops and conferences), joint funding proposals, and coordinated research studies. Current active members are University of Abertay, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow Caledonian University, and University of Aberdeen.
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