Fear of Positive Evaluation and Social Anxiety

Background and Cognitive theories propose that fear of negative evaluation (FNE) is the core feature of social anxiety disorder. Recently, fear of positive evaluation (FPE) has also been discussed as a cognitive component of social anxiety. The aim of the present study was to investigate the relationships between fear of positive evaluation and social anxiety by controlling FNE. The participants included 176 students in Shahid Chamran University (88 males, 88 females) who were selected through multistage random sampling. The Social Anxiety Scale and the Fear of Positive Evaluation Scale were used to collate the data. The findings showed a positive correlation between FPE and social anxiety, its component and social self-concept, but no correlation was found between anxiety symptoms (AS) and FNE. Three hierarchical regressions indicated that FPE accounted for significant variance in social anxiety and social self-concept but it could not predict anxiety symptoms. An explorative factor analysis provided additional support for the distinction between FPE and FNE. All of the two scale items were loaded on separate factors. FPE and FNE have distinct roles in social anxiety and are probably associated with different type of anxiety symptoms.