Cognitive-behavioral group therapy versus group psychotherapy for social anxiety disorder among college students: a randomized controlled trial.

Objective: In this randomized controlled trial, cognitive-behavioral group therapy (CBGT) for social anxiety disorder (SAD) was compared to group psychotherapy (GPT), a credible, structurally equivalent control condition that included only nonspecific factors of group treatment (such as group dynamics).

Methods: Participants were 45 college students at the University of Colorado with a primary diagnosis of SAD. Each treatment condition comprised eight group sessions lasting 2 hr each.

A placebo-controlled trial of phenelzine, cognitive behavioral group therapy, and their combination for social anxiety disorder.

Context: Medication and cognitive behavioral treatment are the best-established treatments for social anxiety disorder, yet many individuals remain symptomatic after treatment.

Objective: To determine whether combined medication and cognitive behavioral treatment is superior to either monotherapy or pill placebo.

Design: Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

Traumatic and socially stressful life events among persons with social anxiety disorder.

This study examined the frequency of reexperiencing, avoidance, and hyperarousal symptoms most often associated with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among 45 persons with social anxiety disorder and 30 nonanxious controls in response to an extremely stressful social event (which did not satisfy DSM-IV's PTSD Criterion A). Avoidance and hyperarousal in response to reminders of socially stressful events were common among patients; more than one-third would have met criteria for PTSD if these events satisfied DSM-IV PTSD Criterion A. Frequency of this PTSD-like symptom pattern did not differ among patients who did and did not experience another event that did satisfy PTSD Criterion A.

The Internet: home to a severe population of individuals with social anxiety disorder?

The current study sought to understand better the psychological characteristics of socially anxious individuals who seek information on the internet about social anxiety disorder and its treatment. Participants were 434 individuals who responded to an internet-based survey linked to the website of an anxiety specialty clinic. Using established cut-off scores, 92% of the sample met criteria for social anxiety disorder.

Comorbid anxiety and mood disorders among persons with social anxiety disorder.

Axis I comorbidity is associated with greater severity of social anxiety disorder. However, the differential effects of comorbid mood and anxiety disorders on symptom severity or treatment outcome have not been investigated. We evaluated 69 persons with uncomplicated social anxiety disorder, 39 persons with an additional anxiety disorder, and 33 persons with an additional mood disorder (with or without additional anxiety disorders).