Using CBT with Social Anxiety Disorder

Social Anxiety Disorder, or SAD, is one of a set of conditions which, along with Panic Disorder (PD), Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD), Specific Phobia disorders, and others are listed as anxiety disorders in the DSM-5. In the previous version of the DSM - the DSM-IV - Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) were also considered to be anxiety disorders. Collectively these conditions plague the lives of one in six or seven people in western, English-speaking countries. A plethora of studies has shown that Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, or CBT, has a high degree of both efficacy and effectiveness in treating anxiety, but each type of anxiety requires somewhat different treatment. This course is about using CBT with SAD. In it, we explain the basic principles of a cognitive-behavioural approach and list the key skills needed by CBT therapists. We briefly examine the conditions with which CBT should and should not be used. We then review the core patterns and symptoms of SAD. The final section of the course examines the elements of a CBT assessment of SAD: the modes of assessment available (including a detailed discussion of the behavioural interview) and which interventions are usefully included in any CBT program for SAD. Upon successful completion of the course, you will be able to: Name the main principles and strategies of Cognitive Behaviour Therapy; List the key skills and knowledge needed by CBT therapists in order to be effective treating clients with anxiety; Name ten conditions which CBT has been used for and four conditions which tend to be exclusion criteria from CBT studies; List at least eight client qualities which tend to indicate a positive prognosis for CBT treatment; Identify the core patterns and symptoms of SAD; Discuss the five modes of assessment commonly used in making a CBT-based diagnosis of SAD; Discuss the predisposing, precipitating, perpetuating and protecting aetiological factors of a CBT assessment with specific respect to SAD; Explain how to implement the five CBT-based treatment components which should be included in a program for someone with a presenting issue of SAD.