Telling someone with social anxiety to speak more is offensive
“It is offensive to tell someone with social anxiety to "speak more"”
Summary
Telling someone with social anxiety to “speak more” is regarded as insensitive and can be offensive, as it dismisses the fear of judgment and anxiety they feel when speaking. Mental‑health guidance advises against such remarks and recommends supportive, non‑judgmental communication instead.
Sources 60 searched
- Social Anxiety Disorder: What You Need to Know - National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
A person with social anxiety disorder feels symptoms of anxiety or fear in situations where they may be scrutinized, evaluated, or judged by others, such as speaking in public, meeting new people, dating, being on a job interview, answering a question in class, asking for help, or having to talk to a cashier in a store.
- Measuring Public Speaking Anxiety: Self-report, behavioral ...
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- Global and Local Evaluations of Public Speaking Performance in Social Anxiety - PMC
Differences in the relative use of global and local information (seeing the forest versus the trees) may explain why people with social anxiety often do not benefit from corrective feedback, even though they pay close attention to details in social ...
- Observations: Public Speaking Anxiety in Graduate Medical ...
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- Article Anxiety Level in Students of Public Speaking: Causes and Remedies
Songsiri, M. (2007). An action research study of promoting students’
- 3 Things to Say and 3 Things Not to Say to Someone with Anxiety
“I know, ___ makes me feel really anxious, too.” Comparing your own anxieties to theirs isn’t going to help them. You probably feel rational anxiety about things that happen in your life, but you can’t equate those feelings to the irrational feelings people with anxiety disorders may have.
- Social Anxiety and Public Speaking - Writing and Learning - Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo
While this may seem like a skill some are born with, there are many professionals who struggled with public speaking at the beginning of their career. ... The important thing to learn is to channel your nervousness into excitement, you have to trick yourself into believing you are excited to stand in front of your peers and tell them something you have learned.
- How to Talk to People When You Have Social Anxiety — Anchor Therapy, LLC
You are not alone in your anxiety about conversing with other people. Socializing can be difficult- thinking on your feet, reacting to what a person says in an appropriate manner, and steering clear of potentially offensive topics or remarks.
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