@2024 Afarand., IRAN

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ISSN: 2252-0805    The Horizon of Medical Sciences 2017;23(1):21-26

Background
… [1]. One of the common anxiety disorders is social anxiety disorder. The onset age of this disorder is low and its prevalence has been reported 7 to 12% and sometimes above 13% [2-4].
Previous Studies
… [5-18]. Several studies have reported the positive results on the impact of Task Concentration Training (TCT) in people with social anxiety disorder [19]. … [20-21].
Aim(s)
The aim of this study was to determine the effect of Task Concentration Training (TCT) on social anxiety symptoms reduction in the samples of Iranian students with social anxiety disorder.
Research type
This study is controlled pretest-posttest quasi-experimental study.
Research society, place and time
This study was conducted among students with social anxiety disorder studying in the Shahed University in the academic year 2014-2015.
Sampling method and number
The sample size was 20 that 10 samples were placed in the control group and 10 were placed in the experimental group (Task Concentration Training). Sampling was done in two stages: First: Social Phobia Inventory was distributed based on step-wise cluster stage and 70 subjects with social anxiety were selected and entered the study. Second (placing the subjects in two groups): At this stage, the subjects in the previous step were evaluated based on Structured Clinical Interview (SCID-1). Individuals who were recognized as ones with social anxiety disorder were 40 among whom 20 who had tendency to cooperate and participate in the TCT program were randomly divided into two control and experimental groups.
Used devices&materials
The following tools were used for data collection: Social Phobia Inventory (SPIN): This questionnaire was first developed in 2000 by Connor et al. to evaluate social phobia. This self-rating questionnaire has 17 items that has three subscales of fear (6 items), avoidance (7items) and physiological discomfort (4 items). Each item has five options of “not at all”, “very little”, “little”, “a lot” and “extreme” and the items are scored in the range of zero to 4. The total score, also, is in the range of zero to 68. In Iran in the study conducted by Hasandvand Amoozadeh et al., the alpha coefficient of the questionnaire has been reported between 0.74 and 0.89 and its test-retest coefficient has been reported 0.68. The concurrent validity of this questionnaire in correlation with the used scales (Cognitive Error Test, Self-Esteem Rating Scale, and Phobic Anxiety Scale) has been 0.35, 0.58 and 0.70 respectively [22]. Structure Clinical Interview (SCID-I): is an interview based on the diagnostic criteria of the fourth statistical classification and diagnosis of mental disorders (DSIM-IV), and it is a semi-structured interview. The instrument`s psychological properties have been reported by Amin et al. In that study, the Kappa for all the diagnoses except anxiety disorders was higher than 0.4. Also, in the most recognizable features and in more than half of these features, it has been 0.85 and 0.9 respectively that indicates the desirable feature of this structure interview. This interview has been used for confirmation and differential diagnosis of social anxiety disorder [23]. Task Concentration Training (TCT): TCT is 4 to 6 sessions treatment technique developed by Bögels et al. in order to change the self-image and the focus on unrelated environmental factors in people having social anxiety. The technique involves three steps: firstly, the person achieves insight to the focusing process and the effects of self-directed focusing. In the second phase, the emphasis is on focusing on the task in the non-threatening situations. Finally, in the third stage, focusing on the task in threatening situation is trained. At this point, to practice on focusing on a task in threatening situations, a list of personal characteristics which a person is afraid of their undesirable consequences in case of representing physiological symptoms and lack of their control is designed [24]. Subjects with a diagnosis of social anxiety disorder according to Social Phobia Inventory and SCID-I interview were randomly divided into “Task Concentration Training” and control groups. A time was set for starting treatment for the subjects in the group of “Task Concentration Training”. The control group received no treatment and they were told that they would have the treatment in another time. The treatment protocol focusing on the task in the experimental group was carried in five one-hour sessions, one session per week (Table 1). After the training period, Social Phobia Inventory was completed again by both groups. Data was analyzed by SPSS 16 software using independent T-test to compare the variables between the two groups based on the difference between pretest and posttest scores.
Findings by Text
The mean age of experimental group and control group was 21.30±2.94 years and 20.55±2.96 years respectively. The mean scores of the two experimental and control groups did not have any significant difference in the pretest stage in the social anxiety variable and its subscales. However, in comparison of the difference of pretest-posttest scores in the social anxiety variable and the subscales of avoidance, fear, and physiological discomfort significant difference was observed (Table 2).
Main comparison to the similar studies
The result of post-test and one-year follow-up period showed that Task Concentration Training is an effective technique in reducing the fear of negative evaluation and other symptoms of social anxiety disorder [24].
Suggestions
Conducing similar studies with a closer focus on the variables of gender, age, number of samples, etc. is necessary to obtain more accurate results in this area. Also, setting a mechanism to evaluate the therapeutic changes in the variables at appropriate intervals, performing multiple follow-ups to check the consistency of the results, conducting integrative and comparative studies to assess the effectiveness of this technique in combination or comparison with other treatment techniques, also, increase the quality of the research.
Limitations
Of the limitations, the restricted number of samples in the control and experimental groups, non-generalization of the findings and lack of tracking the changes in the variables in the middle of treatment sessions can be mentioned.
Conclusions
Task Concentration Training is effective on reducing the symptoms of social anxiety in people with social anxiety disorder.
Acknowledgments
The researchers appreciate the participants of this study.
Conflict of interest
Non-declared
Ethical Permissions
The researchers obtained all the ethical codes of the research on the human samples from the involved authorities.
Funding Sources
This study was carried out without the financial support of certain institution.

TABLES and CHARTS

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