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The effects of rumination on social anxiety: The role of negative self-beliefs
GENG Li, FENG Qiuyang, LI Yu, QIU Jiang
2025, 57 (5):
792-804.
doi: 10.3724/SP.J.1041.2025.0792
People sometimes recall social interactions, speculating on others' evaluations and opinions of themselves. When such thinking exceeds normal limits or is persistently accompanied by negative emotions, it becomes distressing, manifesting as rumination. Cognitive theories of social anxiety identify rumination as a pivotal factor in its onset and maintenance. Individuals engaged in rumination often form negative and pessimistic evaluations about themselves, with cognitive elements playing a crucial role. Sometimes, people develop distorted, counterfactual beliefs about themselves and others, termed negative self-beliefs, which are a type of adverse cognition and a core feature of social anxiety. Although the relationships among rumination, social anxiety, and negative self-beliefs have been theoretically discussed, empirical studies confirming their interaction mechanisms are lacking. Thus, the purpose of this study is to explore the significant role of negative self-beliefs in the relationship between rumination and social anxiety.
The study conducted two experiments designed to provoke social anxiety and prompt participants to engage in state rumination, with the aim of monitoring and analyzing their subsequent emotional responses. Experiment 1 included 83 participants (26 males, 57 females; mean age 21.05 ± 2.15 years). The participants first underwent baseline measurements, followed by a 3-minute timed speech task to induce social anxiety. After this task, the participants were randomly divided into two groups to engage in either rumination or distraction imaging, with changes in negative self-beliefs and levels of social anxiety recorded before and after the tasks. Experiment 2 involved 51 participants (20 males, 31 females; mean age 20.14 ± 1.76 years). The experiment was conducted over two lab visits. In the first visit, the participants learned about and mastered the concepts of social anxiety and negative self-beliefs, recalled, and wrote down four previous social anxiety events and the negative self-beliefs associated with each event. During the second visit, the participants completed a keyboard response task, during which real-time emotional changes were recorded. They dealt with their negative self-beliefs according to the guidance provided under different psychological states of rumination or distraction and used various coping strategies (reacting, observing, and reevaluating) to address the presented negative self-beliefs.
The results of the data analysis are as follows: Experiment 1 utilized repeated-measures ANOVA and mediation models based on change scores, revealing (1) significant positive correlations among rumination, social anxiety, and negative self-beliefs and (2) that rumination affects social anxiety by sustaining negative self-beliefs. Experiment 2, which used repeated-measures ANOVA, revealed that (1) rumination on social anxiety events triggered more negative emotions; (2) using distraction strategies to alleviate social anxiety resulted in a rebound of negative emotions; and (3) interventions targeting negative self-beliefs proved to be more effective in alleviating social anxiety. Both experiments validated and complemented each other, collectively elucidating the critical role of negative self-beliefs in the impact of rumination on social anxiety.
In summary, this study explored the impact of rumination and negative self-beliefs on social anxiety, not only validating and enriching the cognitive theories of social anxiety at a theoretical level but also filling empirical gaps in the previous research. First, the experimental results clarify the mediating role of negative self-beliefs in the relationship between rumination and social anxiety, offering a new perspective for understanding the mechanisms underlying the onset and maintenance of social anxiety. This finding deepens our understanding of the interaction between rumination and social anxiety, enhancing theoretical models of social phobia and broadening cognitive models of the onset and maintenance of social anxiety disorders. Second, the research results provide a basis for developing new intervention measures. Given the significant role of negative self-beliefs in maintaining social anxiety, future interventions could focus on directly targeting these self-beliefs, offering new strategies for the clinical treatment of social anxiety.
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