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Subliminal Priming of Implicit Associations of Social Anxiety

  • Jeffrey Mandelkorn

Student thesis: Doctoral ThesisDoctor of Philosophy

Abstract

Social anxiety describes a marked and persistent fear of negative evaluation in social performance situations that invariably evokes anxiety. In the following study, three dimensions of perception and information processing in context of social anxiety were covered: distinctions between state and trait anxiety, implicit associations, and subliminal priming. Implicit associations may be defined as unconscious cognitive processes related to one's preferences and biases. Implicit associations may also affect how quickly an individual perceives a threatening situation. Exposure to subliminal stimuli also appears to have an effect on the perception of stress-inducing stimuli. This research examined how subliminal priming may influence implicit associations. Results from the present study suggested that the implicit associations of social anxiety were minimally but significantly related to explicit reports of anxiety. Subliminal priming significantly influenced the participants' implicit associations of social anxiety.
Date of AwardJan 1 2011
Original languageEnglish
SupervisorChristian DeLucia (Supervisor), Craig Marker (Advisor) & Ana Imia Fins (Advisor)

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