Objective: The present study examined the effects of positive, negative pre-event rumination and distraction during a speech task in 53 high socially anxious individuals.
Methods: Participants were randomly allocated to an positive (n = 17) or negative pre-event rumination (n = 17) or distraction (n = 19). Participant’s initially completed state based measures and either engaged in positive or negative pre-event rumination or distraction task. Then, participants completed the State-Trait Anxiety (STAI) and cognitive measures (possibility and cost bias, self-focused attention, Performance appraisal) before and after a speech task.
Results: Result revealed that compared to distraction, participants engaging in negative pre-event rumination showed significantly increased state anxiety. Additionally, although possibility bias were increased in all conditions, participants who distracted reported reduced cost bias and those who engaged in negative pre-event rumination reported increased cost bias. Also, participants who engaged in negative pre-event rumination focused on their performance and expected to perform poorly, and rated their speech performance as poorer than distraction.
Conclusion: This result suggests that pre-event rumination is significant with respect to social anxiety, and therapeutic intervention is necessary to reduce negative pre-rumination.