Childhood Anxiety: Benefits of Social Effectiveness Therapy

Anxiety and phobia over social settings can be a life altering mental health complication in children who live with the ailment. If you find that your child is overly emotional about attending school, seems withdrawn from social settings, or fails to develop quality interpersonal relationship, it is possible that your child is living with social anxiety. When plagued with this mental health complication, the use of social effectiveness therapy may be beneficial.

While there are many treatments for social anxiety made available to children, more and more pediatric psychologist and pediatric psychiatrists are turning away from the use of medications and, instead using cognitive-behavioral therapy, one-on-one talk therapy, and the use of social effectiveness therapy. Of these, the use of social effectiveness therapy is growing most rapidly as it is the newest form of treatment in children.

Also commonly referred to as "SET", social effectiveness therapy can be used in both children and adults and often works best with children who are recently diagnosed with an anxiety or phobia involving social skills (Hollander 138-139). The concept behind SET treatments involves the use of social settings, in small groups, consisting of peers within your child's age range. Within these groups, not only is your child's anxiety minimized through exposure, but many children with social anxiety begin to develop better interpersonal communication skills which, in turn, boost confidence and lowers anxiety without the need for medications.

So, how do you know if social effectiveness therapy is right for your child? The first step in determining what treatment is best for any type of childhood anxiety is to seek out consultation and testing from a licensed social worker, psychologist, or psychiatrist. Because there are many treatment options made available today, these licensed healthcare professionals can determine what treatment plan, and services, are right for your child's needs. For some children, medication and talk therapy may be needed first while, for others, the immediate use of social effectiveness therapy may be recommended.

Ultimately, as parent, your goal in seeking out care for your child should be to not only alleviate the physical anxiety your child experiences but to also improve their self-esteem and confidence. To do this, many children benefit from working in small groups, with similar aged children, who also struggle with the same fears, anxieties, and poor communication (Hollander 86). Over time, your child will become more comfortable and then desire to communicate in larger groups, or in newer groups of interest, and, before long, the issues with anxiety will be a concern of the past.

Sources: Hollander. Eric. Coping with Social Anxiety, Macmillan.