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Social Anxiety Disorder ( Ptsd )

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Social Anxiety Disorder is explained as “the fear of being judged and evaluated negatively by other people, leading to feelings of inadequacy, inferiority, embarrassment, humiliation, and depression leading to avoidance of social interaction.” (Richards). While this anxiety disorder is seen all over the world, it seems to be extremely prevalent in American culture. It is currently the third largest psychological disorder in the U.S. (Richards), and tpercentage of people with this disorder is larger than the majority of other cultures, especially non-European countries (Lewis-Fernández). The purpose of this paper is to look at Social Anxiety Disorder from an evolutionary standpoint to examine what it is about U.S. culture that causes so many people to experience this mental illness. First, it is important to distinguish Social Anxiety Disorder from just feelings of social anxiety. The feeling of social anxiety is something almost everyone has experienced, while Social Anxiety Disorder is much more extreme (Richards). Experiences of social anxiety can lead to occasional bouts of anti-social behavior, while Social Anxiety Disorder often leads to avoidant behavior to the point of isolation, depression, and other extreme problems (Lewis-Fernández). This is very similar to the common train of thought where when someone feels sad, they equate it with depression. Depression is a much larger issue than simply being sad, just as Social Anxiety Disorder is a much bigger issue than

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