Personal meaning as a predictor of behavioral action over and above the role of state social anxiety

Abstract

The present experiment investigated the personal meaning of a behavior and state social anxiety as predictors of behavioral action. Participants (N = 68) were given the chance to take the behavioral action of recording a statement for a video blog. Participants were randomized to personal meaning (n = 34; assigned to speak on the social issue most important to them and completed a personal meaning enhancement writing task) or control (n = 34; assigned to speak on the social issue least important to them and completed a control writing task) conditions. The results indicated that having personal meaning in a behavior significantly predicted the behavioral action. The findings suggest that having personal meaning in a social anxiety-provoking behavior can increase the likelihood of that behavior. Clinical implications and limitations of the study are also discussed.