Investigation of Childhood Traumas, Emotion Regulation Processes and Dissociation as Predictives of Social Anxiety

The aim of this study is to examine the predictors of childhood traumas, emotion regulation processes and dissociation in terms of social anxiety. 451 participants between the ages of 18-55 were included in the study, in which the relational screening model and snowball sampling method were used. Data were collected using Demographic Information Form, Childhood Trauma Scale, Emotion Regulation Processes Scale, Dissociative Experiences Scale and Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale. Simple linear regression, multiple regression and hierarchical regression analyzes were applied for the analyses. As a result of the analysis, the increase in the antecedent-focused emotion regulation processes, which is the sub-dimension of emotion regulation processes, caused a decrease in social anxiety symptoms (R2=0.027, F=6.208, p=0.002); it was determined that the increase in absorption, which is the sub-dimension of dissociative experiences, causes an increase in social anxiety symptoms (R2=0.059, F=9.409, p=0.001). In the hierarchical regression analysis, it was determined that childhood traumas (ss = 0.271) and dissociative experiences (ss = 0.291) had a positive effect on social anxiety, while emotion regulation processes (ss =-0.144) had a negative effect. In addition, the rate of explaining social anxiety by childhood traumas alone (R2=0.020); the ratio of childhood traumas and dissociative experiences to explain social anxiety (R2=0.056); the coexistence of childhood traumas, dissociative experiences and emotion regulation processes explained social anxiety as high (R2=0.067). When the findings are used both in the structuring of psychotherapies in clinical studies and in the structuring of health policies to protect community mental health, they can be helpful in the formation and/or treatment of social anxiety.