Social anxiety predicts avoidance behaviour in virtual encounters

Avoidant behaviour is critical in social anxiety and social phobia, being a major factor in the maintenance of anxiety. However, almost all previous studies of social avoidance were restricted to using self-reports for the study of intentional aspects of avoidance. In contrast, the current study used immersive virtual reality technology to measure interpersonal distance as an index of avoidance, an unintentional behavioural indicator. In a...