Michelle Hunter
University of Reohampton, United Kingdom
Title: Strategies to address social anxiety in the workplace: the “hidden†performance killer
Biography
Biography: Michelle Hunter
Abstract
Mental health issues impacts working lives too. People struggling with social anxiety place an excessively high standard for themselves within any given social situation, especially the modern day workplace where competence seems to matter most. Research suggests that employees struggling with social anxiety are more acutely aware of how they think and people are going to react to them, as they have a tendency to feel inferior to others, irrespective of their positioning. Some of the questions this workshop will answer include: How does social anxiety impact employee performance? What support can be put in place for employees who are battling with social anxiety? How can a “deep” as opposed to “surface” coaching approach be used to tackle social anxiety? All participants are asked (in small groups) to comment on how issues such as social anxiety are expressed and addressed in their workplace. Other discussions around established and reputable strategies that have been used to tackle social anxiety will be embedded into the discussion. The session will close with a plenary debate and defining the best practices, main problems and prioritisation of the author’s goals for promoting “healthy (in every way) organisations”.
Keywords: social anxiety; employee performance; mental health; inferiority complex; self-esteem; confidence; deep and surface coaching.
Position: Chartered Psychologist & Senior Lecturer. Address for correspondence: Dr Michelle Hunter, University of Roehampton, Southlands College, London SW15 5SL.