Relación entre los pensamientos automáticos negativos (PANs) y la ansiedad social en adolescentes.

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to establish the correlation between negative automatic thoughts and social anxiety in adolescents aged 15 to 16 years who were enrolled in the first year of upper secondary education. This research was relevant given that social anxiety is a frequent problem during adolescence and may affect emotional, academic, and social functioning, particularly when it is associated with dysfunctional cognitive patterns that influence the way adolescents perceive social situations. The specific objectives focused on identifying the school environments that generate more social anxiety, more frequent automatic negative ideas and their relationship with participation in school and evasive behavior. With a quantitative approach, non-experimental, correlational and transversal design. The Social Anxiety Scale for Adolescents (SAS-A) and the Questionnaire of Negative Cognitive Errors in Children and Adolescents (CNCEQ) were used with a total of 22 adolescents who were part of the sample and a focus group to deepen the subjective experience of the participants. In general terms, the research study concludes that the participants manifested high levels of social anxiety, however, a large part maintained an intermediate level of automatic negative thoughts, where catastrophization stood out as the most predominant cognitive distortion. Finally, the correlation analysis between negative automatic thoughts and social anxiety revealed a positive relationship between both variables (r = 0.36), which indicates that, if there is an increase in PANs, likewise, greater intensity in terms of social anxiety, which confirms the clinical relevance of these cognitions in adolescence.