Social Psychology Research

Abstract Introduction: This study was conducted to determine the effectiveness of social communication skills training on metacognitive beliefs and fear of positive and negative evaluation of junior high school students. Method: The research method was quasi-experimental with a pretest-posttest design with a control group. The study population consisted of male high school students in Aran and Bidgol that 30 male students were selected by purposive sampling method and randomly assigned to two groups of 15 experimental and control and answered to metacognitive belief Wells and Katright-Hutton (2004) questionnaires, Weeks (2010) Fear of Positive Evaluation Questionnaire, and Leary (1983) Fear of Negative Evaluation Questionnaire. The control group waited and the social communication skills group training for the experimental group was performed in 8 one-hour sessions. At the end of the intervention, both groups were re-evaluated with research questionnaires. Data were analyzed using the analysis of covariance. Results: The results showed that social-communication skills training was effective in reducing metacognitive beliefs (p <0.05), reducing fear of negative evaluation (p <0.05), and reducing fear of positive evaluation (p <0.05).  Conclusion: The results of the study confirmed the effectiveness of the use of group communication social skills training on reducing metacognitive beliefs and fear of positive and negative evaluation of students.  

Abstract Purpose: Social anxiety in adolescents is prevalent. Relying on the theoretical foundations, this study was conducted with the aim of prognosis the social anxiety in adolescents based on metacognitive beliefs, mindfulness and fear of negative evaluation.
Method: The present study is descriptive-cross-sectional and correlational. The statistical population of the present study includes all male and female students of the third grade of secondary education who study at high schools in the Varamin city of during the academic year of 1963-96. 329 people were selected by cluster-multistage sampling. To collect data, Wales’s meta-cognitive beliefs questionnaire (MCQ-30), Fifth Mindfulness Knowledge Questionnaire (FFMQ), Negative Fear Scale (BFNE-S) and Social anxiety Conor Questionnaire (SPI) were used. Then, the data were analyzed using Pearson's correlation coefficient and stepwise regression analysis.
Results: The results of Pearson correlation coefficient indicated that there was a significant relationship between metacognitive beliefs, mindfulness and fear of evaluation with social anxiety in adolescents. Stepwise regression analysis confirms the role of predictor variables in social anxiety. In general, meta-cognitive beliefs, mindfulness and fear of evaluating predicted 17 percent of social anxiety changes in teens.
Conclusion: It seems that metacognitive beliefs, mindfulness and fear of negative evaluation have an independent role in social anxiety in adolescents.

Abstract Introduction: The aim of this study is investigate the relationship between differentiation of self, fear of negative evaluation and critical thinking with social adjustment in students. Method: Statistical population included all high school students in Qasr-e Shirin city (1400 persons) that a sample of 300 subjects were selected by cluster random sampling. To collect the data, the differentiation of self, fear of negative evaluation, critical thinking and social adjustment was used. To analyze the data, Pearson correlation and regression analysis were used. Results: The results showed negative correlation between the fear of negative evaluation with social adjustment. But the differentiation of self and critical thinking showed a significant positive correlation with social adjustment. In general, the results showed the differentiation of self, fear of negative evaluation and critical thinking are able to predict social adjustment. Conclusion: According to the results, it can be concluded that improve critical thinking and differentiation of self and reducing the fear of negative evaluation could lead to social harmony and adjustment.