The relations between social anxiety and social intelligence: A latent variable analysis

Social anxiety has been associated with biases in cognitive processing and deficits in social performances. Yet, it remains unclear if these variations may be partly attributable to deficits in fundamental social abilities: for example, social intelligence (SI). Using the Magdeburg Test of Social Intelligence (MTSI) as an objective and performance based SI measure, we examined the relationship between social anxiety and SI in a general population sample (N = 110) using Structural Equation Modeling. Dimensions of social anxiety as postulated by Clark and Wells (1995) and facets of SI (social understanding, social memory, and social perception), were negatively correlated. Use of safety-behavior in particular was related to deficits in social understanding (r = −0.25; p < 0.05) and social perception and memory (r = −0.24; p < 0.05). Results suggest small to medium sized relationships between specific facets of social anxiety and certain domains of SI. Therapeutic implications for socially anxious individuals concerning SI are discussed.

Research highlights
► Social anxiety is related to deficits in social intelligence.
► Especially the behavioral component of social anxiety is negatively related to the two domains of social intelligence social understanding and social memory and perception.
► A computerized training of SI, e.g., understanding and perceptions of social cues, social interactions, and social situations, could constitute an innovative therapeutic approach in addition to existing social skill trainings.