Public Speaking Behavior in Adolescence: Relations with Age, Gender and Social Anxiety

Van den Bos, E. (Esther)¹, Blöte, A. (Anke)¹, Westenberg, P. M. (Michiel)^1
1Leiden University, Wassenaarseweg 52, 2333 AK, Leiden, the Netherlands

 

Submission type

Oral only

Scheduled

Room 115, 12-07-2019, 11:00 - 12:30

Keywords

adolescence, age, gender, public speaking, social anxiety, social performance, social skills

Summary

Previous studies suggest that socially anxious youth show impaired performance during public speaking compared to age-peers, but little is known about the development of behavioral differences. The present longitudinal study charted the typical adolescent development of public speaking behavior and investigated whether it is moderated by gender and social anxiety. Data were collected in two waves, two years apart, from a community sample of 210 participants, 49.5% girls, aged 9-17 years at Time 1. Participants gave two speeches. Their behavior was rated on the Speech Performance Observation Scale for Youth. Social anxiety was measured with the Social Anxiety Scale for Adolescents. Regression analyses with clustered bootstrap show an increase with age (between and within-participants) for confident behaviors and, particularly in girls, expressive behaviors. However, the increase is attenuated at higher levels of social anxiety. Differences in public speaking behavior between high and low socially anxious youth emerge during adolescence. A lack of expressive and confident behavior during public speaking may be a useful indicator of social anxiety in older youth. The results indicate that early identification and intervention is particularly relevant during early and middle adolescence in order to forestall the vicious cycle of inferior social performance and peer rejection.

Auteurs