The Role of Negative Bias in the Formation of Social Anxiety: The Mediating Role of Fear of Negative Evaluation

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the role of negative bias in the development of social anxiety through the mediating effect of fear of negative evaluation. Methods and Materials: This descriptive-correlational study was conducted on individuals residing in Tehran. Using convenience sampling and Morgan and Krejcie’s table, 379 participants were selected. The research instruments included the Negative Interpretation Questionnaire, the Brief Fear of Negative Evaluation Scale (BFNE), and the Social Interaction Anxiety Scale (SIAS). Data analysis was performed using Pearson correlation and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) with SPSS-27 and AMOS-21 software. Findings: Pearson correlation results revealed a significant positive relationship between negative bias and social anxiety (r = 0.55, p < 0.001), and between fear of negative evaluation and social anxiety (r = 0.61, p < 0.001). SEM analysis indicated that negative bias predicted social anxiety both directly (β = 0.29, p < 0.001) and indirectly through fear of negative evaluation (β = 0.27, p < 0.001). Model fit indices indicated a good model fit (CFI = 0.97, RMSEA = 0.056). Conclusion: The findings highlight that negative bias can increase social anxiety by elevating fear of negative evaluation. Thus, psychological interventions targeting cognitive biases and reducing fear of evaluation could help decrease social anxiety levels.