Which statement best differentiates social anxiety disorder from avoidant personality disorder?

Which statement best differentiates social anxiety disorder from avoidant personality disorder?

• A. Social anxiety is fear of embarrassment in public areas; avoidant PD is fear of rejection and feeling not good enough, with desire to make friends
• B. Social anxiety is fear of rejection; avoidant PD is fear of embarrassment
• C. Social anxiety has no social evaluation component; avoidant PD does
• D. Social anxiety occurs only in childhood

Answer: (A)

The main idea is how the fear drives behavior and how pervasive it is. Social anxiety disorder centers on fear of embarrassment or negative evaluation in social or performance situations; people worry about being judged in public and may avoid those situations or endure them with distress, but the focus is on the anxiety tied to social scrutiny in specific contexts. Avoidant personality disorder, by contrast, involves a long‑standing pattern of social inhibition, feelings of inadequacy, and hypersensitivity to rejection, with a genuine desire for close relationships that is thwarted by fear of being rejected or seen as not good enough. So the difference lies in what is feared and how it permeates life: social embarrassment in public settings for SAD, versus fear of rejection and a pervasive sense of inadequacy with a longing for friendships for AVPD. The other statements mix up what is feared, or misstate the presence of social evaluation or the pervasiveness, which doesn’t fit how these disorders truly differ.

The main idea is how the fear drives behavior and how pervasive it is. Social anxiety disorder centers on fear of embarrassment or negative evaluation in social or performance situations; people worry about being judged in public and may avoid those situations or endure them with distress, but the focus is on the anxiety tied to social scrutiny in specific contexts. Avoidant personality disorder, by contrast, involves a long‑standing pattern of social inhibition, feelings of inadequacy, and hypersensitivity to rejection, with a genuine desire for close relationships that is thwarted by fear of being rejected or seen as not good enough. So the difference lies in what is feared and how it permeates life: social embarrassment in public settings for SAD, versus fear of rejection and a pervasive sense of inadequacy with a longing for friendships for AVPD. The other statements mix up what is feared, or misstate the presence of social evaluation or the pervasiveness, which doesn’t fit how these disorders truly differ.