This month has been productive and creative. I’m gradually organizing the interview transcripts of psychotherapists and still waiting for replies from others. All the transcripts and conclusions will be shown in the next post.

INTERVENTION: Fun Role-Playing Game (Familiar People Version)

This is a fun role-playing activity tailored for familiar settings under a simulated scenario, which means you can invite one or more trusted family members or friends to create a familiar and friendly social environment for you. With their company, simulate the social situations you fear and practice interacting with the role-playing “stranger.” You can gradually progress from simple to more complex scenarios based on your anxiety level, helping to alleviate social anxiety step by step. Unlike professional psychotherapy, which requires a therapist and their assistant to repeatedly guide the patient through fear-inducing situations, individuals with mild social anxiety are more likely to turn to their family and friends for support. After receiving approval from psychotherapists, this idea was implemented.

This week, I finished up my video of role-playing scenario simulation. I have to say the whole process was fun and helped my participants and me better understand shyness and social anxiety.

The video(14 mins) link is here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1_wNnOgQT4FxgGqdRJFmyFIiPlEXP6UrO/view?usp=sharing

Before this intervention, my participant Zixin had done the shyness questionnaire and signed it. Here is the document.

And she also gave me feedback to prove that this intervention was useful for her. Here is her feedback:

“From the moment I began receiving the mock tests, anxiety and unease surrounded me. I wanted to ensure that every question was answered accurately and precisely, so I prepared thoroughly. However, no matter how well-prepared I was beforehand when facing the actual interviewers, my mind would go blank. Ironically, I was most nervous when facing the friendly examiner, even though the questions were less difficult than those from the other two examiners. I believe that the unknown equals anxiety, but after going through a few test questions with the friendly examiner and gaining an understanding of the interview process and the nature of the questions, my nervousness was greatly alleviated. After facing two more rigorous and serious examiners, I realized that as long as I adjusted my mindset in time and answered calmly, I could perform up to my ability and level. The advice from the examiners and host was also very effective. The purpose of the interview is not only to assess whether the interviewee has the skills and knowledge required for the position but also to ensure that they have the confidence to meet the job requirements and bring efficiency to the company. Therefore, maintaining eye contact and smiling confidently during the interview is crucial, as it leaves a smooth and natural impression on the examiners. I believe that this test (as a practice before the actual interview) can significantly help shy individuals reduce most of their nervousness in a real situation.”

I’m glad to see this result and I also learned from this event, it is meaningful for me too.

PARTICIPANT CONSENT FORM