ABSTRACT
Most of the studies on cultural differences in social anxiety disorder (SAD) have examined Eastern and Western samples. This review suggests that within the U. S. sample, Asian race/ethnicity is associated with some of the lowest prevalence rates. There is also some evidence to suggest that race/ethnicity predicts response or nonresponse to pharmacological treatments. Specifically, a study by P. Roy-Byrne, P. Perera, and J. A. Christi examined the effects of paroxetine in ethnic minority patients with mood and anxiety disorders, including major depression, panic disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, social anxiety disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, and premenstrual dysphoric disorder. Several individual dimensions have shown to contribute to cross-cultural differences in the expression of SAD. These dimensions include individualism/collectivism, social norms, self-construal, and gender role and gender role identification. A concept that is closely related to violating social norms is embarrassment. Shame seems to be a particularly important aspect of social anxiety in Asian cultures.
