Blushing during social interactions in people with a fear of blushing

Drummond, Peter D.; Back, Kate; Harrison, John P.; Helgadóttir, Fjóla Dögg; Lange, Brooke; Lee, Chris; Leavy, Kate; Novatscou, Caroline; Orner, Azalia; Pham, Han; Prance, Jacquie; Radford, Danielle; Wheatley, Lauren

doi:10.1016/j.brat.2006.06.012

Cited by 36 publications

(26 citation statements)

References 22 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…As in previous studies (e.g., Drummond et al, 2007), a fear of blushing was associated with high blushing propensity scores, a fear of negative evaluation, high social interaction anxiety and social phobia scores, and elevated embarrassment while singing. However, a physiological index of blushing (the increase in cheek blood flow) was similar in the high and low fear groups during this task.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 80%

“…After exercise, the vasodilator mechanism appeared to be more prominent in participants who were frightened of blushing, suggesting that this fear might be ͳʹ associated with mechanisms that delay the resumption of normal vascular tone. As this may also apply after repetitive bursts of psychological arousal (Drummond et al, 2007), a slow rate of recovery after an episode of blushing or flushing could result in physiological or social cues that add to social discomfort and help to maintain a fear of blushing.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Nevertheless, blushing appears to build up over repeated episodes in people who report that they Ͷ blush frequently (Drummond et al, 2003) or who are frightened of blushing (Drummond et al, 2007). The aetiology of this is unknown, but is consistent with a physiological predisposition that might delay recovery after a blush.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Topical ibuprofen inhibits blushing during embarrassment and facial flushing during aerobic exercise in people with a fear of blushing

Drummond

Minosora

Little

et al. 2013

European Neuropsychopharmacology

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Cite this article as: Peter D. Drummond, Kate Minosora, Gretta Little, Wendy Keay, Topical ibuprofen inhibits blushing during embarrassment and facial flushing during aerobic exercise in people with a fear of blushing, European Neuropsychopharmacology, http://dx.doi.org/10. 1016/j.euroneuro.2013.07.013 This is a PDF file of an unedited manuscript that has been accepted for publication. As a service to our customers we are providing this early version of the manuscript. The manuscript will undergo copyediting, typesetting, and review of the resulting galley proof before it is published in its final citable form. Please note that during the production process errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain. The flush that develops during whole-body heat stress depends partly on prostaglandins production in the skin. Variations in the strength of this local mechanism may contribute to individual differences in susceptibility to blushing and associated anxiety. To investigate this in the present study, the anti-inflammatory agent ibuprofen (which blocks prostaglandins formation) was applied topically to a small area of the cheek in 16 participants with a fear of blushing and in another 14 without this fear. Changes in skin blood flow were monitored at the ibuprofen-treated site and at a mirror image control site while participants sang (to induce embarrassment and blushing) and during aerobic exercise (to induce flushing). The topical ibuprofen treatment inhibited increases in cheek blood flow in both groups during both of these tasks. However, increases in cheek blood flow were greater in participants with high than low fear of blushing immediately after exercise. These findings suggest that prostaglandins contribute to dilatation of facial blood vessels both during emotional arousal (embarrassment) and aerobic exercise. Furthermore, fear of blushing may be associated with mechanisms that delay the resumption of normal vascular tone after a period of vasodilatation. Whether topical ibuprofen gel is suitable for intermittent or long-term use as an aid for blushing control requires further investigation.

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 80%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Topical ibuprofen inhibits blushing during embarrassment and facial flushing during aerobic exercise in people with a fear of blushing

Drummond

Minosora

Little

et al. 2013

European Neuropsychopharmacology

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Facial coloration was greater in people with social anxiety disorder than in controls when they first watched the videotape, but did not differ between groups during the other tasks. In a study in our laboratory, embarrassment and blushing ratings were greater in participants with a fear of blushing than controls during an introductory conversation, when they delivered a speech and when they listened to a recording of the speech (Drummond et al, 2007). Despite this, increases in forehead pulse amplitude were similar in both groups during each task.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 83%

“…For example, flushing can develop during repetitive or protracted embarrassment (e.g., Drummond et al, 2003;Drummond et al, 2007), and may also develop during psychological stress and emotions such as anger or shame (e.g., Drummond, 1999;Drummond and Quah, 2001). By-and-large, blushing and flushing are mediated by dilatation of superficial blood vessels in the forehead and cheeks which increases cutaneous blood flow and secondarily lifts facial temperature (Drummond and Lance, 1987;Shearn et al, 1990).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The effect of facial blood flow on ratings of blushing and negative affect during an embarrassing task: Preliminary findings

Drummond

Lazaroo

2012

Journal of Anxiety Disorders

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Expecting to blush is a common source of social anxiety, and is associated with heightened perceptions of blushing and embarrassment. To assess whether sensory cues associated with heightened facial blood flow are an additional source of anxiety, the vasodilator niacin (100 mg) or placebo was administered double-blind to 33 participants, and facial blood flow was investigated when they sang a children's song. Vasodilatation during singing was greater in the niacin than placebo condition, and niacin-evoked flushing and increases in pulse rate were greater in participants with high than low fear of negative evaluation. Nevertheless, ratings of embarrassment, anxiety, blushing and facial heat were similar in both drug conditions. This dissociation implies that cognitive appraisals or negative affect overrode more subtle physiological cues of blushing during embarrassment. Clarifying how judgments about blushing are made could be crucial for correcting faulty assumptions about blushing in people who are frightened of this response. AbstractKey words: facial blood flow; vasodilatation; niacin; embarrassment; social anxiety; fear of negative evaluation 3

show abstract