GW Expert: How to Cope with Social Anxiety at Holiday Parties & Work Events

Between holiday parties with friends and year-end work events with colleagues, the holiday season is arguably the busiest time of the year for social gatherings. While it’s a time of joy and happiness, mental health experts say these holiday gatherings may also invite an unwelcome guest: social anxiety.

Fallon Goodman is an assistant professor of psychology at the George Washington University. She directs the Emotion and Resilience Laboratory, an interdisciplinary team that conducts research on how people foster social connection and resilience to adversity. Goodman’s work explores daily patterns of coping and barriers to social connection, like social anxiety and rejection, with a focus on people who are vulnerable to social stress. 

She can discuss what social anxiety is and how it can make it harder for people to connect with others or attend a festive party. She can also talk about ways to cope with social anxiety during the holidays. 

Watch her 2021 TED talk “Why you feel anxious socializing (and what to do about it).”