Watchful Eyes: The Influence of Researcher Presence on Social Anxiety and Gaze Perception

The current study investigated hypothesized links between the spotlight effect and social anxiety, and between eye gaze perception (averted or direct) and social anxiety. Participants judged eye-gaze, face direction, and target likeability in a response time paradigm. Those who self-reported anxiety, self-consciousness, and introversion responded differentially to a spotlight manipulation.