Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Higher anxiety rating does not mean poor speech performance: dissociation of the neural mechanisms of anticipation and delivery of public speaking

  • Original Research
  • Published:
Brain Imaging and Behavior Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Public speaking anxiety refers to feelings of nervousness when anticipating or delivering a speech. However, the relationship between anxiety in the anticipation phase and speech delivery phase is unclear. In this study, we used functional near-infrared spectroscopy to record participants’ brain activities when they were anticipating or performing public speaking tasks in an immersive virtual reality environment. Neuroimaging results showed that participants’ subjective ratings of public anxiety in the anticipation phase but not the delivery phase were correlated with activities in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, the inferior frontal gyrus, and the precentral and postcentral gyrus. In contrast, their speaking performance could be predicted by activities in the temporal gyrus and the right postcentral gyrus in the delivery phase. This suggests a dissociation in the neural mechanisms between anxiety in preparation and execution of a speech. The conventional anxiety questionnaire is a good predictor of anticipatory anxiety, but cannot predict speaking performance. Using virtual reality to establish a situational test could be a better approach to assess in vivo public speaking performance.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Beatty, M. J. (1988). Situational and predispositional correlates of public speaking anxiety. Communication Education, 37(1), 28–39. https://doi.org/10.1080/03634528809378701.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Behnke, R. R., & Sawyer, C. R. (1999). Milestones of anticipatory public speaking anxiety. Communication Education, 48(2), 165–172. https://doi.org/10.1080/03634529909379164.

  • Behnke, R. R., Carlile, L. W., & Lamb, D. H. (1974). A psychophysiological study of state and trait anxiety in public speaking. Communication Studies, 25(4), 249–253. https://doi.org/10.1080/10510977409367802.

  • Blair, R. J. R. (2010). Psychopathy, frustration, and reactive aggression: The role of ventromedial prefrontal cortex. British Journal of Psychology, 101, 383–399. https://doi.org/10.1348/000712609X418480.

  • Blascovich, J., Loomis, J., Beall, A. C., Swinth, K. R., Hoyt, C. L., & Bailenson, J. N. (2002). Immersive virtual environment technology as a methodological tool for social psychology. Psychological Inquiry, 13(2), 103–124. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15327965pli1302_01.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Blote, A. W., Kint, M. J., Miers, A. C., & Westenberg, P. M. (2009). The relation between public speaking anxiety and social anxiety: A review. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 23(3), 305–313. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.janxdis.2008.11.007.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bohil, C. J., Alicea, B., & Biocca, F. A. (2011). Virtual reality in neuroscience research and therapy. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 12(12), 752–762. https://doi.org/10.1038/nrn3122.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Cremers, H. R., Veer, I. M., Spinhoven, P., Rombouts, S. A. R. B., Yarkoni, T., Wager, T. D., & Roelofs, K. (2015). Altered cortical-amygdala coupling in social anxiety disorder during the anticipation of giving a public speech. Psychological Medicine, 45(7), 1521–1529. 

  • Croft, R. J., Gonsalvez, C. J., Gander, J., Lechem, L., & Barry, R. J. (2004). Differential relations between heart rate and skin conductance, and public speaking anxiety. Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry, 35(3), 259–271. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbtep.2004.04.012.

  • Cui, X., Bray, S., Bryant, D. M., Glover, G. H., & Reiss, A. L. (2011). A quantitative comparison of NIRS and fMRI across multiple cognitive tasks. Neuroimage, 54(4), 2808–2821. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuroimage.2010.10.069.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Davidson, R. J., Marshall, J. R., Tomarken, A. J., & Henriques, J. B. (2000). While a phobic waits: Regional brain electrical and autonomic activity in social phobics during anticipation of public speaking. Biological Psychiatry, 47(2), 85–95. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0006-3223(99)00222-X.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Davies, C. D., Young, K., Torre, J. B., Burklund, L. J., Goldin, P. R., Brown, L. A., Niles, A. N., Lieberman, M. D., & Craske, M. G. (2017). Altered time course of amygdala activation during speech anticipation in social anxiety disorder. Journal of Affective Disorders, 209, 23–29. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2016.11.014.

  • Ferrari, M., Mottola, L., & Quaresima, V. (2004). Principles, techniques, and limitations of near infrared spectroscopy. Canadian Journal of Applied Physiology, 29(4), 463–487. https://doi.org/10.1139/h04-031.

  • Fydrich, T., Chambless, D. L., Perry, K. J., Buergener, F., & Beazley, M. B. (1998). Behavioral assessment of social performance: A rating system for social phobia. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 36(10), 995–1010. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0005-7967(98)00069-2.

  • Glassman, L. H., Herbert, J. D., Forman, E. M., Bradley, L. E., Izzetoglu, M., Ruocco, A. C., & Goldstein, S. P. (2014). Near-infrared spectroscopic assessment of in vivo prefrontal activation in public speaking anxiety: A preliminary study. Psychology of Consciousness: Theory, Research, and Practice, 1(3), 271. https://doi.org/10.1037/cns0000009.

  • Glassman, L. H., Forman, E. M., Herbert, J. D., Bradley, L. E., Foster, E. E., Izzetoglu, M., & Ruocco, A. C. (2016). The effects of a brief acceptance-based behavioral treatment versus traditional cognitive-behavioral treatment for public speaking anxiety: An exploratory trial examining differential effects on performance and neurophysiology. Behavior Modification, 40(5), 748–776. https://doi.org/10.1177/0145445516629939.

  • Glassman, L. H., Kuster, A. T., Shaw, J. A., Forman, E. M., Izzetoglu, M., Matteucci, A., & Herbert, J. D. (2017). The relationship between dorsolateral prefrontal activation and speech performance-based social anxiety using functional near infrared spectroscopy. Brain Imaging and Behavior, 11(3), 797–807. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11682-016-9554-1.

  • Hagoort, P. (2005). On Broca, brain, and binding: A new framework. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 9(9), 416–423. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2005.07.004.

  • Harb, G. C., Eng, W., Zaider, T., & Heimberg, R. G. (2003). Behavioral assessment of public-speaking anxiety using a modified version of the social performance rating scale. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 41(11), 1373–1380. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0005-7967(03)00158-x.

  • Harris, S. R., Kemmerling, R. L., & North, M. M. (2002). Brief virtual reality therapy for public speaking anxiety. Cyberpsychology & Behavior, 5(6), 543–550. https://doi.org/10.1089/109493102321018187.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hook, J. N., Smith, C. A., & Valentiner, D. P. (2008). A short-form of the personal report of confidence as a speaker. Personality and Individual Differences, 44(6), 1306–1313. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2007.11.021.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hoshi, Y., & Michael, F. (2005). Functional near-infrared spectroscopy: Potential and limitations in neuroimaging studies. International Review of Neurobiology, 66(5), 237–266. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0074-7742(05)66008-4.

  • Indefrey, P. (2011). The spatial and temporal signatures of word production components: A critical update. Frontiers in Psychology, 2. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2011.00255.

  • Jang, K. E., Tak, S., Jung, J., Jang, J., Jeong, Y., & Ye, J. C. (2009). Wavelet minimum description length detrending for near-infrared spectroscopy. Journal of Biomedical Optics, 14(3), Artn 034004. https://doi.org/10.1117/1.3127204.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kircher, T. T. J., Brammer, M., Andreu, N. T., Williams, S. C. R., & McGuire, P. K. (2001). Engagement of right temporal cortex during processing of linguistic context. Neuropsychologia, 39(8), 798–809. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0028-3932(01)00014-8.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Klem, G. H., Luders, H. O., Jasper, H. H., & Elger, C. (1999). The ten-twenty electrode system of the international federation. The International Federation of Clinical Neurophysiology. Electroencephalography and Clinical Neurophysiology. Supplement, 52, 3–6. https://doi.org/10.1080/00029238.1961.11080571.

  • McCann, R. A., Armstrong, C. M., Skopp, N. A., Edwards-Stewart, A., Smolenski, D. J., June, J. D., Metzger-Abamukong, M., & Reger, G. M. (2014). Virtual reality exposure therapy for the treatment of anxiety disorders: An evaluation of research quality. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 28(6), 625–631. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.janxdis.2014.05.010.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Muhlberger, A., Bulthoff, H. H., Wiedemann, G., & Pauli, P. (2007). Virtual reality for the psychophysiological assessment of phobic fear: Responses during virtual tunnel driving. Psychological Assessment, 19(3), 340–346. https://doi.org/10.1037/1040-3590.19.3.340.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Parsons, T, D. (2011). Neuropsychological assessment using virtual environments: Enhanced assessment technology for improved ecological validity. In Advanced computational intelligence paradigms in healthcare 6. Virtual reality in psychotherapy, rehabilitation, and assessment (pp. 271–289). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-17824-5_13.

  • Parsons, T. D. (2015). Virtual reality for enhanced ecological validity and experimental control in the clinical, affective and social neurosciences. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 9, 660. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2015.00660.

  • Parsons, T. D., Gaggioli, A., & Riva, G. (2017). Virtual reality for research in social neuroscience. Brain Sciences, 7(4). https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci7040042.

  • Paul, G, L. (1966). Insight vs. desensitization in psychotherapy; an experiment in anxiety reduction. Stanford: Stanford University press. https://doi.org/10.1001/archpsyc.1966.01730160107021.

  • Pertaub, D. P., Slater, M., & Barker, C. (2002). An experiment on public speaking anxiety in response to three different types of virtual audience. Presence-Teleoperators and Virtual Environments, 11(1), 68–78. https://doi.org/10.1162/105474602317343668.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Poppelaars, E. S., Harrewijn, A., Westenberg, P. M., & van der Molen, M. J. (2018). Frontal delta-beta cross-frequency coupling in high and low social anxiety: An index of stress regulation? Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience, 18(4), 764–777. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13415-018-0603-7.

  • Powers, M. B., & Emmelkamp, P. M. G. (2008). Virtual reality exposure therapy for anxiety disorders: A meta-analysis. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 22(3), 561–569. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.janxdis.2007.04.006.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Riva, G. (2009). Virtual reality: An experiential tool for clinical psychology. British Journal of Guidance & Counselling, 37(3), 337–345. https://doi.org/10.1080/03069880902957056.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sanchez-Vives, M. V., & Slater, M. (2005). From presence to consciousness through virtual reality. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 6(4), 332–339. https://doi.org/10.1038/nrn1651.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Seraglia, B., Gamberini, L., Priftis, K., Scatturin, P., Martinelli, M., & Cutini, S. (2011). An exploratory fNIRS study with immersive virtual reality: A new method for technical implementation. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 5. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2011.00176.

  • Shinoura, N., Midorikawa, A., Kurokawa, K., Onodera, T., Tsukada, M., Yamada, R., Tabei, Y., Koizumi, T., Yoshida, M., Saito, S., & Yagi, K. (2011). Right temporal lobe plays a role in verbal memory. Neurological Research, 33(7), 734–738. https://doi.org/10.1179/1743132811y.0000000005.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Slater, M., Pertaub, D. P., Barker, C., & Clark, D. M. (2006). An experimental study on fear of public speaking using a virtual environment. Cyberpsychology & Behavior, 9(5), 627–633. https://doi.org/10.1089/cpb.2006.9.627.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Strangman, G., Culver, J. P., Thompson, J. H., & Boas, D. A. (2002). A quantitative comparison of simultaneous BOLD fMRI and NIRS recordings during functional brain activation. Neuroimage, 17(2), 719–731. https://doi.org/10.1006/nimg.2002.1227.

  • Takizawa, R., Fukuda, M., Kawasaki, S., Kasai, K., Mimura, M., Pu, S. H., et al. (2014). Neuroimaging-aided differential diagnosis of the depressive state. Neuroimage, 85, 498–507. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuroimage.2013.05.126.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Tillfors, M., Furmark, T., Marteinsdottir, I., & Fredrikson, M. (2002). Cerebral blood flow during anticipation of public speaking in social phobia: A PET study. Biological Psychiatry, 52(11), 1113–1119. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0006-3223(02)01396-3.

  • Tzourio-Mazoyer, N., Landeau, B., Papathanassiou, D., Crivello, F., Etard, O., Delcroix, N., Mazoyer, B., & Joliot, M. (2002). Automated anatomical labeling of activations in SPM using a macroscopic anatomical parcellation of the MNI MRI single-subject brain. Neuroimage, 15(1), 273–289. https://doi.org/10.1006/nimg.2001.0978.

  • Wang, R, H., Liu, Q., & Wei, S. (2006). Putonghua proficiency test and evaluation. Advances in Chinese Spoken Language Processing, 407–430. https://doi.org/10.1142/9789812772961_0018.

  • Xia, M. R., Wang, J. H., & He, Y. (2013). BrainNet viewer: A network visualization tool for human brain connectomics. Plos One, 8(7). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0068910.

  • Ye, J. C., Tak, S., Jang, K. E., Jung, J., & Jang, J. (2009). NIRS-SPM: Statistical parametric mapping for near-infrared spectroscopy. Neuroimage, 44(2), 428–447. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuroimage.2008.08.036.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Zatorre, R. J., Belin, P., & Penhune, V. B. (2002). Structure and function of auditory cortex: Music and speech. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 6(1), 37–46. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1364-6613(00)01816-7.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Zhou, C., Han, M., Liang, Q., Hu, Y.-F., & Kuai, S.-G. (2019). A social interaction field model accurately identifies static and dynamic social groupings. Nature human behaviour, 3(8), 847–855. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-019-0618-2.

Download references

Acknowledgments

We appreciate Zi-Rui Xu for her help with data collection and Ming Han for his help with stimulus generation.

Funding

This research was sponsored by the National Natural Science Foundation of China Grants (No. 31771209), the National Social Science Foundation of China Grants (No. 15ZDB016), and the Peak Discipline Construction Project of Education at East China Normal University: “Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities” and the Basic Research Project of Shanghai Science and Technology Commission (Grants 19JC1410101).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Education, East China Normal University, Shanghai, China

    Shu-Guang Kuai & Hui-Ning Wu

  2. The Key Lab of Brain Functional Genomics, MOE & STCSM, Institute of Brain and Education Innovation, School of Psychology and Cognitive Science, East China Normal University, Shanghai, China

    Shu-Guang Kuai, Qi Liang & Ying-Yao He

  3. Center for Information and Neural Networks (CiNet), NICT, Osaka, Japan

    Hui-Ning Wu

  4. Graduate School of Frontier Biosciences, Osaka University, Osaka, Japan

    Hui-Ning Wu

Authors
  1. Shu-Guang Kuai
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Qi Liang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Ying-Yao He
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Hui-Ning Wu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Contributions

S.-G. K., Q.L., Y.- Y. He., H.-N.WU. designed the research. Y.-Y. He. and Q.L. collected the experimental data; Q.L. and Y.-Y. He. analyzed the data under the supervision of S.-G. K; S.-G.K. and Q.L. wrote the paper.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Shu-Guang Kuai.

Ethics declarations

This research complied with the tenets of the Declaration of Helsinki and was approved by the ethics committee of East China Normal University. Informed consent was obtained from each participant before data collection. Participants and were paid for their participation.

Conflict of interest

The authors have no conflict of interest to declare.

Additional information

Publisher’s note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Kuai, SG., Liang, Q., He, YY. et al. Higher anxiety rating does not mean poor speech performance: dissociation of the neural mechanisms of anticipation and delivery of public speaking. Brain Imaging and Behavior 15, 1934–1943 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11682-020-00387-3

Download citation

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11682-020-00387-3

Keywords

Search

Navigation