Effect of an Online Group Programme based on Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Combined with Self-Compassion on Social Anxiety and Self-Compassion: A Pilot Study

This pilot study examined the impact of an online psychoeducation group based on cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) combined with self-compassion on social anxiety, automatic thoughts and self-compassion among university students.In line with the study's goal, a randomised control group pre-test, post-test and follow-up test design were used.The study group consisted of 18 university students from a public university in Trkiye (nine participants in each group).The experimental group underwent a six-session online programme combining CBT and self-compassion-based psychoeducation to reduce social anxiety, whereas the control group did not receive any treatment.The Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale, Automatic Thoughts Scale and Self-Compassion Scale were used for data collection.The results showed that the levels of social anxiety and automatic thoughts of the students in the experimental group decreased, and their self-compassion levels increased.These findings suggest that the integrated approach used in this study is an effective online intervention for treating social anxiety.