The Shyness & Social Anxiety Workbook
42MEASURING YOUR IMPROVEMENT
Assessment is not only for the initial phase of your treatment. Rather, the process of 
assessment should continue throughout treatment and even after treatment has ended. 
Continuing the assessment process throughout treatment will provide you with a way of 
measuring how much your social anxiety has improved as a result of using the strategies 
described in this book. Also, conducting occasional self-assessments after treatment has 
ended will let you know whether your treatment gains have continued over time.
STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE FOR CONDUCTING  
A SELF-ASSESSMENT
Therapists and clinicians who treat social anxiety use a number of tools to assess clients 
and patients. The most common of these include the following.
Clinical Interviews 
Interviews involve asking a person speciﬁc questions about his or her background, 
anxiety symptoms, and related problems. It is an easy way of getting to know someone 
and learning about his or her difﬁculties simply by talking.
Questionnaires 
Questionnaires include paper-and-pencil tests that a person completes before begin -
ning treatment, and perhaps again during treatment and after treatment ends. They are 
used to provide additional information not covered in the interview, as well as to conﬁrm 
and expand upon the information provided in the interview.
Diaries 
Diaries are completed on a day-to-day basis between therapy sessions. They are 
useful because they provide the individual with an opportunity to record his or her 
thoughts and feelings as they occur, rather than having to remember all of the details of 
a complex event later.
Behavioral Assessment
 A behavioral assessment involves directly observing a person’s behavior or asking