The Effectiveness of Neurofeedback on the Behavioral Performance of Children with Social Anxiety Disorder: A Time-Series Study

Objective: Social anxiety is one of the most prevalent issues leading to significant functional and behavioral disorders in children. This study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of neurofeedback intervention on the behavioral performance of children with social anxiety disorder (SAD). Methods: A semi-experimental study with a time series design and control group was conducted. The statistical population included all ۶-۸ years old children with SAD (according to the clinical interview and the cut-off score in Leibovitz's Social Anxiety Questionnaire) who had referred to the Ziai counseling clinic in Meybod; A total of ۱۰ children were selected by convenient sampling method and were randomly assigned to experimental and control groups. The experimental group received ۱۶ sessions of neurofeedback intervention, while the control group did not receive any special intervention. Goodman's Abilities and Problems Questionnaire was used to measure children's behavioral performance at five phases: pre-test, fourth, eighth and twelfth sessions of intervention phase and posttest. The data were analyzed using analysis of variance with repeated measurements. Results: The results showed a significant difference between the average scores of the experimental group and the control group in behavioral performance; Additionally, in the experimental group, there was a significant difference between the scores of behavioral performances in different phases of measurement, but this difference did not exist in the control group. Conclusion: The neurofeedback intervention is effective in improving the behavioral performance of children with SAD and can be used as a complementary treatment alongside other psychological and drug treatments for these children.

Keywords:

Social Anxiety Disorder , Behavioral Performance , Child , Neuro­feedback