Overcoming Attention Biases 51
controlling their anxious thoughts. Other unhelpful ways of
responding to anxiety include experiencing negative sec-
ondary emotions (such as feeling insecure, mistrustful, or
frustrated); additional negative thoughts about the situation
(for example, I’m going to make a fool of myself or I’m certain I
will never be successful in life); or even unpleasant bodily sen-
sations (such as a racing heart, breathing difficulties, or even
a sense of impending doom).
A primary and important function of anxiety is to detect
threats in your environment so that you can react accord-
ingly (much as an air traffic controller uses radar to detect
threats in the sky or at the airport to avoid danger). By coor-
dinating attention and related cognitive processes, anxiety
helps you interact with your surroundings in an efficient and
seamless manner. For example, if you are asleep in bed and
suddenly wake up to the sound of glass breaking, your
anxiety signals that you should investigate the cause of the
noise, hide, or leave your house. If you didn’t experience
such anxiety, you would be more susceptible to harm
(imagine ignoring the noise and going back to sleep while a
thief burgles your home). Thus, from a functional perspec-
tive, anxiety often helps you react by coordinating your
thoughts, emotions, and behaviors and by preparing and
motivating you to take action (by triggering your fight- or-
f light response).
Consider the last time you were asked to do something
that made you feel apprehensive or downright anxious. Or
think about the last time you had to make small talk with a
stranger, prepare for a date, give a speech at work or school,
or interact with a police officer. For making small talk or
preparing for a date, anxiety may function as a way to detect
threat related to rejection, whereas for giving a speech or