Social Fear Conditioning as an Animal Model of Social Anxiety Disorder

Social fear and avoidance of social situations represent the main behavioral symptoms of social anxiety disorder (SAD), a disorder that is poorly elucidated and has rather unsatisfactory therapeutic options. Therefore, animal models are needed to study the underlying etiology of the disorder and possible novel treatment approaches. However, the current paradigms modeling SAD-like symptoms in rodents are not specific, as they induce numerous other behavioral deficits in addition to social fear and avoidance. Here, we describe the protocol for the social fear conditioning paradigm, an animal model of SAD that specifically induces social fear of unfamiliar con-specifics without potentially confounding alterations in other behavioral measures. Theoretical and practical considerations for performing the social fear conditioning paradigm in both rats and mice, as well as for the analysis and interpretation of the obtained data, are described in detail.