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Is public speaking really our biggest fear?

Is public speaking really people’s number one fear? Tim Harford tracks the claim back to the 1970’s and explores whether it was true then, and whether it’s true today.

For over 50 years it’s been widely reported that speaking before a group is people’s number one fear. But is it really true? With the help of Dr Karen Kangas Dwyer, a former Professor in the School of Communication at the University of Nebraska-Omaha and Dr Christopher Bader, Professor of Sociology at Chapman University, Tim Harford tracks the source of the claim back to the 1970’s and explores whether it was true then, and whether it’s true today.

Presenter: Tim Harford
Producer: Debbie Richford
Production Co-ordinator: Katie Morrison
Series Producer: Tom Colls
Sound Mix: Neil Churchill
Editor: Richard Vadon

Picture Credit: vchal via Getty

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9 minutes

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