Prevalence and Associated Factors of Social Anxiety Among Lebanese Adolescents

Abstract

Objective: To determine the prevalence of social anxiety among Lebanese adolescents and assess its association with bullying and child abuse.

Methods: This cross-sectional investigation conducted between January and May 2019 recruited 1,810 adolescents aged 14 to 17 years selected randomly from private schools from all Lebanese governates (Beirut, Mount Lebanon, North, South, and Bekaa). Participants completed a questionnaire that included items from the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale, the Childhood Abuse Self-Report Scale, and the Illinois Bully Scale.

Results: The results showed that 73.2% (95% CI, 71.02-75.31) of the participants had social anxiety. Higher mean scores on the psychological, neglect, physical, and sexual abuse scales and bullying and victimization scales were significantly associated with higher total social anxiety, fear, and avoidance scores (P < .05 for all). The multivariate analysis showed that having separated parents (β = 11.16), as well as higher child psychological abuse (β = 0.69), neglect (β = 0.52), physical abuse (β = 1.71), and sexual abuse (β = 1.56) were significantly associated with higher total social anxiety. The same results were found for social fear and avoidance, with bullying victimization being significantly associated with higher social fear only (P = .042).

Conclusions: This study showed high social anxiety among adolescents in Lebanon. Having separated parents and child abuse were related to social anxiety among adolescents. Future studies are needed to explore the effects of specific forms of childhood abuse in individuals with certain vulnerabilities.