Social Anxiety in University Students: Towards an Intentional Life-Skills Based Prevention Model

Research suggests that staying connected with people is very beneficial to our physical and mental well-being. Moreover, a lack of social connection is associated with poor mental and physical health, and lower overall well-being. For individuals with social anxiety, it is particularly difficult to cultivate social connections. Due to the prolonged period of social isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic, research suggests that social anxiety in university students has increased. This study employed a convergent parallel mixed method design and administered a self-reported questionnaire which included quantitative and qualitative questions. The questionnaire was administered to 301 undergraduate students to determine if feelings of social anxiety in students changed during and after the pandemic. This study also analyzed social anxiety levels across racial and ethnocultural demographics and assessed the cultural stigmas and barriers that may prevent students from accessing mental health services. Results from the quantitative analyses showed a significant difference in social anxiety scores before and after the pandemic. However, in our sample, feelings of social anxiety post-pandemic did not differ across race, or income which were our main variables of interest. In addition, there was a positive correlation between social anxiety scores and household income and fear of negative evaluation. The qualitative results showed that important barriers to accessing mental health services include fear of parents learning they are in therapy, cost of mental health services, language barriers, and concern that a therapist would not have cultural sensitivity. This study highlights the need for increased interventions to reduce social anxiety among students, and proposes a preventative approach we refer to as “Life-Skills Training” to address social anxiety.