Prevalence of Social Anxiety and Body Image Dissatisfaction and Its Impact on Quality of Life of Medical Students- A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Keywords:
Social Anxiety, Body Image Dissatisfaction, Medical Students, Quality of Life, Psychological Well-being, Mental HealthAbstract
Background: Medical students face significant psychological stress due to academic pressure, limited leisure time, and adaptation to the medical environment. Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD) and Body Image Dissatisfaction (BID) are common in this population and may impact their mental health and overall quality of life.
Aim: To estimate the prevalence of social anxiety and body image dissatisfaction and assess their impact on the quality of life of medical students.
Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among MBBS students at Vinayaka Mission’s Kirupananda Variyar Medical College, Salem, over five months from February 2024 to September 2024. A total of 365 students aged 18-25 years were recruited through random sampling. Participants completed validated tools, including the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale (LSAS), Body Self-Image Questionnaire (BSQ), and Mental Health Quality of Life Scale (MHQoLS-7D). Data analysis was performed using SPSS 26.0, with descriptive statistics, independent t-tests, and chi-square tests applied, the significance level of p<0.05.
Results: The study found that 79.5% of students reported no social anxiety, 15.1% had mild social discomfort, 3.3% had moderate social phobia, and 2.2% had marked social phobia. Regarding BID, 63.8% of participants reported no concern, while 18.1% had mild concern, 9.6% moderate, and 8.5% marked concern. There was a statistically significant negative correlation between social anxiety and mental health quality of life (R=-0.440, p=0.001), as well as between body image dissatisfaction and quality of life (R=-0.486, p=0.001), indicating that higher levels of social anxiety and body dissatisfaction were associated with lower quality of life.
Conclusion: A significant proportion of medical students experience social anxiety and body image dissatisfaction, which negatively impact their quality of life. Targeted psychological support and mental health interventions are necessary to improve well-being and academic performance in this population.
Downloads
Metrics
References
Dyrbye LN, Thomas MR, Shanafelt TD. Medical student distress: causes, consequences, and proposed solutions. Mayo Clin Proc. 2005;80(12):1613-22.
Dyrbye LN, Thomas MR, Shanafelt TD. Systematic review of depression, anxiety, and other indicators of psychological distress among U.S. and Canadian medical students. Acad Med. 2006;81(4):354-73.
Dyrbye LN, Thomas MR, Power DV, Durning S, Moutier C, Massie FS Jr, et al. Burnout and serious thoughts of dropping out of medical school: a multi-institutional study. Acad Med. 2010;85(1):94-102.
Reta Y, Ayalew M, Yeneabat T, Bedaso A. Social Anxiety Disorder Among Undergraduate Students of Hawassa University, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ethiopia. Neuropsychiatr Dis Treat. 2020 Feb 26;16:571-577.
Liao Y, Knoesen NP, Castle DJ, Tang J, Deng Y, Bookun R, et al. Symptoms of disordered eat¬ing, body shape, and mood concerns in male and female Chinese medical students. Compr Psychiatry. 2010;51(5):516-23.
Rodgers RF, Salès P, Chabrol H. Psychological functioning, media pressure and body dis¬satisfaction among college women. Eur Rev Appl Psychol. 2010;60:89-95.
Kim H, Duval ER. Social interaction anxiety and depression symptoms are differentially related in men and women. Curr Psychol. 2022 Jun 27:1-12.
Baptista CA, Loureiro SR, de Lima Osório F, Zuardi AW, Magalhães PV, Kapczinski F, et al. Social phobia in Brazilian university students: prevalence, under-recognition and academic impairment in women. J Affect Disord. 2012;136(3):857-61.
Akbarbegloo M, Habibpur Z, Motaarefi H. Perception of body image in students and related factors. Social Sci. 2010;5(4):368-72.
Levinson CA, Rodebaugh TL. Social anxiety and eating disorder comorbidity: the role of negative social evaluation fears. Eat Behav. 2012;13(1):27-35.
Parsons EM, Straub KT, Smith AR, Clerkin EM. Body dysmorphic, obsessive-compulsive, and social anxiety disorder beliefs as predictors of in vivo stressor responding. J Nerv Ment Dis. 2017;205(6):471-9.
Lau HM, Sim KS, Chew QH, Sim K. Quality of Life and Clinical Correlates in Adults with Social Phobia: A Scoping Review. Clin Pract Epidemiol Ment Health. 2021 Dec 22;17:224-234.
Vannucci A, Ohannessian CM. Body Image Dissatisfaction and Anxiety Trajectories During Adolescence. J Clin Child Adolesc Psychol. 2018 Sep-Oct;47(5):785-795.
Quittkat HL, Hartmann AS, Düsing R, Buhlmann U, Vocks S. Body Dissatisfaction, Importance of Appearance, and Body Appreciation in Men and Women Over the Lifespan. Front Psychiatry. 2019 Dec 17;10:864.
Asher M, Asnaani A, Aderka IM. Gender differences in social anxiety disorder: A review. Clin Psychol Rev. 2017 Aug;56:1-12.
Schry AR, White SW. Understanding the relationship between social anxiety and alcohol use in college students: a meta-analysis. Addict Behav. 2013 Nov;38(11):2690-706.
Griffiths S, Murray SB, Krug I, McLean SA. The Contribution of Social Media to Body Dissatisfaction, Eating Disorder Symptoms, and Anabolic Steroid Use Among Sexual Minority Men. Cyberpsychol Behav Soc Netw. 2018 Mar;21(3):149-156.
McLean CP, Asnaani A, Litz BT, Hofmann SG. Gender differences in anxiety disorders: prevalence, course of illness, comorbidity and burden of illness. J Psychiatr Res. 2011 Aug;45(8):1027-35.
Hu H, Wu T, Wang S, Chen P, Zhang J, Zhao X. Association Between Family Structure and Anxiety Disorder Among Pre-schoolers: A Cross-Sectional Study in Urban Chongqing, China. Front Psychiatry. 2021 Oct 13;12:626377.
Lin Y, Jia G, Zhao Z, Li M, Cao G. The association between family adaptability and adolescent depression: the chain mediating role of social support and self-efficacy. Front Psychol. 2024 Mar 26;15:1308804.
Gupta H, Gupta S, Rozatkar AR. Magnitude of Substance Use and Its Associated Factors Among the Medical Students in India and Implications for Medical Education: A Narrative Review. Indian J Psychol Med. 2022 May;44(3):218-226.
Patel V, Burns JK, Dhingra M, Tarver L, Kohrt BA, Lund C. Income inequality and depression: a systematic review and meta-analysis of the association and a scoping review of mechanisms. World Psychiatry. 2018 Feb;17(1):76-89.
Kirkbride JB, Anglin DM, Colman I, Dykxhoorn J, Jones PB, Patalay P, Pitman A, Soneson E, Steare T, Wright T, Griffiths SL. The social determinants of mental health and disorder: evidence, prevention and recommendations. World Psychiatry. 2024 Feb;23(1):58-90.
Chew-Graham, Carolyn & Rogers, Anne & Yassin, Nuha. (2003). 'I wouldn't want it on my CV or their records': Medical students' experiences of help-seeking for mental health problems. Medical education. 2003;37: 873-80.
Eisenberg D, Downs MF, Golberstein E, & Zivin K (2009). Stigma and help seeking for mental health among college students. Medical Care Research and Review.2009; 66(5), 522–541.
Fatima M, Niazi S, Ghayas S. Relationship between self-esteem and social anxiety: Role of social connectedness as a mediator. Pak J Soc Clin Psychol. 2017;15(2):12-7.
Mayo-Wilson E, Dias S, Mavranezouli I, Kew K, Clark DM, Ades AE, Pilling S. Psychological and pharmacological interventions for social anxiety disorder in adults: a systematic review and network meta-analysis. Lancet Psychiatry. 2014 Oct;1(5):368-76.
Schneier FR, Heckelman LR, Garfinkel R, Campeas R, Fallon BA, Gitow A, Street L, Del Bene D, Liebowitz MR. Functional impairment in social phobia. J Clin Psychiatry. 1994 Aug;55(8):322-31.
Bergmann C, Muth T, Loerbroks A. Medical students' perceptions of stress due to academic studies and its interrelationships with other domains of life: a qualitative study. Med Educ Online. 2019 Dec;24(1):1603526.
..
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
You are free to:
- Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format
- Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially.
Terms:
- Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
- No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.
