Original Research Article
Year: 2019 | Month: April-June | Volume: 4 | Issue: 2 | Pages: 120-127
Social Phobia (Social Anxiety Disorder) In Medical and Paramedical First Year Undergraduates
Dr. Joylin Jovita Mascarenhas1, Dr. Abhijith Krishna2, Dr. Denzil Pinto3
1Assistant Professor, 3Professor, Dept of Psychiatry, Father Muller Medical College, Mangalore.
2Senior Registrar, Northwest Mental Health Services, Melbourne.
Corresponding Author: Dr. Joylin Jovita Mascarenhas
ABSTRACT
Background: Studies carried out in the past have shown that Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD) is a commonly occurring anxiety disorder & is associated with serious role impairment. Studies on Indian student population are scanty. Hence the current study was planned to gain information about the disorder among medical ¶medical students
Aims: To determine the frequency, subtype and severity of social phobia & its association with selected socio-demographic variables in medical & paramedical first year undergraduates.
Methods: 100 subjects, 50 from first year medical & 50 from first year paramedical course were evaluated. Tools used were General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) to rule out Axis I psychiatric disorders, MINI (Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview) Plus to diagnose Social Anxiety Disorder, Social Phobia Inventory (SPIN) to assess severity of SAD & Modified Kuppuswamy’s Social Scale to assess the Socio-economic status (SES).
Results: The frequency of SAD was found to be 25% among the students in a medical college. Non-generalized type & mild degree of Social Phobia were more common. Socio-demographic variables like sex, socio-economic status, location of residence & type of family correlated with higher frequency of psychopathology.
Conclusion: The frequency of Social Phobia in a medical college is high with no differences between the medical & paramedical students.
Key words: Social Anxiety disorder, Medical &Paramedical students, Socio-demographic variables.